It's 5.05 and welcome in to a Tuesday edition of the Carolina Journal News Hour on Charlotte's FM News Talk, 107.9 FM, WBT, I'm Nick Craig. Good morning to you. We start off with breaking news out of Western North Carolina this morning, Representative Jennifer Balcombe. The Republican from Henderson County has been selected by Republicans in the western half of the state to replace Congressman Chuck Edwards as the GOP nominee in North Carolina's 11th congressional district. That is setting up a November contest against Democrat Jamie Ager.
Members of the 11th Congressional District Republican Executive Committee selected Bulcom Monday evening in a first ballot vote at the Buncombe County GOP headquarters following Edwards' abrupt withdrawal from the race last week after a House Ethics Committee report that we have discussed in great detail here on the Carolina Journal News Hour. Bulkham, who is a two-term member of the North Carolina House, emerged as a favorite for the nomination over the weekend after several other potential candidates declined to enter the race. Balcombe thanked Republicans for their support in a statement and said that she plans to bring the same focus that she has had in Raleigh as a member of the North Carolina General Assembly to representing Western North Carolina in Washington. She said in part, I'm blessed to receive the Republican nomination for the 11th Congressional District. Western North Carolina is where I was born, raised, and chose to raise.
My own family. It has been an incredible honor to fight for Henderson County and Raleigh, and I will take that fight to Washington and work every single day to make life more affordable for working families, improve community safety, support our farmers, and ensure we have the resources we need to continue to recover from Hurricane Helene. Bulkham, who was previously registered as a Democrat prior to 2016 before joining the Republican Party, also framed the general election as a fight against what she described as an increasingly extreme Democrat Party. With Bulcombe saying in part, like many Americans, the Democrat Party left me behind when they abandoned their values and embraced extremism. We're seeing that extremism play out across our country as their party nominates radical socialists who want to raise taxes, open our borders, and do away with our way of life.
We must prevent that radical agenda from reaching our government, and that starts right here in the 11th district. 11th Congressional District Republican Chair Mary Guy praised Balcom as a leader who will understand Western North Carolina and is prepared to fight for the region in Washington, D.C. Guy said in a press release, Representative Jennifer Bulcombe is exactly the kind of leader that Western North Carolina needs fighting for us in Washington. She understands the people and the communities of this district, and she is ready to stand up for our families, protect our values, and fight for the issues that matter most to Western North Carolina. Republicans across the 11th district are ready to unite behind her and to get to work winning in November.
We also heard from NCGOP Chairman Jason Simmons in a press release, who said that the state party is firmly behind Balcom and ready to unite around her campaign as we head into November. Simmons said in part, Representative Jennifer Balcombe has what it takes to be a strong voice for Western North Carolina in Washington. She is committed to fighting for our families, defending our conservative values, and making sure Western North Carolina has a strong advocate in Congress. The NCOP is proud to stand behind her, and we are ready to work together to deliver a Republican victory in November. Earlier in the day on Monday, North Carolina House Speaker Destin Hall endorsed Balcom's run, praising her conservative record and saying that she is prepared to fight for Western North Carolina in Congress.
The statement on social media from Speaker Hall reads, I'm proud to endorse Jennifer Balcombe for Congress. Jennifer is a principled conservative, a tireless advocate for her district, and a leader who gets things done. I know she'll take that same determination to D.C. and fight for the people of Western North Carolina. She is the right person at the right time, and she will win in November.
U.S. Senator Ted Budd, the Republican here from North Carolina, one of our two Republican senators, endorsed Balcombe shortly after the vote, posting on his ex-account, Jennifer Balcombe fights every day for the people of Western North Carolina, whether it's disaster recovery, supporting farmers, or standing up for women and girls. I am endorsing Jennifer because she'll bring the values and the strength of Western North Carolina to D.C., work to grow our economy, and always stand for North Carolina's 11th congressional district. In announcing her candidacy ahead of Monday's vote, Balcombe said seeking a seat in Congress had not been part of her plans, writing in part, I hadn't planned to go to Washington, but I've learned throughout my life that when your community needs you, you don't. Sit on the sidelines, you step up.
Western North Carolina needs a strong voice right now. Our communities are still rebuilding from Hurricane Helene. Our farmers, families, and small businesses need someone who understands them. And too often, Washington simply doesn't understand the people, values, and challenges of our mountains. Balcombe said her decision was driven in part by the ongoing recovery from Hurricane Helene and a desire to continue to represent Western North Carolina's interests in Washington, D.C.
In a statement released over the weekend, Balcombe said, After much prayer and reflection and conversations with my family, I'm in. I will seek the Republican nomination for North Carolina's 11th congressional district. This race is too important to sit out. We must hold this seat, preserve our mountain values, work with the President Trump administration to continue rebuilding Western North Carolina, and make sure. Washington never forgets the people who call these mountains home.
We are in a very short time frame here ahead of Election Day, just 85 days away here across the United States and North Carolina. All of this unfolding in the last week or so, as it was on Monday, that last Monday, I should say, that the United States House Ethics Committee found that Congressman Chuck Edwards, who currently represents North Carolina's 11th congressional district and has announced he will not be resigning his seat, was found by the House Ethics Committee to be in violation of House rules as it relates to their official code of conduct regarding the sexual harassment and creating a hostile work environment with two young staffers in his office. That was the reporting a Monday out of Washington, D.C. Flash forward about 36 hours to very early Wednesday morning last week, and that is when Edwards took to social media to announce that he would be dropping out of the race. Edwards Said in that post, after much prayer and reflection, I've decided to withdraw from my current re-election campaign.
I will complete my current term. Serving Western North Carolina has been the honor of my life. Thank you for your trust, prayers, and support. God bless Western North Carolina and America. With him announcing he would not be seeking reelection, he triggered a process here in North Carolina in which the 11th Congressional District Republican Executive Committee was slated to make his replacement.
That is what those members did just outside of Asheville last night in Buncombe County as that committee met at the Buncombe County GOP headquarters, had a meeting that lasted about 90 minutes and selected Representative Jennifer Bulcombe, the Republican from Henderson County, North Carolina's 117th House District, to be their candidate as we approach the midterm elections coming up in November. We have continuing coverage of this and will for the remainder of the election cycle over on our website, CarolinaJournal.com. You can read the latest this morning, the headline there, Jennifer Bulcom to replace Edwards on NCR. 11 ballot. When life gets busy, it's important to reach for the things that help keep you grounded.
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It's 520. Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News Hour, Charlotte's FM News Talk, 107.9 FM, WBT. Continuing with our big statewide news across North Carolina, this morning, a meeting of North Carolina's 11th Congressional District Republican Executive Committee on Monday evening led to the nomination of Representative Jennifer Bulcombe, the Republican out of North Carolina's 117th House District, as voters of that executive committee met in Buncombe County last night to determine who their candidate would be for Congress. To walk us through some of those details, it's my pleasure to welcome the former chairman of the Transylvania County Republican Party, which is in NC 11, Jeff Brewer, to our airwaves this morning on the Carolina Journal News Hour. Jeff, appreciate the time.
Before we get into some of the details of the meeting itself, would you paint the picture and kind of set the stage as to what the atmosphere was like at the meeting last night.
Well, yes, Nick, thanks for having me on. I'm a big fan of the show. But there was a lot of excitement, and I've told a lot of people this, that It has really pumped a lot of life into this election cycle here in NC 11. But there was a lot of anticipation. The talk going in was that Jennifer Balcombe was the prohibitive favorite.
Jennifer, of course, the representative in the NC House. One of the things I thought, Nick, that might be an issue, the Buncombe County GOP, the meeting room, seats about 60 people. And I was worried that there might be a clamoring outside the door to get in. That did not transpire. There were about three dozen people that waited outside.
The room was jammed. People were shoulder to shoulder in that room. And as I understand it, about 51 of the 61 delegates made the trip, which in many cases is a great distance for many of them to come to be there tonight for this important meeting. Yeah, and for those that have not been following this, the 11th congressional district out in western North Carolina is 16 county. It is one of the largest geographic congressional districts that we have here in North Carolina, stretching all the way from the Tennessee, Georgia border towards portions closer to central North Carolina.
As we've been talking about this morning, it is Representative Jennifer Balcombe who did get that nod and the first ballot vote there. There were some other candidates, however, as I understand it, Jeff, that threw their hat into the race. Everybody had the opportunity to speak, and the meeting seemed to wrap pretty quickly, only about an hour and a half or so. That's exactly right, Nick. Jennifer on the first ballot was a clear-cut winner.
There were five other candidates. And uh But it really boiled down to, Nick, and I kind of thought it might go this way. Jennifer Balcombe has a documented record as a lawmaker in the North Carolina House. The other five candidates are talking about what they would do or might do or might support. Jennifer Balcombe has a record of what she has done and what she has achieved and voted in support of.
So from that standpoint, It really, it was really one-sided, and she really wanted going away. And that's, of course, not to say that newcomers can't come into politics, but Jeff, as we've been talking about now for the past week now, the very short, the very compressed timeline on this election, it all unfolded last Monday with the House Ethics Committee report that was levied against Congressman Chuck Edwards. It was about 36 hours after that that he announced that he would not be seeking reelection after winning the March primary and would not be moving forward to the November general election. With that very short timeframe, the meeting last night in Buncombe County, we are less than 85 days now from Election Day here across North Carolina. From my vantage point and a lot of the other folks that we've spoken to over the last week, they seem to indicate it would have been really tough for a political outsider that did not already serve in some sort of elected office to jump into this rate with this really compressed timeline.
Okay. That's exactly right.
So who is Jennifer Balcombe? And to anybody listening, she is a rising star. She served four years in the North Carolina House, coming up on four years. But I would say, Nick, that she is a reluctant warrior. She was not, I think it was important that the person that took on this task We didn't want somebody who was overly ambitious.
And we wanted someone who was in it for the right reasons. And Jennifer, I think, stood back. She watched as Tim Maffa initially expressed interest and then stepped back. And I think Jennifer was then asked if she would have interest. That's what I really admire about her.
She's not overly ambitious. She's a reluctant lawyer. She's a rising star. And she has pumped a lot of life into this election cycle. You look at her record in Henderson County.
She's worked with eight different community organizations and nonprofits, very involved in the community before getting involved in politics and winning in that 2022 cycle, winning her seat in the North Carolina House. She's a wife, a mother, a small business owner, 20 years in the mortgage banking business. She's a very sharp. Very sharp person. I'm very excited about her candidacy.
You know, Jeff, obviously a lot of the traditional things that you would expect to come out in a congressional election will in the days and weeks to come. But of course, Western North Carolina, as we inch ever closer to the two-year mark, since all of the devastation and destruction left in the wake of Hurricane Helene, statements before the official nomination, Representative Bulkham made it abundantly clear that she would, if given the nomination, would go to Washington, D.C. and fight for the people of Western North Carolina that are still trying to pick up the pieces from Helene. And a statement after the nomination was said and done, echoing some of those claims again. How important is it for Republicans and voters across the Western District of North Carolina in NC 11 to support a candidate that is going to go to D.C.
and make sure that those folks that are still recovering from Helene are not forgotten? I think it's paramount. I really do. And you're right. Jennifer has been on the mark with that.
She is eighth generation Henderson County. She's a lifelong resident. Of this district in Henderson County. No, I think she's on the mark with that because, as you know, it the support, the financial support. Has come very gradually.
And Ted Budd, I think, has done an excellent job in lobbying for Western North Carolina. But I think Jennifer will add her voice to that chorus. Yeah, and you speak of Ted Budd, not long after the announcement was made by Mary Guy, the chairwoman of the 11th District GOP, Senator Ted Budd, putting his support and full endorsement behind Representative Balcombe in a post on social media. Let's wrap up here on the timeline, Jeff. This is a very short amount of time.
As we were just mentioning, the 11th congressional district is a pretty large one from end to end. This is going to be an uphill battle, no question about it. I think you're right. It is. And, you know, Jamie Ager has been out raising money and pressing the flesh and doing all those things that you have to do.
But Jennifer's a worker. She's a worker. She's a little bit younger. She's got a lot left in the tank. I know her demeanor.
She's tough-minded. I think she's going to get busy. And I think she's going to surprise. I think she has a great chance. And before I go off, Nick, I do need to say.
This n this uh Vote by the executive committee went about as smoothly as the NC-11 leadership and the state leadership could have hoped for. No issues, smooth, clean, no problems before or after. I mean, I'm really relieved that it went as smoothly as it did. Yeah, and that's, of course, relevant. We've seen a lot of national stories over the last couple of months with a variety of different congressional and Senate candidates that have gotten in some heat and some hot water, Jeff.
And those have been some pretty messy systems that we've watched play out over the last couple of weeks. Of course, we are going to keep a very close eye on everything going on in North Carolina's 11th congressional district. We appreciate the on-the-ground report from Jeff Brewer, the former chairman of the Transylvania County Republican Party, right here on the Carolina Journal News Hour. When life gets busy, it's important to reach for the things that help keep you grounded. Enhance your focus with the new G2 Edge gel pens from Pilot.
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Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News Hour, Charlotte's FM News Talk, 107.9 FM, WBT. I'm Nick Craig. Good morning to you. A legislative tool intended primarily to correct errors in North Carolina's newly enacted state budget, turns out is carrying tens of millions of dollars in new appropriations and a series of substantive policy changes. House Bill 268, which is known as the 2026 Budget Technical Corrections No.
2, received final House approval in a 79 to 28 vote on August the 5th after the Senate approved the conference report 31 to 6 on July the 29th. Lawmakers ratified the 51-page measure August the 6th and presented it to Democrat Governor Josh Stein. the following day. The General Assembly's nonpartisan fiscal research division defines a budget technical correction measure as, quote, a bill intended following the enactment of a main budget to address technical issues or errors in the enacted budget. The division also notes that non-technical items can be included.
Brian Balfour, the senior vice president of research at the John Locke Foundation, said that technical corrections are supposed to fix mistakes, clarify language, and make statutory changes necessary to conform state law to the budget, but that is not always the case. Balfour told the Carolina Journal, the provisions that other non-technical items may be included allows for some additional provisions, and its vagueness unfortunately leaves the door open for new spending or other provisions to be included. From a transparency and accountability standpoint, Balfour says the process serves a legitimate purpose when lawmakers use it to identify and publicly correct problems with enacted legislation. He said the technical correction bill is supposed to clean up language that may need to be more precise and make corrections to any errors discovered after the fact. Doing so in the bill makes these changes and updates more transparent.
However, House Bill 268 contains several changes that address technical issues or errors, and more than that, among them, the bill clarifies how directed grants of exactly $1 million are to be Distributed, corrects a drafting error involving a Kernersville jurisdictional system, and adjusts several budget codes and statutory references. But many of the provisions go far beyond just correcting errors. Among the largest items is $10 million in non-recurring appropriations for the Economic Development Project Reserve to the Piedmont Triad Charitable Foundation. That is to help secure PGA Tour Championship Series events in Greensboro. Under the bill, the PGA would have to agree to hold at least four consecutive qualifying events between the years of 2028 and 2031.
The legislation also states that lawmakers intend to appropriate another $30 million over the following three fiscal years if the agreement's requirements continue to be met, creating a potential $40 million state commitment. The agreement must include performance requirements and other safeguards, including repayment of a proportionate share of the grant if the foundation fails to meet the applicable criteria. Representative Donnie Lambeth, the Republican from Forsyth County, pointed to uncertainty surrounding the future of Greensboro's PGA tour events and expanding the efforts to secure the tournament. Lambeth said the Wyndham golf tournament is probably at risk to some degree. Valfour said that potential economic benefits do not make professional golf a responsibility of state taxpayers.
With Balfour being very critical of the spending, noting that sending tens of millions of taxpayer dollars to subsidize professional golf tournaments is, of course, not a core function of our state government. He characterized the appropriation as just another form of corporate welfare and argued that state resources shouldn't. Instead, be concentrated on core government responsibilities, including public safety and basic public services. During debate on the bill that took place on the House floor, Representative Marcia Morey, the Democrat from Durham County, criticized the appropriation, saying that the money could be spent better on other priorities. She noted from the floor, when you're adding $65 million to an already existing sports program, that is not a technical correction.
That is a big gift. Let's look to the people in North Carolina and not the sports industry. The bill also appropriates some $25 million in non-reoccurring general fund money to the Department of Commerce to support the 2027 Military World Games that are set to take place for the first time ever in North Carolina. Of that amount, $17.5 million is contingent on the organizers meeting participation requirements and receiving a qualifying security designation from the United States Department of Homeland Security. The remaining $7.5 million would be used to reserve facilities at UNC Charlotte for the games themselves.
In the month of May, the local organizing committee for the 2027 Military Games Hosted a delegation from the International Military Sports Council, that's the CISM, for the first site visit to the Queen City, as Charlotte will be the first U.S. city to host the Military World Games. Another $15 million would go to the state's Film and Entertainment Grant Fund, which provides incentives for qualifying film, television, and other productions across the state. The program is designed to attract film and television productions to North Carolina by offering rebates of up to 25% of qualifying in-state expenses. Awards can reach up to $15 million for a series of a television show, $7 million for a full-length feature film, and $250,000 for the production of a commercial.
Feature films must spend at least one point five million dollars in state to qualify, while television series must average at least five hundred thousand dollars in qualifying expenses per episode to be eligible for the grant program. Brian Valfour also criticized the additional film funding, arguing that North Carolina should compete for business investments through its overall tax and business climate rather than industry-specific subsidies. He told the Carolina Journal, North Carolina is a great destination for business. There is no need to put taxpayers on the hook to pad the bottom line of Hollywood film studios. Research has shown that states engaging in film incentives get a negative return, meaning the programs are a net loser for taxpayers.
North Carolina should end this targeted incentive and instead work towards reducing taxes on all North Carolina workers and businesses without paying political favorites. House Bill 268 also makes a range of policy changes affecting education, public safety agencies, and the balance of appointment authorities within state government. Among the most significant, the bill restructures the local government commission, removing Democratic Secretary of State Elaine Marshall as an ex officio member and replacing that seat with a General Assembly appointee recommended by the Senate President Pro Tem or the Speaker of the Leader, I should say, of the North Carolina Senate. It also places a new qualification and legislative confirmation requirement on the governor's appointees to the commission. The governor and Josh Stein, no surprise, criticized the changes last week, arguing that Republican lawmakers were continuing to shift authority away from Democratic statewide officials.
The provision built on changes in the budget that the governor signed in July that reduced the governor's appointment authority on Senate. Several boards and commissions, and shifted some appointments to lawmakers and other Council of State officials. This piece of legislation, again, a technical correction bill, would also create a 15-member North Carolina high school redesign commission to examine changes to the state's high school model, including graduation requirements, competency-based education, workforce-based learning, career credentials, and the use of artificial intelligence in career exploration. Although the commission would be housed within the Department of Public Instruction, it would operate independently and the State Board of Education itself would not receive a seat on the new commission. The state superintendent would serve on the commission while lawmakers and the governor would appoint other members to fill it out.
That commission would issue annual reports through the year 2031. Both House Bill 268 and House Bill 562 were presented to Governor Stein back on August the 7th and remain awaiting a gubernatorial action. The governor has 10 days to either sign or veto the legislation before it would become law automatically allot. Jam-packed in House Bill 268, the technical budget correction piece of legislation which spans well more than 200 pages. You can read some more detail on that this morning over on our website, CarolinaJournal.com.
Look for the story with the headline: Budget Correction Bill Adds Millions in Spending, Policy Changes. When life gets busy, it's important to reach for the things that help keep you grounded. Enhance your focus with the new G2 Edge gel pens from Pilot. Designed to help you regulate restless energy, it features a unique laser-textured barrel and tactile sensory zones that help channel fidgety energy directly into productive flow. Keep your mind calm and your daily routines organized.
Find G2 Edge at Walmart today. G2 Edge, sensory by design. Yeah. Good morning again. It's 5:54.
Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News Hour, Charlotte's FM News Talk, 107.9 FM, WBT recapping our big news across North Carolina this morning. Representative Jennifer Balcombe, the Republican from Henderson County, that is House District 117, was selected last night by Republicans in western North Carolina to replace Congressman Chuck Edwards as the GOP nominee for North Carolina's 11th congressional district. This is setting up what is going to be a very interesting race to watch against Democrat Jamie Ager in the 11th. Members of the 11th Congressional District Republican Executive Committee selected Balcombe Monday evening in a first ballot vote at the Buncombe County GOP headquarters following Edwards's announcement the middle part of last week that he would be withdrawing from. From the race, after a House Ethics Committee report last week, as well, highlighted instances in his office in which he was operating and acting inappropriately with young female staffers in his office, creating a toxic work environment.
Bulkhum, who is a two-term member of the North Carolina House, emerged as a favorite for the nomination over the weekend after several other potential candidates declined to enter the race, including who was seen as the frontrunner previously, State Senator Tim Moffitt, who declined the nomination on Saturday. Bulkhum thanked Republicans for their support in a statement and said that she plans to bring the same focus that she has had in Raleigh as a member of the North Carolina General Assembly to Washington, D.C. Jennifer Bulcum said in part: I'm blessed to receive the Republican nomination for the 11th Congressional District. Western North Carolina is where I was born, raised, and chose to raise my own family. Family.
It has been an incredible honor to fight for Henderson County and Raleigh, and I will take that fight to Washington and work every single day to make life more affordable for working families, improve community safety, support our farmers, and ensure we have the resources we need to continue to recover from Hurricane Helene. Welcome also. Highlighted that while she had previously been registered as a Democrat before joining the Republican Party, framing this general election as a fight against what she described as an increasingly extreme Democrat party, that puts two races here in North Carolina on a lot of folks' eyes across the state. North Carolina's first congressional district, that is in the northeast half of the state, where Democrat incumbent Don Davis is running against Republican Lori Buchout. That is a rematch of the same race we saw back in 2024.
And then, of course, out in the western half of the state, as we have been talking about now since last week, this very interesting contest coming up in North Carolina's 11th congressional district, which includes 16 counties in the western half of our state. It will be Democrat Jamie Ager versus now Representative Jennifer Balcombe. And there will be a process likely in the coming days in which we will find out who will replace Representative Bulcom in her. Position within the North Carolina General Assembly if she decides to resign. We will also see who ends up being the nominee that will replace her seat for House District 117 on the November ballot for Henderson County.
We'll be keeping a close eye over on our website, CarolinaJournal.com. 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 to 6, right here on Charlotte's FM News Talk, 107.9 FM, WBT. Yeah.
