Good morning, readers.
President Joe Biden visited Raleigh last week to tout his administration’s investments in North Carolina and announce new funding for high-speed broadband internet access across the state.
Durham City Council member Mark-Anthony Middleton, who was in the front row, told INDY that he was excited about federal funds for the Bull City, but that some more dough for infrastructure and staffing is always welcome.
The visit comes as North Carolina Democrats begin to ponder the overarching question of the last several election cycles—is this the year that the state goes blue for the first time since 2008? If that’s the dream, then Biden and Democrats will be doing a lot more traveling down Tobacco Road, one of the most liberal stretches in the state.
Anderson Clayton, the 26-year-old chair of the state Democratic party, thinks that dream could be a reality. At the Raleigh event, Clayton was—by far—the most excited member of the audience, and had no shame in yelling out in approval at some of Biden’s applause lines.
“This is some exciting shit,” she told the INDY after the event.
But Clayton and Democrats have an issue, the longevity and impact of which remains to be seen: activists have been packing Triangle council chambers to demand that their representatives support a ceasefire in Gaza, pointing to the more than 24,000 Palestinians killed by Israel’s retaliation to the Hamas attack that killed about 1,200 Israelis.
Clayton said that she’s thankful for the persistent activism, because “people are dying right now who do not deserve to.” Still, no matter the situation in November, she hopes the party can unify around strong local candidates and common issues like abortion access and LGBTQ rights.
“It’s not just about the top of the ticket,” she said. “It is also about every other election that we have.”
Have a good Tuesday.
—Chase
Durham
The INDY spoke with Mike Woodard, a longtime state senator for a Durham district who, for the first time since 2012, has a Democratic primary challenger.
A Durham-based company is working to develop a birth control pill for men.
Wake
A residence hall at Shaw University has been without heat or hot water since students returned from winter break, they say. The university says the issues are fixed now.
Orange
New court documents show that the suspect in the August shooting of a UNC professor visited a shooting range and bought a gun in the days before the fatal shooting.
North Carolina
Democratic politicians in North Carolina marked the anniversary of Roe v. Wade yesterday and discussed the impact of new abortion restrictions and threats to reproductive rights.
Today’s weather
Sunny with a high of 51 degrees.
If you’d like to advertise your business to the Daily’s 30,000-plus subscribers, please contact [email protected]
Love the INDY? Support it by joining the INDY Press Club.
You must be logged in to post a comment.