NC’s red counties should vote blue after being mistreated by FEMA | Opinion
I feel sorry for NC’s western counties, which were promised FEMA rebuilding then ignored. I pray that the red counties will vote blue this November in an effort to flip Congress, rebuild FEMA and finally get the funds to rebuild their homes and infrastructure. And maybe address Medicaid and all the other social and governmental issues that are being torn apart.
Patrick Nalley, Durham
Environmental policy
With the big tax bill winding through Congress there are so many controversial topics that it’s easy to miss the existential trend that will hurt every future generation: retreating on climate-change legislation.
Canceling renewable energy tax credits will disrupt NC industries, like the giant Toyota battery plant in Liberty, and it will slow down the deployment of renewable technology. On top of that, despite taking funds away from low-income Americans, they are giving a bonus to the oil and gas industry by cutting the royalty rates for leases on federal land.
Daniel Oldman, Chapel Hill
Tip taxes
A tax break on tips, at the national and state levels, is a really bad idea. While some tipped workers are indeed low paid, that is also true of many non–tipped workers. As it is, people with low incomes don’t pay any, or very little, tax. It is also true that some tipped workers make very good incomes and giving them a tax break makes no sense and is unfair to other taxpayers. This is yet another example of political pandering from the Republican Party. The same can be said of the notion of not taxing overtime income. All people, rich and poor alike should pay their fair share of tax.
Peter Aitken, Chapel Hill
Fear mongering
The op-ed by Alkaya Windwood and Bill McKibben is typical Democratic fear mongering. Elon Musk and DOGE are not messing with Social Security. They are trying to save it. If nothing is done it will run out of money by 2033. Everyone will take a 23% cut in their benefits. Social Security disability will be insolvent before then. Previous administrations have kicked the can down the road. The sooner the problem is faced the better.
With Medicaid, it is now our third largest budget item at $900 billion. A program intended to help the truly needy now provides free health care to 25% of North Carolina citizens, including able bodied, childless adults. This obviously needs to be fixed. DEI needs to be gone. As the Supreme Court reminded, racial discrimination is illegal. And no one is proposing to repeal the Clean Air Act.
McKibben and company act surprised that Trump’s approval rating is not higher. Consider that the main stream media coverage of Trump has been mostly negative since day one. It’s not mentioned the Democrats approval rating is at an all time low in spite of mainstream media’s persistent cheerleading.
Vincent M. DiSandro, Hillsborough
Pulitzer finalist
Congratulations on being named a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in the category of breaking news reporting!
The joint coverage of the News & Observer and the Charlotte Observer on Hurricane Helene’s destruction across western North Carolina was truly exceptional, and I am pleased to see you recognized for your tireless work.
Journalists like you were a lifeline in a time of so much chaos. Your reporters went into areas without power, water, cellular service or passable roads. In just the first week you published over 100 articles, providing critical information to western North Carolinians in crisis.
Accurate and timely news is of the utmost importance in the wake of a disaster, and your reporting combated widespread misinformation about the storm and recovery process. Your daily stories, photographs and videos illuminated the dire needs of the region and spurred individual, organizational and governmental aid at a critical moment.
Again, congratulations on this deserved honor. I am grateful to everyone on your staff for working so hard on behalf of a community in crisis, and I wish you the best in your ongoing coverage.
Gov. Josh Stein, Raleigh
This story was originally published May 25, 2025 at 5:00 AM with the headline "NC’s red counties should vote blue after being mistreated by FEMA | Opinion."