Rep. Edwards talks the party line
To the Editor:
Recently three Haywood County citizens long involved in issues of public concern met with Congressman Chuck Edwards at his office in Hendersonville. Issues focused on were SNAP, medical insurance, research cuts and the federal match for Medicaid payments to hospitals and nursing homes.
Democrats keep shutdown going to save health care subsidies
As the federal shutdown drags on, Republicans accuse Democrats of prolonging it for political reasons, pointing to stalled votes that could reopen the government and fully restore programs like SNAP. But Democrats say what they’re holding out for isn’t politics — it’s protection. Specifically, protection for millions of Americans who rely on Affordable Care Act subsidies that will soon expire.
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 once it’s gone, it’s gone.
Shutdown could affect programs
To the Editor:
Mountain Projects is proud to be a trusted Community Action Agency, serving Haywood and Jackson counties since 1965. Families and individuals rely on our programs each day for support, opportunity, and stability — and our doors must remain open to serve them.
Local housing initiatives impacted by shutdown
Last week, Mountain Projects’ Amanda Singletary was convinced she’d be calling all 250 Section 8 landlords with bad news: they wouldn’t be receiving October’s rental payment.
Because Section 8 received funding from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, but HUD hadn’t indicated what might become of its finances given a federal government shutdown, Singletary was “sweating bullets” as the Oct. 1 deadline to extend a continuing resolution to keep the federal government open loomed over the horizon.
There are ways to fix Social Security
To the Editor:
I read with interest the opinion piece in the LTE section on Sept. 2 regarding Social Security by Glenn Duerr.
Mr. Duerr is right that the trust fund isn’t on a permanently secure path under the current rules. Projections do show a shortfall "if nothing changes.” So calling attention to solvency isn’t wrong.
Post-Helene, Clyde church still serving free meals
Accessorized with purple-rimmed glasses, dangly beaded earrings and a well-worn Café Du Monde apron, Denise Teague brings the humility and unwavering tenacity needed to sustain Clyde United Methodist Church’s community kitchen since the earliest days following Hurricane Helene.
‘Big Beautiful Bill’ will be ugly for Jackson County
To the Editor:
Last week at the Jackson County commission meeting, we heard some truly disturbing news about the ways the “Big Beautiful Bill” will affect Jackson County. Cris Weatherford, the Director of Department of Social Services, gave a breakdown of federal money our county is about to lose.
Helene aid hang-ups prompt GOP misinformation, blame game
As anger grows over the slow pace of federal recovery funding for Hurricane Helene and Republicans in charge of recovery continue to scramble for political cover, a spokesperson for Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-Henderson) delivered a long list of false claims relating to Edwards’ role in procuring the help — or not procuring the help — Western North Carolina still so desperately needs.
Helping those still struggling
To the Editor:
Nearly a year after Hurricane Helene, Western North Carolina is still in the thick of a housing crisis. Families who once had steady jobs are now living paycheck to paycheck, one unexpected setback away from losing their homes.
