NC Gov seeks $1 billion in immediate Helene relief (02-04-2025--Hour2)

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[00:00:28] More than $1 billion requested now by Gov. Josh Stein to immediately send to Western North Carolina to continue the post-Helene rebuilding efforts. This came from the governor himself in a press conference yesterday. He urged state legislative leaders to approve the funds. His predecessor, former Governor Roy Cooper, my good friend Ray, had asked the—by the way, I always have to—

[00:00:58] I have to tell people, like, I call him that because that's what Hillary Clinton and Kamala Harris called him on two different occasions. So they both referred to him as Ray, my good friend Ray Cooper. And so they must know him better. And that's what he goes by among his good friends. So anyway, Cooper had asked the legislature for $4 billion. So Stein is only asking for $1 billion.

[00:01:24] So obviously, Josh Stein hates Western North Carolina, right? I mean, that would be the conclusion I would be led to draw if a Republican came in. Isn't he cutting? Isn't that how GovCo does its accounting? You ask for $4 billion, but then you get $1 billion, you get $1 billion, and then you say you had a $3 billion cut? Isn't that how that messaging is supposed to work?

[00:01:55] Guys, I just need an update on the rules here, okay? So the legislature—this is, by the way, from Will Duran at WRAL. And see if you can detect a little bit of bias in the framing of the story, okay? The legislature never appeared to pay much heed to Cooper's request.

[00:02:17] Instead, passing a law in late 2024 that diverted billions of dollars more into private school tuition vouchers over the next several years. This is—this is, yeah, this is the Democrat Party talking point. This is what Democrats accuse the Republicans of doing, of not caring and not funding and all this.

[00:02:40] Just ignore the fact that the Republican legislature did, in fact, earmark like a billion dollars before this additional funding was passed. And they said we'll be coming back in the next legislative session and doing more funding. Cooper and Stein are Democrats, the legislatures led by Republicans. So far, the legislature has set aside roughly a billion dollars on Helene relief, not all of which has been spent yet. Why?

[00:03:09] Why is that? Will we get an answer in this WRAL piece? I don't know. Let's keep reading. Helene did an estimated $60 billion in damage to Western North Carolina, although I see another report saying it's $80 billion. Double the state government's entire annual budget. The state's annual budget is like $34 billion, and they're saying the damage from Helene was $60 billion. So if you took all the money that the state collects and gave it all to Western North Carolina,

[00:03:40] it still would take two years to fund all the recovery. And everything else in this state would not be funded. No employee salaries, right? No teacher salaries, no law enforcement, jails, like everything. Everything would be defunded. Colleges, all of it. Medicaid. No Democrats really love the Medicaid. North Carolina leaders are hoping for $20 billion or more from FEMA.

[00:04:10] By the way, there's no mention in the article about Donald Trump's promise that Western North Carolina will get what it needs. And he put Michael Watley, along with a bunch of other congressional leaders like Chuck Edwards and Virginia Foxx, he put them all in charge or on a committee that would be identifying costs and making proposals on getting the money out the door and all of that

[00:04:37] to lead the recovery effort at the federal level to help shepherd some of this stuff through. He doesn't mention any of that here. But state leaders are hoping to get money from FEMA and other federal agencies. But the bigger question for state leaders is how much to spend on top of the federal aid. Right. Well, we don't know what the feds are going to spend. And it's not, he says, the bigger question is how much to spend.

[00:05:06] Actually, that's one of the questions. There are other questions like when to spend it. And on what? Those are very important parts of this puzzle because you don't maximize the federal funding if you cover certain costs and needs early on with state funds.

[00:05:29] If you take a bunch of state money and throw it at some, you know, throw it at a project and that project would have qualified and received funding from the feds. They see that you've spent the money and they may turn around and say, well, we're not going to give it to you because you already spent it. Right. So there is there's this dance that has to occur where the state is trying to kind of game the system and the feds are trying to game the system. And the people who suffer are the people of Western North Carolina.

[00:05:59] Right. Because you have to do this dance. What are you going to fund? How much are you going to fund and where is it going to go? What's the timing? And oh, you already spent money on that. So we don't have to, you know, like that kind of game. Legislative leaders have appeared to prefer a strategy of waiting to what the to see what the federal government will do before committing more state resources. That will it it's not that they appear to prefer that strategy. They have said that because that's the way these things unfold.

[00:06:27] That's the system as it exists that could allow the state to focus on complementing federal relief efforts and avoiding duplication. But it might also necessitate waiting longer. Stein, however, said there are urgent rebuilding needs in Western North Carolina that need to be addressed immediately and specifically by the state government, which can move more quickly than the federal government. Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait, what? The state can move more quickly than the federal government on this stuff?

[00:06:55] What are you, some sort of MAGA now? Josh Stein? Also, I do question whether that's even true because not mentioned is NCORP. North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency. This is the office that Roy Cooper created in order to respond. And I use that term lightly. To the hurricanes down east, Hurricane Matthew and Hurricane Florence that hit eight and six years ago, respectively.

[00:07:25] And there are still almost a thousand people without homes. From those storms because NCORP has been. A failure and they just keep coming back asking for more and more and more money. They just had legislative hearings last week about this. And now the legislature is like, we're not going to keep funding you because all you do is come back and ask us for more money. And you don't even know when these people are going to be back in homes. Right.

[00:07:53] You remember what the former head before she was either pushed or jumped out of her position. Laura Hogshead said that, oh, we lost track of the accounting. That's what their excuse was. We lost track of their accounting. But just give us another quarter of a billion dollars and we'll totally get it right now. So bad is NCORP that Josh Stein has set up a separate agency, a different entity called Grow NC.

[00:08:26] Governor's recovery office for Western North Carolina or something like that. Grow NC. And so now we've got another state department or state agency. This one also under the control of a governor, but it's a new governor. So this time it's going to be totally different, I guess. And he wants all the money to flow into that agency. And he's like, we need a billion dollars. We need it right now. Give it to us right now. 150 million for rebuilding homes. 150 million for business grants.

[00:08:55] 100 million to local city and county governments that are running out of money after the storm. That'll help keep first responders paid and the schools open. 100 million for local farmers to clear their fields of debris, make repairs and protect against future flooding. 75 million to repair or rebuild private roads and bridges in addition to state-owned infrastructure. 30 million to rebuild downtown areas and business districts. 25 million for local residents for mortgage and rent assistance.

[00:09:25] 20 million for local food banks. 20 million for local residents. That the legislature did pass last or two months ago now. And that law did in fact contain more than 270 million dollars for Helene relief. But almost all of the money is being held in reserve and not yet allowed to be spent.

[00:09:55] Lawmakers wrote that the money could not be touched until they take another vote to release the funds. By the way, the reports out of Raleigh today. A little while ago, Brian Anderson reporting that it looks like lawmakers will be setting aside 500 million for Hurricane Helene relief. The measure is expected to be heard in committee tomorrow at two o'clock. So the legislature is doing this.

[00:10:22] But you cannot blame the legislature for being a little wary of pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into a state recovery agency considering the track record. All right. If you're listening to this show, you know, I try to keep up with all sorts of current events. And I know you do, too. And you probably heard me say, get your news from multiple sources. Why? Well, because it's how you detect media bias, which is why I've been so impressed with Ground News.

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[00:11:14] The Blind Spot feature shows you which stories get ignored by the left and the right. See for yourself. Check.ground.news slash Pete. Subscribe through that link and you'll get 15% off any subscription. I use the Vantage plan to get unlimited access to every feature. Your subscription then not only helps my podcast, but it also supports Ground News as they make the media landscape more transparent. All right. So Governor Josh Stein also announced a $30 million public-private partnership.

[00:11:43] Ooh, I love those. To fund grants for small businesses in Western North Carolina. Small businesses with an annual revenue of up to and including $2.5 million. Okay. So small businesses, annual revenue up to $2.5 million are eligible to apply for grants up to $50,000. Wait, it was just $50,000. Okay. All right. So, okay.

[00:12:14] You can get a grant for $50,000. From the Western North Carolina Small Business Initiative Grant Program, it'll also provide $3 million in funding to Baptists on Mission and Habitat for Humanity, two nonprofit organizations heavily involved in helping individual homeowners rebuild. Apparently, the public-private partnership is Dogwood Health Trust.

[00:12:42] This is according to WRAL. Dogwood Health Trust is the entity that was created when HCA, if I recall correctly, purchased the Mission Hospital System out west. And in order to get approval from the Attorney General, who was at that time Josh Stein, they had to create that trust fund or that trust.

[00:13:08] And HCA, which is the private hospital operator that was buying the public hospital system, the Mission System, they had to pour, I forget what the number was. I think it was like half a billion dollars or something into this trust, which would then spend money on health initiatives.

[00:13:32] I have not gone back to look and see, but if it's anything like we've seen out of the USAID program, I got a pretty good idea of what they were using the money for. And by the way, this is a common thing that Roy Cooper began doing. Mike Easley, I think, was the first one to start it with the Golden Leaf Fund, with the tobacco money settlement that came when the state joined the lawsuit against the tobacco companies.

[00:13:59] They got a bunch of money that was in the Golden Leaf Fund, and it was at the discretion. The spending was at the discretion of whoever got put onto this oversight body, which, if I recall correctly, was Mike Easley, the Attorney General, or maybe the governor or something at the time. And so then Roy Cooper did something similar. Josh Stein did something similar.

[00:14:24] So this is a familiar model to state Democrats in these offices. They sue, they get massive settlements, they put them into these little trusts or whatever, and then they dole out the money to, yes, people and organizations that are doing good work. And they all happen to be of the left. I'm sure it is completely coincidental. But that's the Dogwood Trust.

[00:14:51] So they're going to be administering the public-private partnership, the private side of it, I guess. So if you are a small business and you don't have revenue more than $2.5 million, you can get a grant from this PPP, public-private partnership, up to $50,000. So good luck to you. Here's a great idea. How about making an escape to a really special and secluded getaway in western North Carolina, just a quick drive up the mountain? And Cabins of Asheville is your connection.

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[00:16:12] And they have pet-friendly accommodations. Call or text 828-367-7068. Or check out all there is to offer at cabinsofashville.com and make memories that'll last a lifetime. Mark Robinson dropped his lawsuit against CNN. And potentially calling it quits on his political career. Not sure, we'll see.

[00:16:36] It's a stunning reversal, says WRAL, for a man once seen as a rising star in national conservative politics. Yeah, I don't know if that's the stunning reversal. I think people were pretty stunned when the September surprise came out. About all of the, you know, the porn-related stuff. I think that was the thing. And I feel the need to point this out once again. It's not that the left cares about that stuff.

[00:17:06] It's that they know the right does. And so that's why they made such a big deal about it. Because they wanted to make sure you knew about it so you would not vote for Mark Robinson. And it worked. I mean, you know, Robinson was, he was trailing in the polls before the, before the pieces came out.

[00:17:27] You know, first there was the story about the porn shop worker named Eddie Money, I think. Edward Money, I think was his really, that was his name. His last name was Money. He had it legally changed. It wasn't his given name. But whatever. And he made these claims that he would make all of these, you know, bootleg copies of videos for Robinson and such. And Robinson spent apparently thousands of dollars.

[00:17:55] And then he was accused in the CNN piece of using an alias, Mini Soldier was the name. Which I think has now been confirmed pretty well that that was in fact his, he uses that handle. He signed into, like, right before, I think it was like the last, well, maybe a Board of Ed meeting or something. But it was a, you know, a Zoom call or a Teams meeting or something. And he joined.

[00:18:24] And he joined using that name. So I think it's pretty clear that he did use the name. Now, whether or not somebody, and we went over all of this at the time. We had a lot of questions and him dropping this lawsuit, which he was slow to move on. He was slow to respond with, you know, a defamation suit and to produce any kind of evidence that it wasn't him.

[00:18:49] And he also then told his staff, like, we're not going to, he first told them, like, we're not going to, to dignify this stuff. We're just going to focus on the race and all of this. And his whole staff quit, remember? Which, like, to me, that's an indication that they did not have confidence that he was telling the truth about all of that. They never did bring out his sister-in-law.

[00:19:15] Who, like, according to those graphic posts on that nude Africa website, he had been sleeping with. He had been having affairs with. And so they never brought her out to rebut any of the claims. I don't know why. I'm just noting they never did. And that, I think, conveys a weakness in your response.

[00:19:39] So, he did finally get around to filing a lawsuit against CNN defamation lawsuit. But he has now dropped that. The former North Carolina lieutenant governor and Republican gubernatorial candidate had sued the network for defamation over its reporting late in 2024, right before the election, that Robinson allegedly wrote racist comments on a pornographic website.

[00:20:03] This was the, quote, black Nazi, which, when I read that post, I could see that being a troll job. But, like, if he wrote that, I could see him saying that because it was in a thread talking about Republicans are Nazis and, you know, all these people we hate are Nazis and all that. And so he's like, well, I'm a black Nazi then. Like, I could see that. But he never offered any kind of explanation because he said it wasn't him.

[00:20:31] So, on Friday, Robinson dismissed his lawsuit and said in a written statement that it would be futile to continue pursuing the allegation. But he said he was pleased that the work until now by his legal team has uncovered enough evidence to give his family tremendous closure and peace. But he won't share that with us, I guess. So, it just gives his family some closure and peace. And, by the way, I'm out. In the 2026 midterms, Tom Tillis is up for re-election.

[00:21:00] And according to this piece at WRAL, again, Robinson could, a lot of people were hoping that Robinson would challenge Tillis in the Republican primary. But Robinson said that he would not run for Senate or any other office in 2026 and he may never run for office again. He said, quote,

[00:21:30] Okay, so that door is still open just a little bit. But I do get this. If we assume that these were lies and Robinson is telling the truth, this is a devastating thing to do to somebody who is innocent. And that is one of the things that you're always supposed to ask yourself. As a journalist, you're supposed to ask, like, what is the implication of this story?

[00:22:00] When you are chasing a story, you are supposed to think, who can be harmed? So, you think through the ramifications and you weigh that. And every story is different. The state's first black lieutenant governor and the only black Republican to hold any major political position in North Carolina since Reconstruction. Robinson was scraping by in blue-collar jobs before he rose to political fame after video of an impassioned gun rights speech that he gave at a Greensboro City Council meeting in 2018.

[00:22:30] Went viral online. And the base loved him. Absolutely. He's a heck of a speaker. And maybe that's what he's going to go off and do. And he's going to, like, he has talked about that, like, he is at home preaching in a pulpit. And so maybe that's where his journey takes him next. I don't know. All right. I hope you had a happy holiday season. But tell me if something like this happened at your house.

[00:22:59] Your family and friends are gathered around. Maybe y'all are in the living room. You're laughing, swapping stories, reminiscing. And then somebody says, hey, dad, remember those old VHS tapes? Did you ever get them transferred? And then the room gets all quiet. All eyes are on dad who says, oh, you know, well, I've been meaning to, but I just haven't gotten around to it. Look, don't let those priceless memories sit in a box for another year. All right.

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[00:23:51] Trust the experts at Create a Video, conveniently located in Mint Hill, right off I-485, and online at createavideo.com. All right. About Tillis, people were hoping that maybe Mark Robinson could run against Tom Tillis. He says, Robinson says he has no plans to do so. Last hour, we talked a little bit about Roy Cooper, who seriously is considering a run against Tillis for that U.S. Senate seat, which is a shock to basically nobody.

[00:24:22] Russ says the problem with – oh, and then there was a recommendation from Andrew Dunn saying Tillis needs to do some of these different types of outreach efforts and the like, and he needs to start now. He can't just keep running his campaign the way he did before. And so one of those recommendations was for direct outreach.

[00:24:45] And Russ says that the problem with the direct outreach idea is that if Tillis is telling voters what he's actually doing day to day, that'll probably anger a lot of his constituents. Things like trying to torpedo Hegseth. He follows the Lindsey Graham model of campaigning to the right, but votes and actions that are almost always center or left.

[00:25:12] Good Wahoo says Tillis is the quintessential example of a politician that goes to D.C. and the swamp and either gets enamored or captured by the swamp and begins to take votes that make absolutely no sense. No sense based on their local, like state, voting history or how they have presented themselves as conservatives to their local constituency. Tillis, in my opinion, has been captured by the swamp as he has proven time and again that he votes for the swamp when it counts.

[00:25:42] The people of North Carolina that sent him to D.C. have deserved so much better and he shouldn't – he should never be reelected to any office. So this is going to be Tillis' challenge. He's got a Republican challenger already, although I've heard speculation also that that guy is set up by the quote-unquote establishment in order to be a stalking horse for any kind of a MAGA challenge.

[00:26:11] So I forget the guy's name and I don't know that to be true, just to be clear. I'm just telling you like that's the rumor I have heard is that this guy is already in, so this way it will help to fracture and splinter any kind of opposition in the GOP primary against Tillis. If you get three or four different MAGA kind of candidates, then they end up splitting the vote and Tillis gets passed and then he becomes the nominee. So I don't know.

[00:26:40] But he's got a clear – I think it's 40% or did they lower that to 30? I forget. It may not be 30% to avoid a runoff. So there's that. All right, back to Mark Robinson. He announced he's dropping his lawsuit against CNN.

[00:27:02] And according to WRAL, new campaign finance records made public show that Robinson's once formidable political fundraising ability withered in the wake of the CNN report. Really? Of course it did.

[00:27:18] In the crucial final stretch of 2024, which by the way, that is why those pieces drop, like they're timed to drop before the election in order to starve campaigns because it freezes everybody. And because Robinson's reaction was what it was, it never – the freeze never stopped.

[00:27:40] And so the fourth quarter, he raised just $159,000 while Stein pulled in $6.5 million. Robinson also faced more than 100 demands for refunds totaling just under $20,000 from people that had given him money but then wanted it back.

[00:28:02] At the same time, as his campaign began canceling appearances at parades and festivals all over the state, the campaign was able to claw back about $1,300 in refunds for itself. When it came to spending donors' money, the new fourth quarter records also show Robinson's campaign focus shifted from buying ads to hiring lawyers. Right? And that's sort of the one-two punch.

[00:28:29] And I would point out, and I said this at the time, this is the challenge of elevating a candidate that does a viral video, gives great speeches, but you don't really know anything about their past. And people say, oh, he's an outsider, he's a reformer, he's this and that, whatever. But the problem is you don't know his past, and that stuff finds its way out.

[00:28:58] And, I mean, he's not a Democrat here, people. Like, you knew that stuff was going to come out. And we kept hearing rumors, oh, there's much worse, there's much worse, it's going to come out. Yet they never pushed the stuff out. They never, like, there was never a kind of rumor campaign. People never, you know, like, released the stuff that they had. All we ever heard inside Republican circles was, oh, there's worse coming out. That was it. And that wasn't helpful either. All right, that'll do it for this episode. Thank you so much for listening.

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