The Smoky Mountain News
@smokymountainnews.bsky.social
Award-winning free, independent weekly newspaper in Western North Carolina. #Haywd #JacksonNC #MaconNC #SwainNC #WNCnews #NCpol #ncga #NC11 #AVL #WNC #outdoors A&E & more!
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Waynesville resident Sam Wilds is blind, cannot work, uses her entire Social Security disability check for household bills, has approximately $50 left on her SNAP card for the month of October, and once it’s gone, it’s gone.
Federal shutdown threatens food aid in WNC
Waynesville resident Sam Wilds is blind, cannot work, uses her entire Social Security disability check for household bills, has approximately $50 left on her SNAP card for the month of October, and on...
smokymountainnews.com
October 29, 2025 at 3:19 PM
Waynesville resident Sam Wilds is blind, cannot work, uses her entire Social Security disability check for household bills, has approximately $50 left on her SNAP card for the month of October, and once it’s gone, it’s gone.
Reposted by The Smoky Mountain News
@smokymountainnews.bsky.social: On Oct. 1, a #FEMA spokesperson said operations would continue largely as normal. #SocialSecurity checks will still be distributed, but field offices may have staffing limits. Visit ssa.gov/agency/emergency for more information. smokymountainnews.com/news/item/40...
Federal shutdown brings patchwork closures across WNC
As the federal government shutdown continues, North Carolina residents may be left with a patchwork of closures, service limitations and uncertainty across the region’s parks, forests and federal agen...
smokymountainnews.com
October 3, 2025 at 4:23 PM
@smokymountainnews.bsky.social: On Oct. 1, a #FEMA spokesperson said operations would continue largely as normal. #SocialSecurity checks will still be distributed, but field offices may have staffing limits. Visit ssa.gov/agency/emergency for more information. smokymountainnews.com/news/item/40...
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On the cusp of a week that marks 1 year since Helene devastated #wnc, a Republican is entering the #ncpol GOP primary against incumbent Chuck Edwards with a message centered around Helene response.
Story ⬇️ by @coryvaillancourt.bsky.social
smokymountainnews.com/news/item/40...
Story ⬇️ by @coryvaillancourt.bsky.social
smokymountainnews.com/news/item/40...
Former Green Beret Adam Smith to challenge Edwards in NC-11 Primary
Adam Smith says it’s time for a change and that he’s ready to stand up for Western North Carolina in ways incumbent Rep. Chuck Edwards hasn’t — particularly, in Hurricane Helene recovery. “I thin...
smokymountainnews.com
September 21, 2025 at 5:51 PM
On the cusp of a week that marks 1 year since Helene devastated #wnc, a Republican is entering the #ncpol GOP primary against incumbent Chuck Edwards with a message centered around Helene response.
Story ⬇️ by @coryvaillancourt.bsky.social
smokymountainnews.com/news/item/40...
Story ⬇️ by @coryvaillancourt.bsky.social
smokymountainnews.com/news/item/40...
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The #NC11 Dem primary is already on fire: Four candidates blast party leaders for favoring Jamie Ager at upcoming gala, threaten boycott, raise legal/ethical questions #ncpol
Democratic candidates protest NC-11 gala exclusion, threaten boycott
A blistering letter signed by four Democratic candidates for Congress in North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District is raising questions about party neutrality in primaries, calling the party’s deci...
smokymountainnews.com
August 2, 2025 at 4:51 PM
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Plenty has been said about the rape and sexual assault charges against Swain County Republican Sheriff Curtis Cochran, but not much has been said about his 20-year tenure. Until now.
The rise and ruination of Swain County Sheriff Curtis A. Cochran
For nearly two decades, a self-styled reformer with no law enforcement experience who toppled a longtime sheriff and rode a rising red tide to four reelection victories enjoyed his unusual transformat...
smokymountainnews.com
July 30, 2025 at 1:29 PM
Plenty has been said about the rape and sexual assault charges against Swain County Republican Sheriff Curtis Cochran, but not much has been said about his 20-year tenure. Until now.
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smokymountainnews.com/news/item/39...: Fourth-generation farmer Jamie Ager enters #NC11 race, pitching rural roots, business chops and bipartisan grit in a challenge to Chuck Edwards. #ncpol
Jamie Ager enters NC-11 race with message of rural roots, business acumen
On a fourth-generation family farm nestled in the hills just outside of Fairview, Jamie Ager spent his childhood watching the seasons change, the animals grow and the land evolve with the rhythms of l...
smokymountainnews.com
July 29, 2025 at 7:41 PM
smokymountainnews.com/news/item/39...: Fourth-generation farmer Jamie Ager enters #NC11 race, pitching rural roots, business chops and bipartisan grit in a challenge to Chuck Edwards. #ncpol
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BREAKING: After 81 years, Jackson County has voted to leave the Fontana Regional Library system over LGBTQ+ content. Critics warn of higher costs, legal risks and diminished service.
Jackson County votes to leave Fontana Regional Library system
In a historic decision that will reshape the future of public library services in Jackson County, commissioners voted Tuesday night to withdraw from the Fontana Regional Library system after months of...
smokymountainnews.com
June 24, 2025 at 10:42 PM
BREAKING: After 81 years, Jackson County has voted to leave the Fontana Regional Library system over LGBTQ+ content. Critics warn of higher costs, legal risks and diminished service.
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Helpful longread by @coryvaillancourt.bsky.social about the Jackson County commission's flirtation w/ leaving the Fontana Regional Library.
Easy to discount it as too local if you're outside the #828, but doing so would be a mistake; a similar story is being repeated across #ncpol & the US.
Easy to discount it as too local if you're outside the #828, but doing so would be a mistake; a similar story is being repeated across #ncpol & the US.
June 24, 2025 at 2:10 PM
Helpful longread by @coryvaillancourt.bsky.social about the Jackson County commission's flirtation w/ leaving the Fontana Regional Library.
Easy to discount it as too local if you're outside the #828, but doing so would be a mistake; a similar story is being repeated across #ncpol & the US.
Easy to discount it as too local if you're outside the #828, but doing so would be a mistake; a similar story is being repeated across #ncpol & the US.
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A perfect lazy Sunday read — the most comprehensive look yet at Jackson County’s library fight. Commissioners vote Tues. on leaving the Fontana system over LGBTQ+ content, a move that could cost $500K more each year
Face to face: Jackson County meets Fontana board amid library controversy
Finally face to face amid a simmering standoff over library governance and subjectively inappropriate material in a regional library system that’s served locals for more than 80 years, Jackson County ...
smokymountainnews.com
June 22, 2025 at 4:14 PM
A perfect lazy Sunday read — the most comprehensive look yet at Jackson County’s library fight. Commissioners vote Tues. on leaving the Fontana system over LGBTQ+ content, a move that could cost $500K more each year
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Reposted by The Smoky Mountain News
Come on out this Friday!
June 2, 2025 at 12:52 PM
Come on out this Friday!
Reposted by The Smoky Mountain News
Now that it’s been presented to the House Finance Committee, a bill filed by Haywood Republican Rep. Mark Pless that would have essentially abolished the Haywood County Tourism Development Authority looks much different.
Pless makes dramatic change to controversial TDA bill
Now that it’s been presented to the House Finance Committee, a bill filed by Haywood Republican Rep. Mark Pless that would have essentially abolished the Haywood County Tourism Development Authority l...
smokymountainnews.com
May 20, 2025 at 6:11 PM
Now that it’s been presented to the House Finance Committee, a bill filed by Haywood Republican Rep. Mark Pless that would have essentially abolished the Haywood County Tourism Development Authority looks much different.
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More than a year after the incident, Paige LeBlanc is finally ready to talk about being filmed in a Western Carolina University bathroom.
EXCLUSIVE: Payton McNabb’s victim speaks out
On May 2, 2024, a brief, awkward moment inside a women’s restroom at Western Carolina University was recorded, uploaded to social media, and sparked a flashpoint in America’s ongoing culture wars. At ...
smokymountainnews.com
May 15, 2025 at 9:23 PM
More than a year after the incident, Paige LeBlanc is finally ready to talk about being filmed in a Western Carolina University bathroom.
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North Carolina's 11th Congressional District Republican Rep. Chuck Edwards now has his first real opponent. #ncpol #nc11
Moe Davis enters NC-11 congressional race
Retired Air Force Col. Moe Davis is stepping back into familiar turf — running for Congress in North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District. “I just keep looking at what Chuck Edwards is not doing for...
smokymountainnews.com
May 5, 2025 at 3:01 PM
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Tonight, catch me on NC Capital Tonight w/ Tim Boyum, talking more about recent developments in the "Sylva Sam" Confederate monument saga.
Jackson commissioners likely violated law by removing plaque
In response to a public records request made by The Smoky Mountain News, Jackson County Manager Kevin King revealed that commissioners not only failed to discuss in any official meeting removing plaqu...
smokymountainnews.com
April 29, 2025 at 5:29 PM
Tonight, catch me on NC Capital Tonight w/ Tim Boyum, talking more about recent developments in the "Sylva Sam" Confederate monument saga.
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Here's more from @charlotteobserver.com (using my previous reporting) on #FEMA's failure to pay WNC for Hurricane Helene damage, seven months later.
Where’s the money? Nearly seven months after Helene, NC towns wait on federal checks
Several local governments in Helene-battered towns in Western North Carolina are waiting on reimbursements from FEMA for much needed repairs.
www.charlotteobserver.com
April 22, 2025 at 6:46 PM
Here's more from @charlotteobserver.com (using my previous reporting) on #FEMA's failure to pay WNC for Hurricane Helene damage, seven months later.
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“If you're a contractor, your work is needed here, and we're glad that you're interested, but here's the thing, you better treat people fairly. You better be honest. You better do what you say you're going to do. We are not going to tolerate contracting fraud.”
Attorney General, regional LEOs band together to fight fraud
Nearly two dozen law enforcement professionals from across Western North Carolina stood behind Attorney General Jeff Jackson — literally and figuratively — at the Historic Haywood Courthouse April 14 ...
smokymountainnews.com
April 14, 2025 at 8:14 PM
“If you're a contractor, your work is needed here, and we're glad that you're interested, but here's the thing, you better treat people fairly. You better be honest. You better do what you say you're going to do. We are not going to tolerate contracting fraud.”
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Thanks to our friend @andrewaydin.bsky.social, some folks will be telling the stories of Hurricane Helene survivors — and, they want to hear from you.
Inked: Hurricane Helene's legacy lives on, through comics
When Hurricane Helene tore through Southern Appalachia last year, it left behind more than just downed trees and flooded homes. Helene carved enduring, indelible stories into the lives of those who li...
smokymountainnews.com
April 9, 2025 at 9:06 PM
Thanks to our friend @andrewaydin.bsky.social, some folks will be telling the stories of Hurricane Helene survivors — and, they want to hear from you.
Reposted by The Smoky Mountain News
“I challenge FEMA to reimburse us,” Sutton said. ‘We have received zero funds from FEMA as has been reported, and I challenge FEMA to reimburse us this quickly so that we can get it back in our general fund.”
Waynesville repairs, reopens damaged bridge despite lack of FEMA funding
More than six months after Hurricane Helene dealt millions in damage to government infrastructure across the region, the Town of Waynesville reopened a newly repaired bridge — despite the complete abs...
smokymountainnews.com
April 4, 2025 at 2:13 PM
“I challenge FEMA to reimburse us,” Sutton said. ‘We have received zero funds from FEMA as has been reported, and I challenge FEMA to reimburse us this quickly so that we can get it back in our general fund.”
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The real story of flood recovery in WNC is that almost nobody's getting paid, six months later.
Losing ground: Six months after Helene, local governments still haven’t been paid
Most days, Brandon Rogers has dirt under his fingernails — a badge of honest labor. Owner of a small auto repair shop on the outskirts of Canton, Rogers usually wakes up, puts on some sturdy workwear ...
smokymountainnews.com
April 2, 2025 at 1:54 PM
The real story of flood recovery in WNC is that almost nobody's getting paid, six months later.
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Read all about it — while you still can.
Silenced: 307 words, phrases and acronyms Trump doesn’t want you to use
Whether you’re Black, Hispanic, Indigenous or White — LGBTQ+ or cisgender — if you’re thinking about promoting equity and inclusion in historically marginalized communities by combating institutionali...
smokymountainnews.com
March 27, 2025 at 1:29 PM
Read all about it — while you still can.
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Veterans issues have been top-of-mind here lately — VA Secretary Doug Collins visited the Asheville VA on Tuesday. Here's how that went.
VA secretary greeted by demonstrators during visit to Asheville
Less than a week after a raucous congressional town hall where Republican Rep. Chuck Edwards faced intense criticism over cuts to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs — a disabled retired Army vete...
smokymountainnews.com
March 20, 2025 at 4:35 PM
Veterans issues have been top-of-mind here lately — VA Secretary Doug Collins visited the Asheville VA on Tuesday. Here's how that went.
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Reposted by The Smoky Mountain News
A group of veterans is currently demonstrating outside the Charles George VA in Asheville ahead of VA Secretary Doug Collins' visit today.
March 18, 2025 at 3:12 PM
A group of veterans is currently demonstrating outside the Charles George VA in Asheville ahead of VA Secretary Doug Collins' visit today.
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JUST IN — got a tip, and independent confirmation, VA sec'y Doug Collins to visit Charles George VA in Asheville tomorrow. No other details. No notice. No invitation.
March 17, 2025 at 9:57 PM
JUST IN — got a tip, and independent confirmation, VA sec'y Doug Collins to visit Charles George VA in Asheville tomorrow. No other details. No notice. No invitation.