Sometimes, it’s hard to keep track of the wild policy swings that are the signatures of the second Trump administration. From tariffs and trade to Russia and Ukraine, it often takes just hours for supposedly strong policy stances to be contradicted or abandoned by the president or his aides.
And now, this chaotic pattern is directly impacting North Carolina.
Both last fall and this past January, Trump blasted the Biden administration’s response to Hurricane Helene and made bold promises that he would rebuild storm-ravaged areas better than ever.
Unfortunately, that was then and this is now. This fact was made clear last week when the administration abruptly turned off the federal funding spigot by rejecting Gov. Josh Stein’ request to continue providing matching funds for the state’s Helene recovery appropriations.
The decision leaves the state on the hook for $200 million or more in additional expenses for debris cleanup and other emergency work.
The bottom line: Once again, the president has said one thing and done another, and sadly, North Carolinians will pay the price.
Tag Archives: North Carolina
Rolling Stone: Trump’s FEMA Denies North Carolina’s Request for Hurricane Helene Aid
The president repeatedly bashed the Biden administration’s response to the disaster
Late in the 2024 campaign cycle, parts of western North Carolina were devastated by Hurricane Helene. Donald Trump accused former President Joe Biden of abandoning the region and mishandling the response to the crisis. The disaster in North Carolina became the jumping point for a myriad of conspiracies and attacks by Republicans against the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FAMA). Trump vowed he would improve disaster responses as president.
That was then.
This is now:
Now, four months into his administration North Carolina Governor Josh Stein, a Democrat, has become the latest lawmaker from a disaster-ravaged state who has been forced to beg the president to provide much-needed aid.
On Friday, Stein published a video on social media informing the public that the Trump administration had denied the state’s request for FEMA to honor a Biden-era commitment to pay for 100 percent of debris removal costs.
I guess King Donald changed his mind.
Raw Story: Trump’s FEMA thumbs nose at state that backed him 3 times: ‘Gonna cost a lot’
Under President Donald Trump, the Federal Emergency Management Agency has turned down a request from a storm-ravaged state that narrowly voted for him three times.
Western North Carolina saw massive devastation last year from Hurricane Helene, which killed over 100 people and left the city of Asheville, along with a number of small communities in the Appalachian Mountains, struggling to pick up the pieces after flooding in areas that had hardly ever seen floods before. At the time, Trump supporters spread baseless conspiracy theories that the federal government was ignoring communities there, or only giving aid to Democratic areas, and Trump himself vowed to improve emergency management.
According to Rolling Stone, however, Trump’s administration is now denying an extension of a commitment to pay the full amount for a vital portion of the recovery process.
See above for the Rolling Stone article.
USA Today: ‘We have to try lifting ourselves’: USAID workers fired months ago are still scrambling for jobs
They were among the first of the federal employees to lose their jobs, and months later, laid off workers for the U.S. Agency for International Development are still struggling to regain their footing.
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Roughly 95% said they had lost savings and retirement funds, 60% lost access to health care, and 37% have already lost their housing. Many said they will have trouble paying their bills in the coming months.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/05/19/usaid-workers-next-job/83332416007
The Atlantic: Trump’s Inevitable Betrayal of His Supporters
On Sunday, Donald Trump went on TV and told Americans that their children should make do with less. “They don’t need to have 30 dolls; they can have three,” the president said on Meet the Press. “They don’t need to have 250 pencils; they can have five.” Critics were quick to point out the irony of America’s avatar of excess telling others to tighten their belt. But the problem with Trump’s remark goes beyond the optics. It’s that his argument for austerity contradicts his campaign commitments—and exposes the limits of his transactional approach to politics.
Throughout his 2024 run, the president promised Americans a return to the prosperity of his pre-COVID first term. “Starting on day one, we will end inflation and make America affordable again, to bring down the prices of all goods,” he told a Montana rally in August. “They’ll come down, and they’ll come down fast,” he declared days later in North Carolina. But at the same time, Trump also promised to impose steep tariffs on consumer goods—dubbing tariff one of “the most beautiful words I’ve ever heard”—even though the levies would effectively serve as a tax on everyday Americans.
These two pledges could not be reconciled, and once elected, Trump was forced to choose between them. The results have disillusioned many of those who voted for him. Trump’s approval on the economy has plunged since he announced his “Liberation Day.” A former strength has become a weakness. “If you look at his economic net approval rating in his first term, it was consistently above water,” the CNN analyst Harry Enten noted last month. “It was one of his best issues, and now it’s one of his worst issues.”
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/opinion/trump-s-inevitable-betrayal-of-his-supporters/ar-AA1EosZ3
The Dispatch: Trump’s Team of Losers
The president has hired lots of people who couldn’t win their own elections.
He’s not alone. Hegseth is only one member of the second Trump administration to have been plucked from the pantheon of electoral duds and given a second lease on political life. From the Cabinet all the way to high-profile White House aides, there are failed candidates for major office who might have otherwise toiled for years in obscurity or, even worse, local politics if not for Trump’s magnanimity. Contrary to the president’s boasted affection for winners, it’s loyalty to Trump, sometimes even in the face of defeat, that remains the most valuable characteristic for a Republican looking to get ahead these days. Even the losers.
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So the pathway for aspiring MAGA politicians is clear: in order to get the Trump administration imprimatur to win a future race for office, try losing one first.
Fox News: Army suspends commander after Trump, Vance, Hegseth vanish from command board
Just another lame excuse to boot a woman from the officer ranks, as the glass ceiling spirals ever downward:
The commander of Fort McCoy was relieved of duty after the U.S. Army base failed to install photos of President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on a wall displaying their chain of command.
Col. Sheyla Baez Ramirez was suspended as garrison commander of Ft. McCoy in Fort Bragg, North Carolina. “This suspension is not related to any misconduct,” the U.S. Army Reserve Command said in a statement, “We have no further details to provide at this time while this matter is under review.”
Christian Post: Trump advisor Paula White-Cain promises ‘supernatural blessings’ for $1,000 donation ahead of Passover

Paula White-Cain, a televangelist and spiritual advisor to President Donald Trump, is facing criticism for a video in which she claims “supernatural blessings” will be released to those who donate to her ministry ahead of the Passover holiday.
In a video titled “Passover Season: God’s Divine Appointment With You!” posted March 23 on YouTube, White, 58, claims that honoring God during Passover, which begins April 12 at sundown, will unlock divine — and monetary — rewards.
“I believe that when you honor God on Passover starting on April 12th at sundown through Good Friday on the 18th and concluding on Easter Sunday, you can receive these seven supernatural blessings for you and your house,” she said.

Trump advisor Paula White-Cain promises ‘supernatural blessings’ | U.S.
Money Talks News: 26 Social Security Offices Expected to Close Down by This Fall
The Associated Press (AP) recently obtained an internal planning document from the General Services Administration, which manages federal real estate, that includes the dates on which some of those leases are expected to end. The AP also searched publicly available data to find additional information on these leases.
The publication identified 26 SSA offices that will close in 2025.
This news comes just after the SSA implemented stronger identity verification practices. Beneficiaries must now verify their identity in person before they can change their direct deposit information or claim benefits. Closing SSA locations will make it more difficult for beneficiaries in certain areas to do that.
26 Social Security Offices Expected to Close Down by This Fall