MOUNT AIRY, N.C. (AP) — A veteran North Carolina Republican legislator announced Wednesday that she will run next year for the state Supreme Court, seeking the seat currently held by Democratic Associate Justice Anita Earls, who is already preparing for a reelection bid.
Rep. Sarah Stevens of Surry County said in a news release posted on social media that if elected she would “be a conservative voice for justice and families” on the court.
Stevens, 65, has served in the state House since 2009 and became a leader on judicial matters. She’s currently serving as the chairwoman of judiciary and election law committees. Stevens also served eight years as House speaker pro tempore — a title for the No. 2 elected leader in the chamber — through 2024.
“My experience as a family law attorney and a state legislator has prepared me to be a voice for those who cannot advocate for themselves,” Stevens said.
Earls’ seat is the only one of the seven on the state’s highest court currently up for election next year. Candidate filing for November 2026 elections doesn’t start until this December, with any party primaries scheduled for next March.
Earls, one of two Democrats on the Supreme Court, is a longtime civil rights lawyer. She was elected to an eight-year term in 2018, unseating GOP incumbent Barbara Jackson.
Republicans have held a majority on the state’s highest court since early 2023. Associate Justice Allison Riggs, the other Democrat on the court, remains embroiled in litigation involving her unresolved November 2024 election with Republican challenger Jefferson Griffin.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina appeals court ruled Wednesday that a law stripping the governor’s authority to appoint State Board of Elections members can take effect for now, even though trial judges struck it down as unconstitutional just last week.
Three judges on the intermediate-level Court of Appeals unanimously granted the request of Republican legislative leaders to suspend enforcement of that ruling. If left intact, the decision means provisions otherwise slated to take effect Thursday would shift the appointment duties from new Democratic Gov. Josh Stein to GOP State Auditor Dave Boliek, at least temporarily.
Barring a contrary ruling by the state Supreme Court, the decision means Boliek could imminently appoint the board’s five members from slates of candidates provided by the state Democratic and Republican parties. Stein’s lawyers asked the Supreme Court late Wednesday to halt temporarily the Court of Appeals decision.
For over a century, the governor has picked the five board members, three of whom are traditionally members of the governor’s party. Under the new law, the expectation is that Republicans would assume a majority on the board.
Wednesday’s order provided neither an explanation for the decision nor the names of the three Court of Appeals judges who ruled — the court releases the names after 90 days. The court has 15 judges — 12 registered Republicans and three Democrats.
Stein and gubernatorial predecessor Roy Cooper sued over the law finalized by the GOP-dominated General Assembly in December, saying the appointment transfer in part unlawfully interfered with the governor’s responsibility in the state constitution to take care that laws were “faithfully executed.”
Legislative leaders contend that the constitution allows the General Assembly to disperse executive branch powers to several other statewide elected officials, including the auditor.
Republicans have complained that a governor has too much control over elections, resulting in one-party decision-making and a lack of voter confidence. The board’s duties include carrying out campaign finance laws, certifying election results and setting rules on a host of voting administration details.
But Democrats say the laws are a GOP power grab designed to give Republicans an unfair advantage in elections in the battleground state. The board’s importance has been apparent in the still-unresolved election for a state Supreme Court seat. It’s unclear how a new board would affect pending litigation in the race between Democratic incumbent Allison Riggs and Republican challenger Jefferson Griffin, himself a Court of Appeals judge.
Stein mentioned that election in criticizing the Court of Appeals decision Wednesday, saying on the social platform X that the order “poses a threat to our democracy and the rule of law. The Supreme Court should not allow it to stand.”
In a 2-1 decision on April 23, a panel of trial judges hearing the lawsuit sided with Stein and permanently blocked the power transfer and other provisions, including one that would have directed Boliek to choose the chairs of election boards in all 100 counties.
The dissenting judge would have upheld the law, saying the General Assembly had the final, constitutional authority to assign new powers to the state auditor.
Attorneys for House Speaker Destin Hall, Senate leader Phil Berger and Boliek quickly asked the Court of Appeals to allow the challenged law to take effect as planned while the court hears further arguments over the trial judges’ ruling.
The legislative leaders’ lawyers wrote that the two judges making up the majority — one registered Republican and one Democrat — got their legal conclusions wrong.
Bergrer said in a statement Wednesday that the Court of Appeals “rightly affirmed what we all know: the Governor is not the sole elected executive officer in North Carolina’s government.”
But Stein’s attorneys said in a legal brief earlier Wednesday that the lawmakers’ demand to permit the law’s implementation failed to justify “overturning more than a century of historical precedent and practice, numerous binding Supreme Court decisions, and last week’s presumptively correct ruling.” Terms for the current five board members otherwise would have expired in 2027.
Boliek said earlier this week he was prepared to take on the appointments transfer.
Since late 2016, the Republican-dominated legislature has sought to erode or eliminate a governor’s authority to appoint the board that administers elections in the ninth-largest state.
Four previous laws targeting Cooper were blocked by courts. Voters in 2018 also rejected a constitutional amendment that would have forced the governor to pick members recommended by legislative leaders.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Chief Justice John Roberts appears to hold the key vote over whether the Supreme Court will allow the nation’s first publicly funded religious charter school in Oklahoma.
Roberts was the only justice whose vote seemed in doubt after the court heard more than two hours of arguments Wednesday in a major culture-war clash involving the separation of church and state.
The court seemed otherwise deeply divided.
Four other conservative justices seemed firmly on the side of the St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School and the state charter school board that approved it.
“They’re not asking for special treatment, not asking for favoritism,” Justice Brett Kavanaugh said. “They’re just saying, ’Don’t treat us worse because we’re religious.”
The three liberal justices seemed just as likely to vote to affirm an Oklahoma Supreme Court ruling that held that the taxpayer-funded school would entangle church and state in violation of the First Amendment.
“Charter schools are in every respect equivalent to regular public schools,” Justice Elena Kagan said.
Justice Amy Coney Barrett recused herself without explanation. Barrett previously taught law at Notre Dame and is close friends with Notre Dame law professor Nicole Garnett, a leading proponent of publicly funded religious charter schools.
If Roberts sides with the liberals, the court would be tied 4-4, an outcome that would leave the state court decision in place, but would leave the issue unresolved nationally.
If he joins his conservative colleagues, on the other hand, the court could find that the taxpayer-funded school is in line with a string of high court decisions that have allowed public funds to flow to religious entities. Those rulings were based on a different part of the First Amendment that protects religious freedom.
Roberts wrote the last three of those decisions. He acknowledged at one point that the court had previously ruled that states “couldn’t exclude religious participants,” suggesting support for St. Isidore.
But he also said the state’s involvement in this case is “much more comprehensive” than in the earlier ones, a point that could lead him in the other direction.
St. Isidore, a K-12 online school, had planned to start classes for its first 200 enrollees last fall, with part of its mission to evangelize its students in the Catholic faith.
Opponents warn a decision to allow the school to open would sap money from public schools and possibly upend the rules governing charter schools in almost every state.
Greg Garre, the lawyer defending the Oklahoma decision, repeatedly urged the justices to consider the broad impact of a ruling for the school.
“This is going to have a dramatic effect on charter schools across the country,” Garre said.
Representing the state charter school board, lawyer James Campbell said Oklahoma’s charter school law discriminates against religion by encouraging diversity, but “deeming religion to be the wrong kind of diversity.”
The case comes to the court amid efforts, mainly in conservative-led states, to insert religion into public schools. Those include a challenged Louisiana requirement that the Ten Commandments be posted in classrooms and a mandate from Oklahoma’s state schools superintendent that the Bible be placed in public school classrooms.
St. Isidore, a K-12 online school, had planned to start classes for its first 200 enrollees last fall, with part of its mission to evangelize its students in the Catholic faith.
Opponents warn a decision to allow the school to open would sap money from public schools and possibly upend the rules governing charter schools in almost every state.
The state board and the school are backed by an array of Republican-led states and religious and conservative groups, though the case has divided some of Oklahoma’s Republican leaders.
Gov. Kevin Stitt and Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters support using public funds for religious schools, while Attorney General Gentner Drummond has opposed the idea and sued to overturn the state board’s approval of St. Isidore.
A key issue in the case is whether the school is public or private. Charter schools are deemed public in Oklahoma and the other 45 states and the District of Columbia where they operate. North Dakota recently enacted legislation allowing for charter schools.
They are free and open to all, receive state funding, abide by antidiscrimination laws and submit to oversight of curriculum and testing. But they also are run by independent boards that are not part of local public school systems.
Just under 4 million American schoolchildren, about 8%, are enrolled in charter schools.
By HOLLY RAMER and RODRIQUE NGOWI Associated Press
ROCKPORT, Mass. (AP) — Rockport residents have a history of fighting off invaders, but not this time.
During the War of 1812, townsfolk in the tiny fishing village hurled rocks at British soldiers using their stockings as slings. Now, they’re slinging trash bags and towels over the side mirrors of their cars to protect them from a destructive and determined pileated woodpecker.
Over the last few weeks, the bird has broken more than two dozen mirrors and at least one vehicle’s side window. But residents are taking the violence in stride.
A mating-season crazed woodpecker had damaged dozens of car mirrors in Rockport, Massachusetts, but residents remain amused rather than angry at their feathered neighbor (AP Video: Rodrique Ngowi)
“Everybody’s having a good laugh about it,” said Ben Favaloro. “Nobody wants harm to the bird. He’s always welcome back.”
Favaloro, who has lived in the neighborhood for nearly four decades, said he’s seen the occasional woodpecker on the side of houses in years past and he removed several trees last summer that were damaged beyond recovery. But the attacking of glass is a new phenomenon.
“Initially, we just noticed that all the mirrors had been adjusted. It looked like maybe there’s a child in the neighborhood that was going around pushing the mirrors down,” he said. But then his sister-in-law spotted the roughly 21-inch (53-centimeter) tall woodpecker on Favaloro’s truck, pecking at the side mirror.
Given their enormous size, piliated woodpeckers are plenty strong enough to break mirrors, but such behavior is “definitely weird,” said Pamela Hunt, senior biologist for avian conservation at the New Hampshire Audubon.
“Lots of birds will be aggressive against reflections in mirrors, but I don’t usually hear about woodpeckers,” she said. “They don’t usually peck at their opponents, they kind of chase them around.”
She said the woodpecker might be “a little stupid” and is trying to defend its territory and scare away what it sees as competition. The damage coincides with the mating season for pileated woodpeckers and resident Barbara Smith said she’d be fine with “lots of little woodpeckers” around, though she hopes they won’t be as destructive.
“Woodpeckers have to do what woodpeckers do,” she said. “Good luck, woodpecker.”
Favalro said the woodpecker and the media attention it has attracted has been a fun distraction from everything else going on in the world.
“This small town of Rockport that I live in is one of the safest communities around,” he said. “I think this is probably one of the biggest crimes in years. It’s kind of funny, but it’s nice as well.”
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Sebastian Aho hammered a one-timer past Jacob Markstrom at 4:17 of the second overtime to help the Carolina Hurricanes beat the New Jersey Devils 5-4 on Tuesday night to clinch their first-round playoff series in five games.
Aho’s score off a feed from Shayne Gostisbehere came with the Hurricanes on a four-minute power play on a double-minor high-sticking penalty by Dawson Mercer that sent Jesperi Kotkaniemi skating off to the tunnel with a towel to his face. Aho provided the capper, the only lead the Hurricanes would have in a wild game that pushed them into the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
They’ll next play the winner of the Montreal-Washington series, with the Capitals leading 3-1 in that one.
The Devils skated out to a 3-0 lead in the opening 10 minutes, only to see Carolina erupt for four goals in a chaos-filled second period to level the game. But things settled down into a tough grinding finish for the third period and extra periods, capped ultimately by Aho’s second goal on the power play on the night.
Aho also had the goal that tied it 4-4 with 8:33 left in the second period with the Hurricanes holding a two-man advantage.
Taylor Hall, Jackson Blake and Andrei Svechnikov also scored for Carolina, which is one of four teams in the playoffs for at least seven straight years. But the Hurricanes are the only one of that group to win at least one postseason series each time.
It also marked the second time in three seasons that the Hurricanes had eliminated the Devils in a five-game series that ended with a sudden-death goal in Raleigh. The other came in the second round in 2023.
Mercer, Timo Meier and Stefan Noesen scored during New Jersey’s game-opening flurry, then Nico Hischier added a second-period goal for a 4-3 lead after Carolina’s rampaging comeback.
Markstrom finished with 48 saves for the Devils, operating as a one-man survival raft in the first overtime as Carolina put shot after shot on the net with a chance to advance riding on each one — including Carolina’s Seth Jarvis ringing the left post with about 4 1/2 minutes left in the first OT.
Carolina finished with a 34-12 edge in shots after the second period to put Markstrom under constant duress. He made 37 consecutive saves between Aho’s tying and winning goals.
Pyotr Kochetkov finished with 31 saves in his first start of the postseason for Carolina.
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Wisconsin Supreme Court suspended a judge accused of helping a man evade immigration authorities, saying Tuesday that it is in the public interest to relieve her of her duties as she faces two federal charges.
The FBI took Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan into custody Friday morning at the county courthouse. She has been charged with concealing an individual to prevent his discovery and arrest and obstructing or impeding a proceeding.
In its two-page order, the court said it was acting to protect public confidence in Wisconsin courts during the criminal proceedings against Dugan. The order noted that the court was acting on its own initiative and was not responding to a request from anyone. Liberal justices control the court 4-3.
“It is ordered … that Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah C. Dugan is temporarily prohibited from exercising the powers of a circuit court judge in the state of Wisconsin, effective the date of this order and until further order of the court,” the justices wrote.
In a statement, Dugan’s legal team said it was disappointed “that the Court acted in unilateral fashion. We continue to assert Judge Dugan’s innocence and look forward to her vindication in court.”
A state court spokesperson said that a reserve judge began filling in for Dugan on Monday for an indefinite period.
Dugan is accused of escorting Eduardo Flores-Ruiz and his lawyer from her court through the jury door last week after learning that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were in the building and seeking his arrest. Flores-Ruiz, who court documents say illegally reentered the U.S. after being deported in 2013, was taken into custody outside after a foot chase.
Court documents suggest Dugan was alerted to the agents’ presence by her clerk, who was informed by an attorney that they appeared to be in the hallway.
An FBI affidavit says Dugan was “visibly angry” over the agents’ arrival and called the situation “absurd” before leaving the bench and retreating to her chambers. It says she and another judge later approached members of the arrest team inside the courthouse with what witnesses described as a “confrontational, angry demeanor.”
After a back-and-forth with officers over the warrant for Flores-Ruiz, Dugan demanded they speak with the chief judge and led them away from the courtroom, the affidavit says.
After directing the agents to the chief judge’s office, investigators say, Dugan returned to the courtroom and was heard saying words to the effect of “wait, come with me” before ushering Flores-Ruiz and his lawyer through the jury door into a nonpublic area.
The action was unusual, the affidavit says, because “only deputies, juries, court staff, and in-custody defendants being escorted by deputies used the back jury door. Defense attorneys and defendants who were not in custody never used the jury door.”
Dugan’s arrests has sparked outrage among Democrats, who have accused the Trump administration of trying to chill the judiciary. Demonstrators gathered outside the FBI’s Milwaukee field office Saturday to protest her arrest.
She is set to appear in court for arraignment May 15.
Her attorneys include Craig Mastantuono; Paul Clement, a prominent conservative lawyer; and Steve Biskupic, a former U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin who was appointed by President George W. Bush.
By WILL WEISSERT, JOEY CAPPELLETTI and SEUNG MIN KIM Associated Press
WARREN, Mich. (AP) — President Donald Trump on Tuesday celebrated the 100th day of his second term — yet spent much of his rally marking it in campaign mode, fixated on past grudges and grievances.
He repeatedly mocked his Democratic predecessor, Joe Biden, attacking his mental acuity and even how he appears in a bathing suit. He again uttered the lie that he won the 2020 presidential election. And he attacked polling and news coverage not favorable to him.
And Trump again and again returned to immigration, his signature issue, at the rally that marked his largest political event since returning to the White House — boasting about his administration’s “mass deportation” efforts that have sent arrests for illegal crossings along the U.S.-Mexico border plummeting.
“Removing the invaders is not just a campaign pledge,” Trump said in his 90-minute speech. “It’s my solemn duty as commander-in-chief. I have an obligation to save our country.”
He paused his remarks to play a video of migrants who Trump asserts are gang members arriving at a notorious prison in El Salvador, with rallygoers cheering as images of deportees having their heads shaved were played. And while Michigan has seen unemployment rise since Trump reclaimed the White House, Trump used his speech to defend his administration’s steep tariffs on cars and auto parts — hours after the White House announced it was softening those.
“We’re here tonight in the heartland of our nation to celebrate the most successful first 100 days of any administration in the history of our country,” Trump said, standing before large electronic screens reading “100 Day of Greatness.” He later added: “We’ve just gotten started. You haven’t even seen anything yet.”
His Republican administration’s strict immigration policies have pushed the boundaries of the judiciary, and its protectionist import taxes imposed on America’s trade partners have also sought to reorder a global economy that the U.S. built in the decades after World War II.
Trump has also championed sweeping expansionism, refusing to rule out military intervention in Greenland and Panama, suggesting that American developers could help convert the war-torn Gaza Strip into a Riviera-like resort and even suggesting annexation of Canada. Meanwhile, government-slashing efforts led by billionaire adviser Elon Musk have shaken Washington to its core.
“After a lifetime of unelected bureaucrats stealing your paychecks, attacking your values and trampling your freedoms, we are stopping their gravy train, ending their power trip and telling thousands of corrupt, incompetent and unnecessary deep state bureaucrats, ‘You’re fired!’” Trump said.
Republican President Donald Trump landed in Michigan on Tuesday and shared a podium with a longtime antagonist, Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, as they appeared together to announce a new fighter jet mission being placed at an Air National Guard base outside Detroit and ease fears that the installation could close. (AP Video)
Yet only about 4 in 10 Americans approve of how Trump is handling the presidency, and his ratings on the economy and trade are lower than that. Additionally, 46% of U.S. adults approve of Trump’s immigration policies, with about half of Americans saying he has “gone too far” when it comes to deporting immigrants living in the country illegally.
Just 33% of Americans, meanwhile, have a favorable view of Musk, the Tesla CEO and the world’s richest person, and about half believe the administration has gone too far in working to pare back the government workforce.
“The bottom line for the first hundred days is, lots of damage being done to the fundamentals of our government,” said Max Stier, founding president and CEO of the Partnership for Public Service, a nonprofit dedicated to better government.
Typically, presidents use the 100-day mark to launch multiple rallies. But Trump is doing only the Michigan stop.
Administration officials say Trump is at his most effective when staying at the White House, having meetings and speaking to reporters nearly every day. Indeed, the speech in Macomb County was one of the few large political crowds he’s addressed since Inauguration Day on Jan. 20.
The exceptions have been flying most weekends to golf in Florida or attend sporting events, including the Super Bowl and the Daytona 500. The limited travel to see supporters is a major departure from his first term, when Trump held a series of rallies before celebrating 100 days in office with a Pennsylvania speech in 2017.
Michigan was one of the battleground states Trump flipped in 2024 from the Democratic column. But it’s also been deeply affected by his tariffs, including on new imported cars and auto parts.
Automaker Stellantis halted production at plants in Canada and Mexico after Trump announced a 25% tariff on imported vehicles, temporarily laying off 900 U.S. employees. Industry groups have separately urged the White House to scrap plans for tariffs on imported auto parts, warning that doing so would raise prices on cars and could trigger “layoffs and bankruptcy.”
That seemingly would make the state an odd choice for Trump to hail his accomplishments.
Luis Guevara, of Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan, said outside Trump’s rally that he’s “cautiously optimistic” about Trump’s first 100 days in office but noted that change can be hard.
“We don’t look at our 401(k) or our portfolio on a daily, weekly, monthly basis or even year to year. I think the market is very skittish,” Guevara said. “Now is certainly not the time to mimic the market and be skittish. I think we have to hold tight. It’s going to be a rough ride. Change is difficult for a lot of people.”
Earlier Tuesday, Trump issued an executive order relaxing some of his tariffs on cars and auto parts. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the goal remained enabling automakers to create more domestic manufacturing jobs, noting Trump is concerned with “jobs of the future, not of the past.”
Carolyn Martz, of Royal Oak, Michigan, said outside the Trump rally that she supports the president’s tariffs. She said her husband is an auto technician and has noted how parts come from China and elsewhere overseas.
“I’d like to see more stuff made in America, by Americans, for Americans,” Martz said, adding that tariffs could stimulate U.S. manufacturing.
“If we have to eat more in the beginning with higher prices, that might just be part of it,” she said.
Michigan will be important for Republicans in 2026 as their party tries to pick up a Senate seat in the state for the first time in decades and regain control of the governor’s office, with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer term-limited. Multiple competitive House races will also be on the midterm ballot, along with control of the state legislature.
Though she can’t run again for the governor’s mansion, Whitmer remains in the spotlight as a potential future Democratic presidential candidate. Long a Trump critic, Whitmer has sought to find common ground with the president lately, appearing with Trump at Selfridge Air National Guard Base earlier Tuesday to announce a new fighter jet mission in the economically valuable base.
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Kim reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Michelle L. Price in Washington and Patrick Aftoora-Orsagos in Warren, Mich., contributed to this report.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina Republicans who last fall enacted their long-sought policy ordering local sheriffs to cooperate with federal agents seeking to locate and deport certain jail inmates already want it tightened further as President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown builds nationwide.
The GOP-controlled state House approved a measure Tuesday that would subject people accused of more categories of crimes in the ninth-largest state to inquiries about their immigration status that could ultimately lead to their deportation.
After then-Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto was overridden, a law took effect in December that directed jails to hold for 48 hours certain defendants whom U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement believe are in the country illegally, allowing time for ICE to pick them up. The alleged offenders are the subject of ICE detainers and administrative warrants to temporarily hold inmates suspected of violating immigration laws.
The latest legislation also would make clear that jail officials must contact federal immigration agents if they are holding someone with these documents and tell them when they would otherwise be released.
Backers of the 2024 law — new House Speaker Destin Hall among them — said it would make communities safer, and that for years several sheriffs in predominantly Democratic counties were disregarding detainers. Cooper, a Democrat, had vetoed successfully similar immigration measures since 2019. calling them unconstitutional and divisive. But the GOP held veto-proof majorities in 2024.
Some behind the new bill say the law needs to be upgraded to align more closely with efforts by Trump and other Republicans in Washington to keep defendants from being released back onto the streets where they could possibly commit more crimes.
State Rep. Carson Smith, a bill sponsor and former Pender County sheriff, pointed recently to the new federal Laken Riley Act, which requires the detention of unauthorized immigrants accused of theft and violent crimes.
Hall said during Tuesday’s floor debate that about five of the state’s 100 sheriffs are still, if not violating the law, “certainly violating the spirit that was behind” the 2024 state law.
Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden has been in a public feud with ICE leaders over whether he must alert agents about people in his jail who are subject to detainers. North Carolina sheriffs usually operate county jails.
“This bill fixes any perceived loophole and resolves a dangerous problem in this state,” Hall said before Tuesday’s 70-45 vote.
The 2024 law ordered a jail administrator to attempt to determine the legal residency of those jailed who are accused of the most violent felonies, some misdemeanors and domestic violence order violations. The new measure would expand that list to in part include all felonies and impaired-driving offenses.
The current law and the new proposal states that if the jailer determines that ICE has issued a detainer and administrative warrant, the inmate must be taken before a judicial official before they could be otherwise released.
The current law says that once the judicial official determines the inmate is subject to the detainer, the person must be held up to 48 hours after the detainer’s receipt. Otherwise, the inmate can be released. But under the new bill, the 48-hour period would begin once the time the person otherwise would have been released has come to an end.
The bill now goes to the Senate for consideration.
Democrats opposed to the bill say the measure is another effort to vilify immigrants who have been accused — but not convicted — of crimes, as well as to embrace the Trump administration’s efforts to scapegoat people from other countries in the U.S.
During committee debate this month, Mario Alfaro with Latino advocacy group El Pueblo told lawmakers the bill “amplifies anti-immigrant narratives” that ignore the “enormous contributions of the immigrant population, increase the risk of racial profiling and only generates fear and distrust in local law enforcement.”
The North Carolina Sheriffs’ Association supports the bill, association Executive Vice President Eddie Caldwell told the House committee.
If passed by both chambers, the bill would go to new Democratic Gov. Josh Stein. His office did not immediately respond Tuesday to an email seeking comment. Democrats now hold enough General Assembly seats that a Stein veto could be upheld if they remain united.
How many of you have ever heard of the Ninebark shrub or Physocarpus opulifolius for those of you who like to get technical? I hadn’t until recently! Since then I have learned that the Ninebark is also referred to in horticulture circles as Common Ninebark, Atlantic Ninebark, or Eastern Ninebark and is native to the eastern United States including North Carolina. Most frequently seen growing in the mountains and foothills of North Carolina, but seen less often in the central part of the state. It seems to like rocky hillsides and slopes near rivers. You won’t find ninebark growing very much in eastern North Carolina.
It is easy to grow and will adapt to acid or a bit more alkaline soils and can grow in full sun, six or more hours of sun, or part shade-4 to 6 hours of shade. Ninebark has exquisite peeling bark and legend says it has nine layers of bark. It is always good to have plants in the landscape with year-round interest. I just purchased a “Summer Wine” cultivar, one of the Proven Winner line of shrubs. What makes this variety so special? It has deep maroon-colored leaves. Those leaves are a major reason for buying one. Of course, the small flowers that look like pinky-white buttons are another great attribute. Ninebark blooms in the spring and the “Summer Wine” really puts on a show. A drought-tolerant shrub that really appreciates a little extra water for the first year after planting. The folks at NC State tell me the burgundy varieties lose a little color if the leaves are exposed to too much sun during the day.
Ninebark prefers rich, well-drained acidic soil. When planting, be sure to dig the hole twice as wide as the root ball and deep enough for the top of the root ball to peek over the top of the ground surface. You may choose to place some type of aggregate at the bottom of the hole, add some water, and fill in dirt, compost, or organic matter of some kind good organic matter like Daddy Pete’s. Add two to three inches of hardwood mulch or pine straw.
For those of you with sharp pruners and the overwhelming desire to prune, wait until then ninebark has bloomed. It blooms on old wood as do most flowering plants. Anne Clapp used to remind us to clean the places of our pruning shears with alcohol to prevent the spread of disease.
There are several interesting nine-bark cultivars available. I would consult with your favorite local nursery. As I mentioned above I have recently planted a nine-bark “Summer Wine” with its maroon leaves and white flowers and remains colorful throughout the season. The common ninebark has quite typical green leaves. “Diablo” is a variety that has been around for a while and is quite popular with leaves that emerge as a kind of a copper color that turns a shade of burgundy. There is a stylish variety named “Amber Jubilee” with its amber foliage that transitions to red and then purple. “Tiny Wine” is a dwarf variety with bright red-purple foliage. “Dart’s Gold” and “Festivus Gold” both have bright yellow foliage. Ninebark shrubs like a little feeding once a year with a good organic fertilizer low in nitrogen.
Now that we all know a bit more about Ninebark, I hope you will consider adding one to your landscape. Tony Avent has always preached about growing a variety of plants in your landscape and that really makes a lot of sense. You have fewer chances of developing disease problems from monoculture and your yard will have more character and interest.
Belichick was the buzziest offseason addition for the ACC when the six-time Super Bowl championship-winning head coach agreed to take over the Tar Heels — his first time as a college head coach.
Belichick has had plenty of personnel issues to handle. Two of North Carolina’s best pass rushing threats in defensive end Beau Atkinson and linebacker Amare Campbell entered the transfer portal. But Belichick landed South Alabama quarterback Gio Lopez, who threw for 2,599 yards and 18 touchdowns as a sophomore last season.
UNC hired Belichick in December in a sign of a stepped-up investment in football. The Tar Heels opened spring drills in early March and had a practice that media was permitted to observe for about 20 minutes, then closed last weekend with a public workout in Kenan Stadium. It was hard to pick up many specifics with players working out with no jersey numbers.
North Carolina general manager Michael Lombardi said long before spring practices that the goal was for Belichick to create an NFL team.
“We want to play to the strengths of our players and that’s what we’ll do,” Belichick said in March. “That part takes a little while to figure that out, but nevertheless we’ll run a pro system on both sides of the ball and the kicking game. That’s where the foundation of it is.
“And all the training videos that we’ve shown them on how to do things, how to do certain techniques, how to run certain things are really from NFL players – the guys who are great at it, the guys who did it better than anybody. I think that’s still a great way to teach, because our players are seeing some of the best guys who have played do what they do.”
UNC’s opener is a Monday night affair, with the Tar Heels hosting TCU on Labor Day to open Belichick’s tenure.
Stanford shakeup
Stanford went through spring drills after coach Troy Taylor was fired in late March amid a report by ESPN he had been investigated twice since taking over before the 2023 season after allegations of inappropriate behavior.
Cardinal general manager Andrew Luck, the school’s former star quarterback, hired Frank Reich as interim coach this season to take over for Taylor. Reich and his staff have done as much listening as teaching with players still processing the abrupt changes.
“The key for us is don’t overwhelm the players,” Reich said. “Find the small pockets where we can make a significant difference.”
CFP teams
Both ACC teams that made the College Football Playoff (league champion Clemson and runner-up SMU) believe they took steps forward after losing first-round playoff games.
The Tigers and Mustangs will have two of the leading quarterbacks in the ACC and perhaps the country in Cade Klubnik of Clemson and Kevin Jennings of SMU.
Klubnik threw for 3,639 yards and 36 touchdowns in leading the Tigers to their eighth league title in 10 seasons and his second in three years. Jennings led SMU to an 8-0 regular season and engineered a fourth-quarter comeback in the title game against the Tigers before Clemson’s dramatic, walk-off, 56-yard field goal gave them a 34-31 victory.
Clemson added former Indiana head coach and Penn State defensive coordinator in Tom Allen to lead the Tigers’ defense. Swinney liked how his defense did better in the red zone spring under Allen’s direction.
“That’s an area that we have to be better at this year is red zone defense. When you win on red zone defense, you hold them to a field goal,” he said.
FSU bounce back
Florida State is looking to get back on top after a disastrous 2-10 season that followed its first ACC title in nearly a decade in 2023. Seminoles coach Mike Norvell liked the fire he saw from his group, working to blend newcomers with returnees hopeful to make a mark this season.
“You felt the players trying to make that positive impact on each other and hold themselves to that standard that’s necessary for us to continue to grow for what we all desire here this fall,” Norvell said.
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AP Sports Writer Aaron Beard contributed to this report.
