VOLUME 148 ISSUE 3 | THURSDAY, MARCH 13, 2025
CHATHAMNEWSRECORD.COM
HAL NUNN FOR CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD
Spring has sprung With the clocks springing ahead over the weekend and temperatures on the rise, Bradford pear trees in downtown Raeford are in full bloom, making winter feel like a distant memory.
the
BRIEF this week
Expansion of phone-free pilot program approved by Board of Education The pilot will be coming to both Northwood and Chatham Central High Schools
February, though trade war threatens to lift prices time since September on steel and aluminum kicked in Wednesday that could send prices higher. The consumer price index increased 2.8% in February from a year ago, Wednesday’s report from the Labor Department showed, down from 3% the previous month. Core prices, which exclude the volatile food and energy categories, rose 3.1% from a year earlier, down from 3.3% in January. The in nearly four years. The declines were larger than economists expected, according to a survey by data provider FactSet.
Trump warns that arrest of Palestinian activist at Columbia President Donald Trump is warning that the arrest and possible deportation of a Palestinian activist who helped lead protests at Columbia University come” as his administration cracks down on protests against the war in Gaza. Mahmoud Khalil was arrested Saturday by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. His lawyer says the agents claimed the government was revoking his green card. DHS has said the arrest was in response to Trump’s executive orders prohibiting antisemitism.
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By Ryan Henkel Chatham News & Record PITTSBORO — Chatham County Schools (CCS) will be expanding its pilot program for phone-free classrooms.
At its March 10 meeting, the Chatham County Schools Board of Education approved the expansion of the Yondr Pouch pilot program to both Northwood and Chatham Central High School.
Yondr Pouch is a device schools can utilize to create “phone-free spaces.” Phones are placed inside of the pouches, which are then locked, preventing their use. Students, however, still maintain possession of their phone at all times and can use an unSee BOARD, page A3
Hudson says voters will ‘reward us’ for Trump-Musk DOGE cuts The North Carolina congressman is chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee By Lisa Mascaro The Associated Press WASHINGTON, D.C. — Almost two months into President Donald Trump’s second term,
the chairman of the House Republican campaign committee is already predicting his party will pick up seats in the midterm elections some 20 months away.
Bragg to Liberty and back again “It should have never been changed to start with. It was all political anyway.” Carl Helton, who served at Fort Bragg from 1962 to 1964
The Army held a ceremony to rechristen the N.C. base previously named for a Confederate general By Allen G. Breed and Makiya Seminera The Associated Press FORT BRAGG — The short-lived existence of Fort Liberty came to an end Friday when the nation’s largest Army instalformer name: Fort Bragg. Christened a century ago in honor of Confederate Gen. Braxton Bragg, the post in North Carolina was renamed in 2023 amid a drive to remove symbols of the Confederacy from public spaces. But last month, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth signed an
Rep. Richard Hudson (R-N.C.) is in charge of increasing the GOP’s slim majority in the House, or at least defending it. After Republicans met privately this past week with Elon Musk, Hudson said the cuts pushed by the Department of onating with voters.
order reinstating the Bragg name, only this time it will honor Army Pfc. Roland L. Bragg, a World War II paratrooper and Silver Star recipient from Maine. A few hundred people — made up of active servicemen and members of the public — gathered under black and yellow tents in front of the base’s command center headquarters to watch the renaming ceremony. “Today we honor a hero worthy of the name Bragg,” Lt. Gen. Greg Anderson said during the ceremony. “It is synonymous with excellence.” Among the attendees were several members of Bragg’s family, including his daughter, Diane Watts, and his granddaughter, Rebecca Amirpour, who spoke on the family’s behalf during the ceremony. Amirpour described her grandfather as a “strong, hardworking and proud” man who didn’t discuss his military service in World War II very openly. Bragg, who served with the See BRAGG, page A3
85%
Percentage of surveyed CCS Yondr Pouch improved student engagement, academics and overall school climate.
With disruptions at GOP town halls during the recent break, Hudson and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) have told Republican lawmakers to skip the events for now and meet with constituents elsewhere. Nevertheless, Huddent their budget-cutting is “on the side of the angels.” Here’s the political outlook from the chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee as he confronts Democrats trying to win back See DOGE, page A2