4/25/25 Weekly Roundup
➡️ Next Thursday, May 1, pro-democracy organizers across our country are calling for a Stop the Billionaire Agenda day of action. In Asheville, there’ll be a rally at Pack Square Park, 3-6PM. If a May 1 pro-democracy event is happening in your county, anywhere in WNC, please email me a photo, an approximate head count, and any note you’d like to make, so I can spread the news. Thanks!
Scroll down below NC-Related National… for this week’s North Carolina state governmental and political news. And scroll clear to the bottom for this week’s seasonal photo and note from our WNC homestead. If your email service cuts this post short, you can read it online here.
If you see something in any NC News Digest post that’s incorrect … PLEASE let me know (email to ncnewsdigest@substack.com) so I can publish a correction. Truth matters. Thanks for your help.
Top stories are marked 💥
NC-Related National Politics & Policy
💥 National Democrats to boost investment in NC organizing ahead of 2026 midterms WRAL 4/24/25 "DNC Chair Ken Martin said the push to boost Democrats' funding and organizing in red states isn't just because of the 2026 midterms, but also the post-2030 redistricting that will shift national political power to states throughout the South…. The national Democratic Party has been giving state-level Democratic Party groups $12,500 a month, Martin said, but will soon add another $5,000 per month on top of that— a nearly 50% increase to the amount of funding going toward efforts to register voters, knock on doors, host events and do other grassroots organizing work. The new funding model will exist for at least the next several years."
Records show flaws in data used to back logging in Pisgah, Nantahala AVLWatchdog 4/23/25 "One model juiced nature’s demand for young forest; another ignored climate trends as Forest Service called for sixfold spike in harvests.... In its 2023 management plan for the Pisgah and Nantahala national forests, the Forest Service set a goal to allow logging on as many as 4,700 acres a year — an area nearly six times as large as called for in the previous plan." A court challenge to this plan is ongoing. 💥 Update: Forest Service buries online access to Pisgah, Nantahala management plan AVLWatchdog 4/24/25 "Disappearance comes after Watchdog’s story on agency’s use of flawed and misleading data."
Climate center in NC shuts down after lapse in funding from Trump administration Raleigh N&O 4/18/25 "The Southeast Regional Climate Center, which is housed at UNC-Chapel Hill, announced Thursday that its federal funding had lapsed, leading it to cease providing climate data.... In addition to North Carolina, SERCC serves five other states. It’s one of six such climate centers across the country." 💥 Update: Trump Administration Restores Funding for Critical Weather Data Centers NOTUS 4/21/25 "After letting crucial data disappear from the internet, the Trump administration reversed course and extended the contracts for NOAA’s regional climate centers." See also Raleigh N&O 4/24.
Federal workers speak out at NC labor forum Mountain Xpress 4/23/25 “The event [in Asheville] was part of a series of nationwide forums held by the AFL-CIO (American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations) as part of its Department of People Who Work for a Living campaign to fight threats to federal workers.”
Commentary: If Democracy Collapses in America, It Won’t Be the First Time Daily Yonder 4/22/25 "Anti-democratic efforts are not new in America. We don’t have to import history lessons from abroad to learn of dangers and atrocities a successful collapse of democracy can bring." Author is an NC native, article focuses on NC history.
Bad medicine? Funding cuts may be ‘fatal wound’ to these vital NC clinics. Carolina Public Press 4/18/25 "Federally qualified community health centers, including 39 in North Carolina, were designed with low-income, rural residents in mind.... Potential Medicaid slashes are looming and $230 million in federal health funding to North Carolina has already been lost from cuts made by the Trump administration."
Opinon: Federal policies are hurting NC farmers. So state leaders must have their backs. Cardinal & Pine 4/23/25 "The Trump administration’s spending cuts are making it tougher for small farmers to get by, NC Rep. Ray Jeffers writes. But a bill [H617] he introduced would “uplift our farmers regardless of what comes down from Washington.”"
Chuck Edwards watch:
Opinion: Rep. Chuck Edwards says traditional, social media can amplify political division Asheville C-T 4/20/25. Opinion piece by Edwards, who routinely and persistently refuses to speak with media he considers unfriendly to him.
Democracy Watch AVLWatchdog 4/23/25 "Consider a bill co-authored by Chuck Edwards ... and Jasmine Crockett.... The bill is the Economic Opportunity for Distressed Communities Act, which aims to entice developers with tax incentives to buy and revitalize hazardous sites for a community’s benefit." Scroll down at that link for this story; it’s below coverage of the disputed NC state Supreme Court seat.
Thom Tillis watch:
Senate Dems are getting bullish about prized recruit Roy Cooper Axios 4/22/25. Talk about whether he’ll run against Tillis next year.
Thom Tillis's man at the Pentagon PoliticsNC 4/21/25 "Tillis knew that Pete Hegseth was not qualified to run the Department of Defense. He told people Hegseth was a problem. Then, he voted for him anyway under pressure from Trumpworld."
See also Helene Recovery, below.
Helene Recovery
💥 ‘A Lot of Excuses’: Trump’s FEMA Uncertainty Is Frustrating Officials Navigating Hurricane Recovery NOTUS 4/23/25 "“It’s still not completely clear what the feds are gonna pay for and what they’re not,” one North Carolina state lawmaker said." Story notes that Republicans in state legislature have pushed back against funding recovery until federal funding is clarified.
💥 North Carolina will get $25M in latest round of USDA disaster aid NCNewsline 4/23/25 "The USDA aid will go toward economic development for “enterprises and farm producers,” rebuilding infrastructure, drinking and wastewater and technical assistance for towns needing aid." See also Carolina Journal 4/23.
People on the streets. Or in trailers. Or tents. It all points to a post-Helene housing crisis in Western NC. Carolina Public Press 4/18/25 "While problematic, evictions aren’t as high as many feared — one of the few good signs in Western NC, which has yet to recover from Helene."
Helene recovery workers abruptly removed from WNC amid DOGE cuts Asheville C-T 4/23/25 "Over 50 AmeriCorps workers helping Helene recovery efforts were told they would exit the program early on April 15."
High-ranking [federal] officials visit WNC, spotlight 5M cubic yards of Helene debris cleared WLOS 4/24/25
Updates on WNC parks projects delayed by Helene Mountain Xpress 4/23/25 "Major recreation projects in Black Mountain, Hendersonville and Woodfin got delayed by Tropical Storm Helene. Where do they stand seven months later?"
Good intentions gone wrong: Maconians sound alarm on excessive debris removal Smoky Mountain News 4/23/25. As post-Helene debris-removal "work gets underway [in] Macon County, some are worried that the United States Army Corps of Engineers and the companies they have contracted for the work are going too far, removing debris that predated Helene and had become part of the ecosystem, as well as excess amounts of vegetation from riparian zones and in some cases, live trees."
Few were insured against Helene’s floods. Those that were faced delays, frustrating hurdles NCNewsline 4/22/25
NC State Government
Update to ongoing federal litigation challenging a 2023 NC law restricting voting rights: Deal would end two legal challenges of NC’s ‘undeliverable mail provision’ Carolina Journal 4/22/25 "Two legal challenges of the disputed "undeliverable mail provision" in North Carolina election law would end under a proposed deal filed Tuesday in federal court.... Under the deal, election officials would not be able to discard a same-day voter's ballot under terms of the provision without giving the voter a chance to "remedy" the issue." A third challenge will continue in federal court.
Executive Branch
💥 Judges side with Stein in lawsuit over control of NC elections board, striking down GOP-led law NCNewsline 4/23/25 "‘It is the governor, and no one else, who must have sufficient control’ of Board of Elections, a panel of judges ruled." See also WRAL 4/23, AP 4/23, Raleigh N&O 4/23, Carolina Journal 4/23. GOP reaction: NCGA will challenge court decision blocking law limiting governor’s election oversight Carolina Journal 4/24/25, and [Labor Commissioner Luke] Farley: No kings, no second-class executive offices Center Square 4/24/25
Stein seeks injunction to block Utilities Commission appointment change Carolina Journal 4/22/25 "Without court action, the process of shifting an appointment from the governor to State Treasurer Brad Briner would start May 1. By July 1, Stein would no longer control a majority of Utilities Commission appointments. The governor labels the appointments change unconstitutional." The change was made during a lame-duck state legislative session in 2024, after the November election but before the GOP lost its veto-proof majority.
State Legislature
For more info on bills currently going through the NC legislature, see the Legislation to Watch post in the archive, which I’ve updated to include news published up to today.
💥 The state legislature has been off this week, scheduled to return Monday April 28. Next week’s legislative calendar is already busy; click here to see which bills are scheduled for hearings.
Pulling the state down by its own bootstraps: How 15 years of budget cutting has impacted NC NCNewsline 4/22/25
New reserve funds appropriated in state Senate budget proposal Carolina Journal 4/24/25. Analysis of budget passed by NC Senate.
Permitless concealed carry proposal still parked in House rules Center Square 4/23/25 "As the General Assembly resumes its long session next week ahead of the May 8 crossover date, still parked in a rules committee having passed one chamber is a proposal for North Carolina to join more than half the country with constitutional carry." S50 / H5
Blue, Mayfield join Republicans favoring repeal of certificate of need laws Center Square 4/21/25 "Former minority party leader Dan Blue of Wake County and Julie Mayfield of Buncombe County are on record as the lone Democrats in the North Carolina Senate favoring repeal of what critics say are burdens imposed by certificate of need laws." S370 / H455
See also NC-Related… and Helene Recovery, both above.
State Courts
Disputed Seat on NC Supreme Court
💥 US appeals court pauses NC elections board action in the Supreme Court election case NCNewsline 4/23/25 "Federal District Judge Richard Myers II told the Board of Elections earlier this month to prepare to act on the state high court’s instructions to notify some military and overseas absentee voters they need to supply photo ID for their votes in last fall’s election for a seat on the high court to count. Tuesday’s 2-1 Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals order stops that action before Myers makes a decision on Riggs’ request for a preliminary injunction…. Judges Paul V. Niemeyer, appointed by President George H.W. Bush, and Toby J. Heytens, appointed by President Joe Biden, decided to grant the stay. Judge A. Marvin Quattlebaum Jr., appointed by President Donald Trump, dissented." See also WRAL 4/23, Raleigh N&O 4/22, Carolina Journal 4/22, AP 4/23.
💥 Register here for an hour-long Zoom update on Griffin vs Riggs: “Join Justice Allison Riggs, the NC Democratic Party, Down Home, and Carolina Federation … at 5:30pm to find where things stand and how YOU can stay ready for action.”
Stakes in Griffin-Riggs case go beyond battle for one NC Supreme Court seat Carolina Public Press 4/22/25 "Challenged voter analysis shows flipping outcome unlikely under current rules, but Griffin-Riggs battle about more than single outcome."
Democracy Watch AVLWatchdog 4/23/25 Highlights NC SC Justice Anita Earls’s vehement dissent against the court’s willingness to back Griffin’s challenge. Earls is up for reelection in 2026.
NC voters wait while a battle over ballots they cast six months ago rages NCNewsline 4/24/25 "GOP effort to overturn the results of last November’s state Supreme Court election has left many voters frustrated and confused, while others remain unaware."
Ad calls on Judge Griffin to concede November election, former NC Governor McCrory speaks out CBS17 4/21/25
Legal battle over NC ballots now plays out on two fronts with Supreme Court seat on the line WRAL 4/18/25 "With the NC Supreme Court's ruling in Jefferson Griffin's favor now spawning multiple other lawsuits, it's likely that the U.S. Supreme Court will eventually be asked to step in and have the final say."
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I don’t know why I love beech trees so much, but I do. Here are catkins on a beech tree near our house yesterday:
