Latest news with #ChuckEdwards
Yahoo
29-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
US Congress seats: Another Democrat launches campaign to represent NC 11th district
At least one more Democratic candidate is planning to run to represent North Carolina's 11th Congressional District, a seat currently held by U.S. Rep. Chuck Edwards, a second-term Republican from Henderson County. Jacob Lawrence, 26, filed a statement of candidacy form with the Federal Elections Commission on July 21. He released a tongue-in-cheek campaign video July 28 playing on his relative youth in politics, saying he was 'hip enough for your grandkids,' yet 'square enough for your grandparents.' Lawrence is originally from Mooresville, which is north of Charlotte in Iredell County, in North Carolina's 10th Congressional District. He earned an economics degree from Brigham Young University, he said. Most recently, Lawrence said he has been working in Nairobi, Kenya as project manager for the United Nations World Food Programme, helping with food security initiatives. He is currently looking for an apartment in Asheville and plans to campaign full time, he told the Citizen Times on July 25. Describing his run as one that falls into the 'concerned citizen' type, Lawrence said he will focus on 'upstream issues' like political disenfranchisement and corruption, specifically gerrymandering and campaign finance reform, if elected. 'Like a lot of people, I'm aware there's a lot of issues to be faced — a lot of issues to be tackled,' Lawrence said. 'And while I might not be the perfect person, you look at who's currently sitting in office, and you say, 'Well, I can't do a worse job?'' Lawrence also said he'll focus on local issues like Tropical Storm Helene recovery and veterans' affairs Earlier in July, Jamie Ager, CEO and co-founder of Hickory Nut Gap Farm, confirmed he would also be vying for the seat. 'My hope is to bring working class roots to the Democratic party,' Ager said July 15, citing his business experience and deep roots in the community. In June, Moe Davis, a retired Air Force colonel-turned author and podcaster, announced his bid for Congress. Davis, 66, ran for the same seat in 2020, losing to Republican Madison Cawthorn. Chris Harjes, a Buncombe County real estate investor and nurse practitioner, announced his run for Congress in May. Zelda Briarwood and Marcus Blankenship have also announced their bids for the seat. North Carolina's 11th Congressional District is typically a Republican stronghold. The last Democrat to win was former NFL quarterback Heath Shuler in 2006. Shuler defeated Charles Taylor, a long-time Republican member of Congress from Transylvania County. More: Jamie Ager, Hickory Nut Gap Farm CEO and co-founder, running for Congress More: Roy Cooper, former NC governor, launches US Senate campaign More: Asheville Citizen Times staff recognized for journalism excellence in Helene coverage Jacob Biba is the Helene recovery reporter at the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA TODAY Network. Email him at jbiba@ This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: US Congress: Another Democratic candidate launches bid for NC seat Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
14-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
2,500 gather in downtown Hendersonville for "No Kings" protest of federal actions
HENDERSONVILLE - Protesters filled Hendersonville's Historic Courthouse Square June 14 for a 'No Kings' rally in protest of what many attendees characterized as federal abuses of power. Attendees criticized immigration enforcement, proposed cuts to social services including Medicare and Social Security and the federal response to other demonstrations, including in Los Angeles, where the Trump administration deployed the U.S. Marine Corps that day, according to USA TODAY reporting. People carried signs that read 'No king, no dictator, no oligarchs,' and '$$$ for vets, not parades,' referring to proposed cuts to Veterans Affairs benefits and a June 14 military parade in Washington. They chanted 'Power to the people, Chuck Edwards is a coward,' referring to a perception among his critics that the U.S. House Republican is unwilling to push back against President Donald Trump's agenda. Organizer Laura Bannister told the Times-New that, after consulting with the Hendersonville Police Department, she estimated around 2,500 people attended – five times the number that had turned out for a protest she organized in February. She had been worried about counter-protesters disrupting the event, but few actually showed up and 'the police did a great job' of keeping the two camps separate, she said. Joan Kershner, 84, told the Times-News that she was born in the U.S. two years after her parents escaped Nazi Germany in 1938. 'Would I be a citizen under some people's ideas about citizenship? I don't know,' she said. 'To ostracize (immigrants) and treat them as badly as they're being treated is morally wrong and bad for our country.' Denise Cumbee Long works for the nonprofits Literacy Connection and True Ridge, which teach English and provide legal assistance and other services to immigrants. Many immigrants she works with afraid of 'coming out, going to their jobs, (because they're) worried about being picked up by ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement),' including when they go to Citizenship and Immigration Services hearings in Charlotte. 'We've heard of some people who are not taking public transport anymore, who don't want to drive,' she said. 'Some people are afraid to send their kids to school.' At around 11:15 a.m., organizers paused the protest to hold a moment of silence for Minnesota Democratic state Rep. Melissa Hortman, who Reuters reported was shot and killed that morning, along with her husband, in what authorities say was a political assassination. 'I marched in Memphis. I never thought I'd have to do this again,' Fannie Smith, 68, told the Times-News soon after, seeming to refer both to political violence and the need for civil rights activism related to immigration. Smith, a former employee of the Executive Office for Immigration Review, said that she would march to the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, the site of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s 1968 assassination, on MLK Day starting in the 1980s. 'People think that small towns don't care, a red county doesn't care,' she said. 'But there are people here that do care. We love our country. We love our flag.' Holbart Toledo, 42, came to the United State from Ecuador 25 years ago. 'I'm more worried about people around me, because I've been in this country for so long, and I love the country and I feel safe,' he said, but he still carries his passport with him, just in case. 'With all this happening … You don't even know now anymore what can happen.' The Henderson County Sheriff's Office provided the Times-News a brief written statement saying that the June 14 protest was respectful of the community and of law enforcement, but did not address criticism of its cooperation with ICE. Rep. Edwards' office couldn't be reached for comment by deadline. More: Photos: 'No Kings' protest draws thousands to downtown Asheville George Fabe Russell is the Henderson County Reporter for the Hendersonville Times-News. Tips, questions, comments? Email him at GFRussell@ This article originally appeared on Hendersonville Times-News: Hendersonville "No Kings" protest draws 2,500, organizers say
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Chuck Edwards, Thom Tillis introduce bills to move Air Force crash site marker
North Carolina Congressional leaders introduced legislation last week that would allow for moving a memorial dedicated to a U.S. Air Force crew killed in an accident more than 40 years ago. Nine Air Force members died August 31, 1982, when their plane crashed in Cherokee and Nantahala national forests, which abut along the North Carolina-Tennessee state line, while on a training mission from Charleston Air Force Base. U.S. Rep. Chuck Edwards and U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis put forward companion bills that would facilitate relocating a memorial dedicated to them closer to 'where the crash actually happened, and the majority of the wreckage was recovered,' Tillis said in a May 23 news release. 'This bill will give the families of crew members who died in this tragic accident the authority needed to work with the U.S. Forest Service to move the memorial to a more accessible site, keeping the memories of our nation's fallen soldiers alive for years to come,' Edwards said in a May 23 news release. He, along with North Carolina Democratic U.S. Rep. Don Davis, put forward the Stratton Ridge Air Force Memorial Act May 23. Edwards said that the proposed site for the memorial is Stratton Ridge rest area in Graham County, which is closer to the site of the crash than the current granite marker on private land in Cherokee and Nantahala national forests. He said that it's also more prominent and accessible to the public. This legislation is a crucial step in ensuring these heroes are properly remembered in perpetuity at the actual crash site,' Tillis said in a release. 'Western North Carolina will never forget the tragedy that occurred in 1982 when nine Air Force crew members lost their lives in our district,' Edwards said. More: Rep. Chuck Edwards releases report for Helene recovery and FEMA reform More: Protest targets Rep. Edwards' support for budget that could threaten Medicare, VA funding More: Hendersonville man in coma but stable after Memorial Day weekend crash in Mills River George Fabe Russell is the Henderson County Reporter for the Hendersonville Times-News. Tips, questions, comments? Email him at GFRussell@ This article originally appeared on Hendersonville Times-News: NC lawmakers move to allow relocation of Air Force accident memorial
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
NC Congressman seeks to expand veteran services, data about suicides
RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — On this Memorial Day, North Carolina Congressman Chuck Edwards says the Department of Veterans Affairs needs to do more to protect veterans, and he's introducing legislation to help. 'These are folks that have served our country, that deserve the very best that we can give them,' said Edwards (R-11). The Justice for America's Veterans and Survivors Act calls on the Department of Veterans Affairs to properly document causes of death for veterans across the country and note if suicide was a factor in an annual report. Current VA data shows on average, 22 veterans commit suicide every single day. Edwards says better reporting will help Congress pass legislation to improve mental health treatment for veterans and help surviving family members receive benefits they deserve. 'Given the statistics that we see in America today of so many veterans taking their own lives, it just makes sense to work to get more underneath the data and to fully understand,' Edwards said. With the legislation, Edwards said he is also planning visits to every military base in North Carolina to hear from servicemembers and their families about what they need. 'After they've taken risks to serve our great nation, we need to do everything we can to make sure that they are healthy once they return into normal society,' Edwards said. The bill now heads to a committee on Capitol Hill where Edwards says he is expecting wide support for it. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
NC Congressman seeks to expand veteran services, data about suicides
RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — On this Memorial Day, North Carolina Congressman Chuck Edwards says the Department of Veterans Affairs needs to do more to protect veterans, and he's introducing legislation to help. 'These are folks that have served our country, that deserve the very best that we can give them,' said Edwards (R-11). The Justice for America's Veterans and Survivors Act calls on the Department of Veterans Affairs to properly document causes of death for veterans across the country and note if suicide was a factor in an annual report. Current VA data shows on average, 22 veterans commit suicide every single day. Edwards says better reporting will help Congress pass legislation to improve mental health treatment for veterans and help surviving family members receive benefits they deserve. 'Given the statistics that we see in America today of so many veterans taking their own lives, it just makes sense to work to get more underneath the data and to fully understand,' Edwards said. With the legislation, Edwards said he is also planning visits to every military base in North Carolina to hear from servicemembers and their families about what they need. 'After they've taken risks to serve our great nation, we need to do everything we can to make sure that they are healthy once they return into normal society,' Edwards said. The bill now heads to a committee on Capitol Hill where Edwards says he is expecting wide support for it. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
