VOLUME 10 ISSUE 47 | THURSDAY, JANUARY 15, 2025
NSJONLINE.COM
PJ WARD-BROWN / NORTH STATE JOURNAL
Trucks are parked at a TA TravelCenter in Gibsonville on Monday.
Audit: 54% of NC trucking licenses issued illegally
the
BRIEF this week
Clintons refuse to testify in House Epstein probe Washington, D.C. Former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Tuesday that they will refuse to comply with a congressional subpoena to testify in a House committee’s investigation of Jeffrey Epstein even as Republican lawmakers prepare contempt of Congress proceedings against them. The Clintons, in a letter released on social media, slammed the House Oversight probe as “legally invalid” and wrote that the chair of the House Oversight Committee, Republican Rep. James Comer, is on the cusp of a process “literally designed to result in our imprisonment.”
Ex-Navy SEAL convicted in “No Kings” rally plot San Diego A jury convicted a former Navy SEAL with neo-Nazi beliefs of transporting fireworks across state lines with plans to shoot explosives at police during last year’s “No Kings” protest in San Diego, federal prosecutors said. Following his conviction Monday, Gregory Vandenberg was ordered held in custody until his sentencing hearing. He faces up to 10 years in prison, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. During a five-day trial in Albuquerque, New Mexico, prosecutors outlined Vandenberg’s intention to travel from Texas to California to injure law enforcement officers at the June 14 rally. Investigators found messages on his phone indicating he was angry with President Donald Trump because he believed the U.S. government is controlled by Israel and the Jewish people, according to prosecutors.
The U.S. DOT says almost $50 million in federal highway dollars could be withheld
Measles outbreak spreads into NC The virus has made a comeback due to low vaccination rates By Devi Shastri The Associated Press SOUTH CAROLINA’S measles outbreak exploded into one of the worst in the U.S., with state health officials confirming 99 new cases in the past three days. The outbreak centered in Spartanburg County grew to 310 cases over the holidays and spawned cases in North Caro-
See MEASLES, page A3
RALEIGH — More than $48.75 million in federal highway dollars for North Carolina could be in jeopardy after the U.S. Department of Transportation issued news of an audit showing 54% of trucking driver’s licenses in the state given to people from foreign countries were issued illegally. “North Carolina’s failure to follow the rules isn’t just shameful — it’s dangerous,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean. P. Duffy said in a press release. “I’m calling on state leadership to immediately remove these dangerous drivers from our roads and clean up their system. President (Donald) Trump and I are committed to keeping you and your family safe on our roads.” The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) conducted the audit as
Petition calls for removal of Mecklenburg County sheriff “No sheriff should ever suggest that a legislator’s safety depends on how she votes. I was afraid and the intimidation affected me.” Rep. Carla Cunningham (D-Mecklenburg)
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lina and Ohio among families who traveled to the outbreak area in the northwestern part of the state. South Carolina health officials acknowledged the spike in cases had been expected following holiday travel and family gatherings during the school break. A growing number of public exposures and low vaccination rates in the area are driving the surge, they said. As of Friday, 200 people were in quarantine and nine in isolation, state
By A.P. Dillon North State Journal
The SBI is investigating claims by Rep. Carla Cunningham against Garry McFadden By A.P. Dillon North State Journal RALEIGH — A petition prepared last month to remove Democrat Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden from office was unveiled in a press release last week. North Carolina state Rep. Carla Cunningham (D-Mecklenburg) is one of five individuals listed in the petition seeking McFadden’s removal “for attempted extortion and corruption, willful misconduct and maladministration in office, and willful and habitual
refusal to perform the duties of his office.” The other individuals joining Cunningham in filing the petition include Marcia Crenshaw Hill, Kevin Canty, Juan Delgado and Bryan Adams, all of whom are former Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office employees. Hill was also a former Mecklenburg County Detention Center officer. Before working for McFadden, Canty had retired as the Special Agent in Charge of the State Bureau of Investigation’s Charlotte Field Office. The petition outlines allegations of extortion whereby McFadden threatened to “withdraw or refuse law enforcement See SBI, page A3
part of an ordered ongoing nationwide audit of the state’s truck licensing systems. Several states like California, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, New York, and Texas have been found to be in noncompliance. The audit was prompted in part by a Trump administration executive order emphasizing roadway safety and follows several high-profile accident cases in 2025 involving illegal immigrants holding nondomiciled commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs). Key findings from FMSCA’s audit include: • 19 instances of nondomiciled CDLs issued with validity periods exceeding the expiration of the driver’s lawful presence documents. • 2 instances of nondomiciled CDLs issued to Mexican citizens not present under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). • 8 instances of the North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles (NCDMV) issuing nondomiciled commercial learner’s permits (CLPs)/ See AUDIT, page A2