At Blinds.com, it's not just about window treatments. It's about you, your style, your space, your way. Whether you DIY or want the pros to handle it all, you'll have the confidence of knowing it's done right. From free expert design help to our 100% satisfaction guarantee, everything we do is made to fit your life and your windows. Because at Blinds.com, the only thing we treat better than Windows is you.
Black Friday deals are going on all month long. Save up to 45% off site-wide, plus an additional 10% off every order right now at Blinds.com. Rules and restrictions apply. It's 5.05 and welcome in to a Tuesday edition of the Carolina Journal News Hour, News Talk 1110-993 WBT. I'm Nick Craig.
Good morning to you. We, of course, continue our coverage this morning of what has been a busy couple of days in the Queen City, the city of Charlotte, as Customs and Border Protection CBP continues what is known as Operation Charlotte's Web. And as of this morning, information from Homeland Security confirms that at least 130 individuals have been arrested as part of the operations in Charlotte. We continue to get more reaction flowing in from across the state of North Carolina. Former Democrat governor turned Senate candidate Roy Cooper had this to say on social media yesterday, quote, I've prosecuted violent criminals and fought to keep them behind bars.
So I know the importance of using federal resources to deport violent criminals and keep our borders strong. But randomly sweeping up people based on what they look like, including American citizens and those with no criminal records, risks leaving violent criminals at large while hurting families and the economy. Those are some of the social media comments coming in from former Governor Roy Cooper, the chairman of the North Carolina Republican Party, and Jason Simmons also releasing a statement yesterday calling out some of the commentary from Democrats and how they have reacted to the custom and border protection operations in Charlotte, saying, quote, Democrats at all levels are choosing to protect criminal illegal aliens over North Carolina citizens. Threats to federal law enforcement agents are up a thousand percent this year because of the rhetoric that we've seen from the left.
Now they're showing more outrage over removing violent criminals from Charlotte streets than the brutal murder on a mass transit system of Irina Zoe. Zaruska. Federal officials have still not set a timeline for operations in Charlotte. When many folks reach out to DHS to ask, they, of course, come back with they don't discuss ongoing operations that are taking place. But from the original reporting last week, we understand that this is set to be a shorter stint in the Queen City.
What short means exactly in that context remains a little bit unclear this morning. Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles also jumping in, releasing another statement yesterday after a busy weekend for federal officials saying, quote, over the past weekend, our community witnessed an increased presence of federal border patrol operations within the city of Charlotte. I want to speak directly to the residents who have expressed concern, fear, and uncertainty in response to these activities. First and foremost, the rights and constitutional protections of every person in Charlotte, regardless of immigration status, must be upheld. Our city has a long-standing commitment to families, dignity, and justice.
I am deeply concerned with many of the videos I've seen, and I urge all agencies operating here to conduct their work with respect for those values. We also recognize the emotional and economic impact these operations can have on families, neighborhoods, and local businesses. Charlotte is a diverse, vibrant city, and when any part of our community feels threatened or destabilized, it affects us all. I appreciate the community members who gathered to make their voices heard did so peacefully. Peaceful protest is a vital part of our democracy, and your commitment to expressing your concern while protecting the safety of our community reflects the best of our city.
To everyone in Charlotte who is feeling anxious or fearful, you are not alone. Your city stands with you. We will continue working with community leaders, legal advocates, and service providers to make sure that resources, information, and support remain available. We are actively working with our partners to determine what more we can do to support our community while working within the complicated legal boundaries. Our strength as a city comes from our unity and our shared commitment to one another.
We will meet this moment together with calm compassion and steadfast dedication to the rights and well-being of all who call Charlotte home. And commentary there from Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles, who posted that lengthy comment on her ex-account yesterday afternoon. And breaking overnight, we are getting information that customs and border protection or immigration officials are set to make their way to Raleigh this morning as well. Governor Josh Stein making some of the reports, solidifying those on social media as well, saying, quote, our office, referring to the governor's office, our office is aware of reports that Border Patrol is bringing its operation to Raleigh. Once again, I call on federal agents to target violent criminals, not neighbors walking down the street, going to church, or putting up Christmas decorations.
Stop targeting people simply going about their lives because of the color of their skin, as you are doing in Charlotte. To the people of Raleigh, remain peaceful, and if you see something wrong, record it and report it to local law enforcement. Let's keep each other safe. Safe. Representative Aaron Perre, who is a member of the North Carolina House, a Republican in House District 37, which does cover portions of Wake County, commenting on the governor's thoughts yesterday, saying, Wake County Sheriff Deputy Ned Bird was brutally murdered by two illegal immigrants in Raleigh in 2022.
The custom and border protection is enforcing the law. You would think that the governor of North Carolina would want laws enforced as well.
So while it is not immediately clear the size and scope. Of some of these operations that are set to take place in Raleigh as soon as today. We know that they are continuing in Charlotte as well. Raleigh Mayor Jeanette Cowell said in a statement: quote: As the capital city, it is important to us that everyone who lives, works, plays, and lives in Raleigh feels safe. We have been made aware that customs and border protection are coming to Raleigh.
While the Raleigh Police Department is not involved in immigration enforcement, we are committed to protecting our residents and following the law. I can confirm that the Raleigh Police Department, or RPD, has not participated in any immigration planning activity. The mayor continued by saying, above all, Raleigh is a safe city with crime down year over year. Public safety is a priority for me and this city council. This is a key moment to reaffirm our commitment to serving all members of our community.
If you need help from the police, you call 911 and help will come. I ask Raleigh to remember our values and maintain peace and respect through any upcoming challenges. Together, we are Raleigh Strong.
So there's a little bit of the reaction coming in from Governor, Democrat Governor Josh Stein, the Democrat mayor of Raleigh, and some members of the North Carolina General Assembly as these operations, at least according to reporting and now seemingly being backed up by Governor Josh Stein, Customs and Border Protection, obviously, who has been operating in Charlotte, will, I don't know if they're sending additional forces to Raleigh, if they're pulling some forces out of Charlotte, but now we'll be conducting seemingly two operations at the same time across the Tarheel State. This is obviously drawing a lot of attention in the news cycle, not only here across North Carolina, but across the nation as well. We continue our coverage this morning over on our website, CarolinaJournal.com, and of course, we'll. We'll keep you up to date with all of the information, all of the details, as soon as we get them right here on the Carolina Journal News Hour. Save over $200 when you book weekly stays with Verbo.
This winter, if you need to work, why not work from a chalet? If you haven't seen your college besties since, well, college, you need a week to fully catch up in a snowy cabin. And if you have to stay in a remote place with your in-laws, you should save over $200 a week. That's the least we can do.
So, you might as well start digging out the Lounge, because saving over $200 on a week-long snowcation rental is in the cards. Book now at verbo dot com. Yeah. It's 519. Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News Hour, News Talk 1110-993 WBT.
While the North Carolina General Assembly gaveled in for what is known as a skeleton session in Raleigh yesterday, a few members of the North Carolina House and Senate in session.
Some of the six veto overrides that remain on the House calendar were dissolved from yesterday's calendar and pushed to December the 15th. While it is not immediately clear whether the General Assembly lawmakers will be back in Raleigh any time and making any additional votes before the end of the year, the next opportunity for that to happen will be seemingly December the 15th. We will keep you up to date with some of those continued veto overrides and any other legislation that might come out of the General Assembly before we get into the second half of the biennium, the two-year term that lawmakers serve. We'll continue that coverage this morning over on our website, CarolinaJournal.com, where it's now 5:20. You're listening to the Carolina Journal News Hour.
It has been a busy couple of months for Republican state auditor Dave Bullock as he conducts a variety of audits across the state of North Carolina. This morning, we're focusing on a new report out from the auditor's office that's looking at unspent COVID-19 dollars that are set to expire over the next year or so across North Carolina. To walk us through some of those details this morning, Teresa Opaca, CarolinaJournal.com. Teresa, my calendar says 2025, and we're talking about still unspent COVID dollars. Here we are four or five years later.
What's the latest that you're tracking from the auditor's office? Sure, Nick. Thanks for having me this morning.
So we've got billions of dollars that are not being spent that we have found out in this audit from Dave Bollock's office, from the state auditor's office. It's about $5.4 billion. Was allocated to North Carolina through the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act. That was something that President Joe Biden signed into law in March 2021 that established the Federal Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund. He appropriated a little over $300 billion to the fund for distribution in the state, local, territorial, and tribal governments.
So as you said, it's going back a few years.
So you thought, oh, maybe they've already spent all this money, right? No, no. North Carolina state agencies, while they have the money they have spent, they have done according to all the different legislation and the rules concerning that. But there is a remaining $2.95 billion that has yet to be requested and spent by state agencies. The problem with that is the deadline to use the funds is coming up on December 31, 2026.
Now it's just a little over a year away, but you know how quickly things move.
So any remaining funds are going to be sent back to the US Treasury if they do not spend those funds.
Well, and you just said something interesting there, Teresa. You said requested and spent.
So you put in the process of making this request, then getting the money allocated, then spending it. It's probably you'd probably find it hard pressed that you could spend that money in the span of just 12 months. You know, who knows how long the process takes to request it unless you're writing checks for tens of millions of dollars at a time. These things are going to have to be spent by the end of next calendar year. Right, right.
That's a pretty big deal. You know, it's not like you're just going through a checkbook saying, well, I owe $35 for, I don't know. Trash this month or whatever. Big government agency, they have to go through myriads of paperwork, I'm sure, and that process takes a while.
So, even though it's a little over a year away, that's not a lot of time to spend billions of dollars.
So, yeah, that's a problem. And state auditor Dave Bullock found that out when they did that audit. And like he said, that's going to go back to the U.S. Treasury.
So, agencies should be more proactive in making sure taxpayers realize a return on the investments of these funds because Why not, right? They were allocated to them. Why not spend it for what they were allocated for and get going on that? Did the auditor have any other interesting findings in this report? We've seen a lot and a lot of great work out of the auditor's office, Teresa, over the last 10 or 11 months, really digging into, I think, what many folks would call very complex issues, especially on the financial side when you bring in government entities, state, local, federal governments.
Any insight from the auditor? He did go through a myriad of things. As I said, he broke down the different departments that still have outstanding requests that need to be made to use that. And one in particular is the Department of Environmental Quality DEQ. We also have Department of Health and Human Services, DHHS.
So just breaking those down. And also, there's other money that was allocated to public schools, higher education. Not all that has been spent. Remarkably, though, there have been a couple that have spent the 100% that they had to. State Indian Tribes and Associations were allocated about $10 million.
So they have dispersed that money as of June 30th, 2024. Also, we had looks like there was some other money for another employee bonuses and benefits. They received about a little over $545 million. That was spent 100% as well. Pre-broke down in all different aspects of different agencies and really spelled out.
We have all that in that report on our website. And, you know, as we look at some of this, I think a lot of folks, of course, have the opinion and are of the mindset, Teresa, that government, for the most part, tends to be incredibly inefficient and ineffective in everything that it does. And I guess this is just more of an example of essentially free money. You and I and most of our audience knows there's no such thing as free, but free money being allocated from Washington, D.C., yet it's not being taken advantage of over the last couple of years. That's got to be a huge frustration.
Oh, absolutely. You know, I mean, this money was put in place for, you know, during the pandemic. You know, who knew when things were going to fully reopen? I can't even imagine that that started over five years ago at this point. All the different businesses were closed.
You couldn't originally go to a church, all different things, you know, and that had a trickling effect as things started to reopen. And here, all this money has been allocated for different state agencies, you know, for different reasons. They're also, like you say, for universities, higher education. That money is there. It's their money to use.
And first, obviously, you've got to request it and then distribute it. And it's not being used. And, you know, like he pointed out, you know, the funds that they have, they did do everything in accordance, which that's great because a lot of time you hear these audits that Dave Bullock's office comes out with, and people have misused ones, right?
So actually, they use them correctly, but then there's the funds they're not using them.
So it's like, okay, what's the problem? Like you said, you only have a year left, and it's got to go back to the federal government if it's not used.
So yeah, it's incredibly frustrating, I think, to hear this as a taxpayer as well, because, as you say, it's not free. The money's coming from somewhere. And guess what? It's coming from our pockets because we're the taxpayer. Yes, as you get your pay stubs over the next couple of weeks, everybody will enjoy and appreciate seeing some of that money being taken out.
But, Teresa, really keen observation there, highlighting that at least for the money that was requested, it was done in a proper way, all the proper paper trails and everything done with that. We've got a lot more on this audit out this morning. Where can folks go and get those details? Sure, they can head on over to CarolinaJournal.com. We appreciate the information this morning.
Teresa Opeka joins us on the Carolina Journal News Hour. It's 5.35. Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News Hour, News Stock 1110-993 WBT. I'm Nick Craig. Good Tuesday morning to you.
If you've been on social media over the last couple of months, you may have seen videos of houses in the outer banks of North Carolina simply collapsing into the ocean. This is a growing concern that is prompting response not only in North Carolina, but Washington, D.C. To walk us through some of those details this morning, Teresa Opaca, CarolinaJournal.com, joins us on the news hour. Teresa, before we get into the news here, you've seen these videos and pictures. It's a nice sunny day in the outer banks.
And 15 minutes later, you've got houses on stilts just collapsing into the ocean. This is a major problem. Yeah, good morning, Nick. Thanks for having me. It sure is.
And it's just terrible to see all that happening, you know.
somebody's house, it's just uh just Going put into the ocean, and it's just not one. We've got since 2020, there have been 27 ocean front houses that have collapsed into the ocean.
So right off the outer bank.
So it's definitely a huge, huge problem.
So there's some legislation that's been introduced in Washington, D.C. to try and deal with some of this, and then we've got lawmakers here in North Carolina jumping in on that as well. What's the latest that you're tracking on both fronts there? Sure.
So that legislation in DC, it's a bill called the Preventing Environmental Hazards Act of 2025. That bill is being co-introduced by North Carolina rep Greg Murphy out of District 3. He's got that going there, you know, because it is such a big, big deal. As I mentioned earlier, there's 27 houses total, but since this past September, there have been 16 in that total.
So, you know, things have just been increasingly getting worse.
So we've got that legislation. And to help along with that, that would help the state move from a stance of afterfact cleanup to proactive relocation or removal of oceanfront structures that are under threat. And that bipartisan bill would also authorize the National Flood Insurance Program to offer pre-collapse coverage, allowing homeowners to demolish or relocate condemned structures before they collapse into the ocean. There's also concerns about environmental impacts as well. But yeah, that's from the federal point.
And then Governor Josh Stein and Insurance Commissioner Mike Cossey, of course, Stein being the governor of North Carolina, he doesn't, I'm sure, want videos on national news, Teresa, of houses collapsing into the ocean. It's not necessarily the best look for the state. And then, of course, Insurance Commissioner Mike Cossey, I'm sure he's getting calls at his office plenty of times from homeowners in the outer banks wondering maybe what can be done and what's available. What's their reaction to what's going on? Sure.
So, you know, they sent a joint letter to Congress urging them to pass this legislation that Greg Murphy co-sponsored. You know, he says the letter says, when the house collapse, it's not just a tragedy for homeowners, it also spreads debris for miles, risks people's safety on the beaches.
So they've got that. Also, there's the, you mentioned environmental impact, but also there's an impact to the state's economy. It's to local businesses, of course, in that area, but it affects the state's economy overall. And also, there's been schools that have been shut down from the overwash on Highway 12. As of the time I talked with Commissioner Cossey for this interview, students missed 12 out of 48 school days at that point.
So there's lots of things, in addition to the homeowners' plight, that the governor and the insurance commissioner are concerned about. And, you know, Teresa, this is a big deal on the eastern half of North Carolina, and they've kind of got two different areas. You have the Outer Banks up north, and then you've got the Wilmington area down south. And there's always a lot of money that is spent on beach renourishment to try and prevent some of these issues. Unfortunately, that renourishment is incredibly expensive in the terms of tens of millions of dollars.
It doesn't happen every year, it happens every couple of years. And of course, nobody can force Mother Nature to impact or not impact the North Carolina coast. And so you've got a lot of money being spent. The issue is one that, unfortunately, consistently revolves in itself, and there's always going to be some level of rough surf or rough seas that cause some of this beach erosion. This is a miserable situation all up and down the east coast of North Carolina.
Yeah, you're right. You know, and you know, there's been We've heard it in the news for quite a bit now in recent years. It used to be called global warming.
Now it's called climate change. I mean, there are different weather patterns that occur. They've occurred for centuries, right? But climate change is being and the rise in sea level is being attributed to all of this, the situation where the erosion, the beach erosion is occurring. But Commissioner Cossey said, he talked to one business owner.
He truly doesn't believe that. He believes it's actually a man-made issue. Every time that they try to maybe build up sand dunes to protect Highway 12, it's been detrimental, according to this business owner, because it's actually increased the erosion of sand. He said, in his view, it'd be better to just let the water overwash Highway 12 because the ocean's going to do what it's going to do, and it would build up more sand further out to protect it.
So, you know, maybe listen to that advice as well, take different opinions into perspective. Yeah, and you talk about some of these attempts, either renourishment or building some sort of man-made artificial dunes to try and block the water. And Teresa, most of these projects are, for the most part, handled by the Army Corps of Engineers. As you can imagine, that's a very expensive and very lengthy process. And like that business owner was noting, you can't really predict Mother Nature or force water.
You can do your best to try and force water to go one way or the other. But at the end of the day, Mother Nature is going to do what she wants. Yep, there's no controlling it. We, you know, we, it's a force of nature, God-made or made, however you want to say it. There's really no way to control that.
So, yeah, it's you try to do the best thing you can, but maybe some of these remediations are kind of fruitless in a way.
So, yeah, it's just a really, really tough situation for homeowners, business owners, you know, anybody living in that area doing business in that area.
So, hopefully, this bill will bring some relief, and maybe there's some other solutions that they can come up with as well. Yeah, and you talk about that economic impact, echoing some of the commentary from Governor Josh Stein. Teresa, I can't imagine it's good for business in the Outer Banks when folks are on social media scrolling through Facebook and seeing, you know, maybe planning their upcoming vacation and seeing house after house after house collapsing into the Atlantic Ocean. I can't imagine that that would be a driving force of tourism throughout the Outer Banks. No, it's definitely not a Chamber of Commerce moment for the state, sure.
You know, and if you had maybe they call it Airbnb, VRBO, whatever they have you rent out houses, and maybe one of those houses was the ones you were going to rent out, you're not, you're, or it's close. You're not too comfortable about saying, hey, let's go plan our vacation in the Outer Banks. I mean, so many people have enjoyed that area for years and years. But as you're seeing all of this, of course, yeah, it's not a good look for North Carolina, for the eastern coast of North Carolina. And yeah, it's just something that.
It's just a terrible situation. There's just no other way around saying that at this point. Teresa, you've got some additional information, including that original legislation introduced by Congressman Greg Murphy and that letter from Governor Stein and Insurance Commissioner Mike Cossey. Where can folks get those details? To short, they can head on over to CarolinaJournal.com.
Teresa Opeka joins us this morning on the Carolina Journal News Hour. This is the story of the one. As head of maintenance at a concert hall, he knows the show must always go on. That's why he works behind the scenes, ensuring every light is working, the HVAC is humming, and his facility shines. With Granger's supplies and solutions for every challenge he faces, plus 24-7 customer support, his venue never misses a beat.
Call quickgranger.com or just stop by. Granger, for the ones who get it done. Nothing says joy like getting a kid a new bike for Christmas, and that means it's time for Hancock's Bikes for Kids. Please consider bringing a new bike to WBT on Friday, December the 5th from 5 to 9 p.m. The WBT team will be here to thank you for your generous donation.
We also now have an alternative drop location. A special thanks to Watson Insurance for making their Belmont office also available for a bike drop-off. If that is an easier location for you to visit, 302 East Catawb Street in Belmont, WatsonInsurance.com, and all the bikes donated there will be transported to WBT courtesy of Garage Door Doctor. It's the 32nd annual WBT Hancock's Bikes for Kids. It's benefiting Kids First of the Carolinas.
Friday, December the 5th, 5 to 9 p.m. You can visit wbt.com this morning for event details. It's now 5:51. Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News Hour, News Talk 1110-993 WBT. Starting in the North Carolina General Assembly this morning, it was a skeleton session for lawmakers in Raleigh on Monday as just a handful of members of the North Carolina House and Senate made their way back to the state capitol.
No votes taking place, no additional votes expected through the month of November. There were six and remain six veto overrides that the North Carolina House has yet to vote on. Those have been bumped to the December the 15th calendar. It is not clear this morning as these overrides have been bumped now a couple of months in a row whether they will get a vote in December or it will be kicked into early next year when lawmakers make their way back for the second half of their two-year term. We will continue to track any additional progress on those and anything else out of the General Assembly through the remainder of 2025 over this morning.
On our website, CarolinaJournal.com. In some statewide news this morning, a lot of discussion continuing about Operation Charlotte's Web. As Custom and Border Protection CBP continues operations through Charlotte this morning, the total of individuals arrested is 130 as these operations started on Saturday. And while it is not immediately clear how much longer they will continue throughout Charlotte, law enforcement, federal law enforcement through CBP do remain on the scene. Former Democrat governor turned Senate candidate Roy Cooper took to social media yesterday to provide his thoughts on what's going on, saying, I've prosecuted violent criminals and fought to keep them behind bars.
So I know the importance of using federal resources to deport violent criminals and keep our border strong. But randomly sweeping up people based on what they look like, including American citizens and those with no criminal records, risks leaving violent criminals at large while hurting families and the economy. The comments there coming in from former Democrat Governor Roy Cooper. Jason Simmons, who is the chairman of the North Carolina Republican Party, released a statement yesterday calling out some of the hypocrisy and how Democrats have reacted to the CBP operation in Charlotte, writing in part, Democrats at all levels are choosing to protect criminal illegals over North Carolina citizens. Threats to federal law enforcement agents are up 1,000% this year because of the rhetoric we see from the left.
Now they're showing more outrage over removing violent criminals from Charlotte streets than the brutal murder on a mass transit system of Irina Zarutska. The Charlotte mayor in Vi Lyles also taking to social media last uh yesterday afternoon with a lengthy statement saying in part: Over the past weekend, our community witnessed an increased presence of federal border patrol operations within the city of Charlotte. I want to speak directly to the residents who have expressed concern, fear, and uncertainty in response to these activities. First and foremost, the rights and constitutional protections of every person in Charlotte, regardless of immigration status, must be upheld. Our city has a long-standing commitment to fairness, dignity, and justice.
I am deeply concerned with the many videos I have seen, and I urge all agencies operating here to conduct their work with respect for those values. We also recognize the emotional and economic impact these operations can have on families, neighborhoods, and local businesses. Charlotte is a diverse, vibrant city, and when any part of the community feels threatened or destabilized, it affects us all. That is an end quote part of Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyle's commentary yesterday.
However, this morning, we are turning our attention to the state capitol in Raleigh, as information is now coming out and being confirmed by Governor Josh Stein that customs and border protection could be in the state's capital as soon as today. Governor Stein, taking to social media around 8 o'clock Monday night, posting, quote, Our office is aware of reports that Border Patrol is bringing its operation to Raleigh. Once again, I call on federal agents to target violent criminals, not neighbors walking down the street, going to church, or putting up Christmas decorations. Stop targeting people simply going about their lives because of the color of their skin, as you are doing in Charlotte. To the people of Raleigh, remain peaceful.
And if you see something wrong, record it and report it to local law enforcement. Let's keep each other safe. Representative Erin Perre, who is a Republican out of House District 37, which does represent or in which she does represent portions of Wake County, which hosts the city of Raleigh, put on social media last night. Quote, Wake County Sheriff's Deputy Ned Bird was brutally murdered by two illegal immigrants in Raleigh in 2022. The CBP is enforcing the law.
You would think the governor of North Carolina would want laws enforced as well.
So a couple of questions about timelines this morning. How much longer will Operation Charlotte's Web continue in the Queen City? And what exactly will these CBP operations look like in Raleigh as we head through the remainder of the week? We are keeping you up to date around the clock with information as soon as we get it over on our website, CarolinaJournal.com. And of course, as we get more information, we will bring it to you each and every weekday morning right here on the Carolina Journal News Hour.
But that's going to do it for a Tuesday edition. WBT News is next. Followed by Good Morning, BT. We're back with you tomorrow morning, 5-6, right here on News Talk 1110 and 99.3, WBT.
