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VOLUME 3 ISSUE 39
WWW.NSJONLINE.COM |
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2018
“It’s a Cinderella story. This tree, when it was young, didn’t look that good. I guess, in the end, that particular tree gets to go to the big ball.” Larry Smith, Mountain Top Frasier Fir Newland, NC
MANUEL BALCE CENETA | AP PHOTO
Trump, first lady accept official White House Christmas tree WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump greeted the Smith family from Avery County N.C. as the Trumps received the official White House Christmas tree. The 19-foot tree was grown on Larry Smith’s Mountaintop Frasier Firs in Newland, N.C. in Avery County. The U.S. Marine Corps brass band played “O Christmas Tree” as horses pulled a wagon carrying the tree up the White House driveway to the North Portico. The fir is headed for the Blue Room, where it will become the centerpiece of Christmas at the White House. Volunteers spend the weekend after Thanksgiving decorating the mansion. Smith’s farm provided the tree after winning the National Christmas Tree Association’s annual contest.
the Wednesday
NEWS BRIEFING
State unemployment rate down from a year ago Raleigh N.C.’s seasonally-adjusted October unemployment rate was 3.6 percent, a decrease of 0.2 percent from September’s revised rate and a decrease of 0.9 percent from a year ago. The national unemployment rate is currently 3.7 percent.
North Carolina leads in business climate Raleigh For the fourth consecutive year, North Carolina ranks as the No. 2 state in which to do business, according to “Site Selection” magazine. The state fell two points behind topranked Georgia. Rounding out the top five spots in the ranking are Texas, Ohio, Tennessee and South Carolina.
Official: 911 call about active shooter prompts lockdowns Carrboro Officials say a 911 call reporting an active shooter near Carrboro Elementary School and a daycare turned out to be false. Carrboro Police Capt. Chris Atack said the department received a 911 call around 11 a.m. Tuesday reporting an active shooter but said police “have no reason to believe this is a legitimate active shooter,” adding that an investigation into the call is underway. Parents were directed to town hall to pick up their children.
INSIDE N.C. Treasurer weighs in on the income tax cap amendment Jones & Blount
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JOURNaL ELEVATE THE CONVERSATION
Officers ready for Thanksgiving travelers The North Carolina Highway Patrol says it will station its troopers every 20 miles along Interstate 40 during the Thanksgiving holiday By Donna King North State Journal
Thomas Farr could come for a vote next week By David Larson North State Journal WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Senate could vote next week on the appointment of Thomas Farr as judge in the Eastern District of North Carolina. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) filed cloture Friday on President Donald Trump’s nomination of Farr for the federal bench. Farr, a former staff member of the late Sen. Jesse Helms (R-N.C.), was a lead lawyer defending the state in the fight over redistricting and is opposed by the NAACP and congressional Democrats. “Had the White House deliberately sought to identify an attorney in North Carolina with a more hostile record on African-American voting rights and workers’ rights than Thomas Farr, it could hardly have done so,” the Congressional Black Caucus tweeted. The NAACP hosted a press call on Tuesday to condemn Farr and discuss their plans to resist his nomination. The announcement for the call, led by North Carolina pastor William Barber, said, “Thomas Farr has fought against civil rights for decades, compiling a long record of hostility to voting rights and workers’ rights in particular.” Much of the opposition to Farr is based on his role representing the Republican-led N.C. legislature in court as they fought to uphold a bill making multiple changes to elections in the state. The bill was struck down by a three-judge panel of the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals, consisting of two Barack Obama appointees and one Bill Clinton appointee, who claimed it targeted African-American voters. Republicans deny this was the intent of measures like requiring photo ID to vote and eliminating Sunday voting. Sen. Dan Bishop (R-Mecklenburg), chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Judicial Reform and Redistricting and vice-chairman of the Senate’s Select Committee on Elections, told North State Journal partisan smears are at the root of the opposition. See FARR, page A8
“Had the White House deliberately sought to identify an attorney in North Carolina with a more hostile record on AfricanAmerican voting rights and workers’ rights than Thomas Farr, it could hardly have done so,” The Congressional Black Caucus tweeted
RALEIGH — This Thanksgiving weekend is expected to be the busiest since 2005, with an estimated 2 million people in North Carolina hitting the roads. That is an increase of 5 percent over last year. The State Highway Patrol will participate in the interstate Thanksgiving I-40 Challenge, which places officers approximately every 20 miles along N.C. highways looking for drivers going
too fast or driving recklessly. Seven other states on the I-40 corridor will also participate in the challenge for the holiday weekend. Patrol commander Col. Glenn McNeill Jr. said the mission of the campaign is to reduce needless collisions in hopes of reporting no fatalities across the state. The campaign starts Wednesday and concludes Sunday and is aimed at ensuring safety on the road. “No one wants to get that dreaded call that a loved one has been killed, especially over the holidays,” said 1st Sgt. Michael Baker of the N.C. Highway Patrol. Baker recommends that drivers allow time for delays, map out alternative routes in case traffic is See TRAVEL, page A2
Roy Cooper pipeline deal to go under the legislative microscope By Donna King North State Journal RALEIGH — Senate Leader Phil Berger is stepping up the pressure on the state’s executive branch nearly two and a half months after a legislative committee asked the governor’s staff for information regarding the $58 million fund Gov. Roy Cooper arranged with the utilities building the Atlantic Coast Pipeline. Berger’s press office’s Twitter account, @SenBergerPress, tweeted at Cooper’s communications director, Sadie Weiner, on Monday: “@Sadieweiner it’s been 73 days since the #NCGA last sent questions about the ACP permit process and still no response from @ RoyCooperNC. As a Dem sen on the committee said “The questions which have been asked I would like to see addressed and I would like to see answered.”#ncpol” A legislative oversight committee voted Wednesday to expand their investigation of the fund amid concerns from both Democrats and Republicans. The deal appears to some to be a pay-to-play arrange-
ment after it was announced the same day that a key environmental permit was issued. According to a memorandum of understanding released in January by Cooper, the fund would be controlled by a board appointed by the governor and the money would not pass through the state coffers. The committee will hire an outside investigator and demand government records. “This thing just doesn’t look or smell very well,” said Senate Majority Leader Harry Brown (R-Jacksonville). “And yet we’ve gotten nowhere from this administration.” Berger’s press office says the administration is “stonewalling” the legislature and avoiding answering questions or fulfilling their document requests made more than 70 days ago. Committee members, including some Democrats, also suggested subpoenas might become necessary. “I think we should have information provided that would clarify ambiguity,” said Sen. Floyd McKissick, a Durham County Democrat, addSee PIPELINE, page A8