1/ After a natural disaster, people often turn to FEMA for housing aid. Income is not supposed to play a role. A @propublica/@TheAssemblyNC analysis found in rural counties hardest-hit by Helene, the highest-income owners typically received more housing aid. www.propublica.org/article/fema...

% of US men under 30 who say legal sports betting is a *bad thing* for society 22% in 2022 47% in 2025 No other demographic group has seen a bigger increase.

Must read: The Arduous and Unequal Fight to Get FEMA Aid After Hurricane Helene, by @jenniferberryhawes.bsky.social @renlarson.bsky.social w/ @theassemblync.bsky.social

One year ago, Hurricane Helene hit North Carolina. Since then, people who lost their homes have turned to FEMA for aid. Some are still slogging through red tape. @jenniferberryhawes.bsky.social @renlarson.bsky.social w/ @theassemblync.bsky.social

NEW: Reuters examined more than 500 local-court cases filed since the start of Trump's takeover of policing in D.C. Nearly half of the cases involving federal agents have been for comparatively minor charges, including public drinking and marijuana. www.reuters.com/legal/govern...

Charlotte-area deputies hid their identities with face coverings when they arrested 10 people on drug charges earlier this month, mirroring a technique now used by federal ICE agents. www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/c... (gift link)

This is a powerful piece of journalism. “… each of the men were not only losing time, they were losing loved ones. They were missing major life moments that can never be recovered. Not only did the men say they were tortured during these four months; their families said they were too.”

In the Small Digital Organization Sports Reporting category, @renlarson.bsky.social won for her story on the US Performance Center. www.theassemblync.com/politics/oly...

Proud reporter moment. @theassemblync.bsky.social was awarded its first National Murrow Award. And it won its second. “We must not confuse dissent with disloyalty. When the loyal opposition dies, I think the soul of America dies with it.”

BREAKING: ICE Adds Random Person to Group Chat, Exposes Details of Manhunt in Real-Time 🔗 www.404media.co/ice-adds-ran...

BREAKING: With #2030Census prep already underway, President Trump says he's instructed Commerce Dept to "immediately begin work" on a "new" census that excludes people living in the states without legal status from a count the 14th Amendment says must include “whole number of persons in each state”

I'm quoted in this great piece diving into the closure of St. Andrews University in North Carolina and what it means for the local community. The Assembly is one of the best local sources for higher ed coverage in the country. www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...

[email protected] knocked it out of the park reporting on #ncpol's most powerful man. “You know as well as I do that you don’t scrape a pimple off a gnat’s ass w/o Bill Rabon & Phil Berger’s permission in the NC Senate,” state Sen. Bobby Hanig said. www.theassemblync.com/politics/phi...

Registration Recovery Program July 23 Update for #ncpol: 🗳️ 99,989 people remain on the RRP list 🗳️ 3,285 people have cured their registration or dropped off the list for other reasons. 🗳️ 6 voters have been added to the list For background & details: www.oldnorthstatepolitics.com/2025/07/an-a...

A question asked in June 2025 Catawba-YouGov Poll of 1K North Carolinians was "how important is the principle that regardless of which political party is in power, government agencies are not used to monitor, attack, or punish political opponents." NC Republicans: 88% very/somewhat important #ncpol

ICYMI -- Today, members of NC's county elections boards will take the oath of office. Republicans now have 3 of 5 seats on local boards, but despite gaining 100 seats statewide, many GOP incumbents aren't returning, & some say they were pushed out. #ncpol www.theassemblync.com/politics/ele...

The latest from my colleague @renlarson.bsky.social: Former GOP County Election Officials Say They Were Forced Out www.theassemblync.com/politics/ele...

🚨 NEW: 1/ As Republicans take control of North Carolina's election administration, ~1 in 4 incumbent GOP members weren't reappointed. Some former local board members say they were pushed out for not taking direction from county party leadership. #ncpol www.theassemblync.com/politics/ele...

@renlarson.bsky.social found that despite the number of GOP seats on county boards of election increasing from 200 to 300, 1 in 4 counties will lose an incumbent GOP member and many new board chairs lack experience with election administration. #ncpol www.theassemblync.com/politics/ele...

open.substack.com/pub/anderson... Not much you can say about this proposal except it continues aid to western North Carolina. It also allows the new GOP executive director of the NC Board of Elections to hire 7 political appointees and outside attorneys because Jeff Jackson is a Democrat

Than you @theassemblync.bsky.social for highlighting the continuing post-Helene struggles in Brevard - symptomatic of all of WNC -

Bypassing the #UNC and community college systems, the #ncga has appropriated $40 million to #Montreat College for cybersecurity education programs. The return so far has been minimal, this story says. www.theassemblync.com/education/hi... #avlnews #ncpol www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...

Trump has a very short attention span, gets frustrated when things don’t work quickly, and tends to demand fast changes in policy. That can be a threat to his own agenda as well as to the constitutional order, @dgraham.bsky.social writes in The Atlantic Daily.

@renlarson.bsky.social coming in from the top rope with this absolutely killer story www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...

BREAKING The North Carolina State Board of Elections appointed its new director, Sam Hayes, a former Republican candidate for state Attorney General and general counsel for Republican Speaker of the House since 2021. Hayes replaces director Karen Brinson Bell on a 3-2 partisan vote. #ncpol

@theassemblync.bsky.social reported on the disappearance of Julio Zambrano, one of 2 NC fathers sent to El Salvador's CECOT prison. @renlarson.bsky.social & @jeffreybillman.bsky.social spoke with @TimBoyumTV about Julio's case for @NCCapTonight . Video here: spectrumlocalnews.com/nc/triad/cap...

This holiday, read this in-depth story about Julio Zambrano Perez deported without evidence or due process to the confinement center in El Salvador. He has been held incommunicado for over a month.

2 weeks ago, a team of 55 public health workers were set to knock doors in Buncombe County, asking residents impacted by Helene about food insecurity, unsafe drinking water and toxic chemical exposure. Then DOGE called for layoffs at the CDC team. #ncpol www.wfae.org/politics/202...

Prince George's County was 80% white when the federal workforce was integrated. Today, PG and Charles County are America's most affluent majority-Black counties with~20% of Black workers there being federal employees. Trump's cuts now threaten generations of progress. story👇🏾

In a new filing, Abrego Garcia's lawyers accuse the Trump admin of twisting the Supreme Court's ruling last week and refusing to ask for Abrego Garcia's return "To give any meaning to the Supreme Court’s order, the Government should at least be required to request the release of Abrego Garcia"

This is why I subscribe to @theassemblync.bsky.social. Good work, @renlarson.bsky.social & @jeffreybillman.bsky.social

NEW: @nytimes.com reports that the Trump admin is moving to strip hundreds of thousands of immigrants of Social Security Numbers they got when they were granted work authorization, repurposing a "death master file" to try to erase their previous legal presence in the United States.

From pledging to close Rikers to housing ICE detainees there in eight years www.nytimes.com/2025/04/09/n...

Shital Patel got an email last Sept. appointing her as the Dental Board's lone consumer-member. Instead board members worked to replace her w/ the widow of a dentist. “I was probably the most qualified person to be a patient advocate” @j-still.bsky.social theassemblync.com/politics/den... #ncpol

Here is a deeper look at the case of Julio & his family. They are still looking for pro bono legal representation. Please let me know if you are close to Charlotte, NC & can help. By @jeffreybillman.bsky.social + @renlarson.bsky.social @theassemblync.bsky.social www.theassemblync.com/politics/tru...

A must-read from @renlarson.bsky.social and @jeffreybillman.bsky.social: The Disappearance of Julio Zambrano www.theassemblync.com/politics/tru...

A Venezuelan asylum seeker was living in North Carolina legally. He has no criminal record, and there’s no evidence he was a gang member. So why did the Trump administration send him to a brutal prison in El Salvador? @jeffreybillman.bsky.social @renlarson.bsky.social @theassemblync.bsky.social

BREAKING @theassemblync.bsky.social spoke w/ families of two N.C. fathers legally in the U.S., apprehended by ICE & deported to CECOT in El Salvador. The families think its b/c: 1 They're Venezuelan 2 They have tattoos 🖊️ @jeffreybillman.bsky.social & me #ncpol www.theassemblync.com/politics/tru...

BREAKING @theassemblync.bsky.social spoke w/ families of two N.C. fathers legally in the U.S., apprehended by ICE & deported to CECOT in El Salvador. The families think its b/c: 1 They're Venezuelan 2 They have tattoos 🖊️ @jeffreybillman.bsky.social & me #ncpol www.theassemblync.com/politics/tru...

60 Minutes could find no criminal records for 75% of the Venezuelans the U.S. sent to a notorious mega-prison in El Salvador. https://cbsn.ws/4clubLP

1/ A year ago, I was examining North Carolina’s budget when two unusual items caught my attention–spurring an investigation that reveals how political and religious favoritism by lawmakers can harm some of society’s most vulnerable people. #ncpol @propublica.org www.propublica.org/article/nort...

Really excellent @stevevladeck.bsky.social post looking at data on Trump lawsuits. Bottom line is that judges of all ideological stripes and all sorts of different venues are ruling against Trump at historic levels — because his policies are unusually unlawful www.stevevladeck.com/p/136-settin...

depending on who you ask, ralph baric is either our best hope for preventing another pandemic or the reason the last one started. with science funding up in the air, i looked at the most disputed lab in the country www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...

N.C. Republicans are calling to end diversity, equity, and inclusion in state hiring. But when asked for examples of such policies, they were largely mum. One "DEI" policy asks employees to "treat people fairly" The last known quota was in 1996. #ncpol #ncga www.theassemblync.com/politics/nc-...

Again, I don't know how the Onion will survive this headline environment: www.cbsnews.com/news/egg-pro...

Allow us to introduce our first-ever “bracket sale,” an opportunity for you to save 50% on any Assembly subscription and show your school spirit in the process—yes, even if your favorite school’s team isn’t playing any postseason basketball. Support your team now www.theassemblync.com/subscriptions/

Joining the 36-member lineup for NC State's dance team is Ryan Crawley, the first male dancer in the 30 years the team has existed. “History? Well, I feel like we are making progress,” coach Amanda Roediger said. “But yeah, it is history.” www.theassemblync.com/culture/spor...

💥 BREAKING: Walt Disney Company shareholders voted today 99-1 percent to reject an anti-LGBTQ+ proposal, requesting that the company sever its relationship with the Human Rights Campaign and HRC's Corporate Equality Index. Disney Board recommended shareholders vote against the proposal.

The Mahmoud Khalil test: No matter whether you think someone’s ideas or actions are deplorable, once the executive branch decides it doesn’t have to follow the law for one person, it has established that it doesn’t have to follow the law for anyone. www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/...

Gifted | Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth put an end to Black History Month and other celebrations of identity. But St. Patrick's Day got a pass, and some are asking why. The questions come from the troops as well as administration critics. www.expressnews.com/news/article...