Guest Editorial
Not a day passes without at least one thought of Hurricane Helene.
I am reminded of the catastrophic damage dealt to my region and my communities every time I leave the house. Whether it is a still-broken bridge or the remnants of mudslides on the side of the mountain, there are constant reminders.
Helene took away many of our physical belongings, our childhood homes, businesses, and tragically, lives.
I witnessed people lose everything. But I also witnessed the power of community in the following weeks and months after the storm. Neighbors showed up for each other in unimaginable ways, navigating this ‘new normal’ together. The house I live in with my parents was without water and power for six days. For that time, I lived with two of my best friends until our power was restored. I am one of the lucky ones. There were people without water and power for weeks and even months, which is unimaginable.
The people of Appalachia are strong and resilient, and recovery has come a long way. However, they still need help.
Two years after Hurricane Helene ravaged Western North Carolina, communities are still struggling.
President Trump recently paid North Carolina a visit in an attempt to gather support for Republican U.S. Senate candidate Michael Whatley. Instead of standing alongside our communities, he joked about our cities being ‘blood-soaked killing fields’ and threatened to withhold FEMA funds if Republicans do not win in November.
Trump personally appointed Whatley to the FEMA Review Council as the ‘Hurricane Recovery Czar’, tasked with leading recovery efforts in Western North Carolina. He has since proven to be a failure in every possible way. He falsely claimed 99% of roads and bridges were repaired and even inflated the amount of funding disbursed by $6 billion. As of March 31, North Carolinians had only received 14% of the federal funding needed to recover from the storm.
Instead of supporting Western North Carolina, he pushed and supported harmful policies. Policies that privatize flood insurance, subsequently increasing his $190,000 in stock tied to those insurance companies and enriching his own pockets. He proudly shared his support for Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill,” or as I like to call it, “One Big Beautiful Betrayal.” This alone has already caused nearly 200,000 North Carolinians to lose food assistance and is projected to cause over 650,000 more to lose their health insurance.
Additionally, Whatley has grown his wealth by lobbying for utility companies, such as Duke Energy. Even as North Carolinians faced skyrocketing energy bills, he voiced his support of rate increases. Maybe his $445,000 in Duke Energy stock has something to do with it.
‘Hurricane Recovery Czar’ Michael Whatley has been noticeably absent from the region, even though he claims to be from here. He made no rebuttal to Trump’s disparaging comments about North Carolina or his ‘joke’ about withholding FEMA funds. If this is the kind of man to endorse Michael Whatley, what kind of character can Whatley possibly have?
Recovery is a long road ahead. With Michael Whatley in office, it is going to be a much longer, more difficult road.
