VOLUME 9 ISSUE 24 | THURSDAY, AUGUST 8, 2024
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NSJONLINE.COM
Curious about the brave new world of self-driving cars? NSJ locals editor Jordan Golson drove Tesla’s new Model 3 — or rather, it drove him. Is the future of driving here today? See more on A12.
COURTESY TESLA
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Harris picks Minn. Gov. Walz as running mate
BRIEF this week
Tropical Storm Debby to bring torrential rains to N.C. Savannah, Ga. Tropical Storm Debby brought torrential downpours and flooding to Savannah, Georgia, after slamming into Florida with heavy rain and high winds, and those rains are expected to carry into the Carolinas and beyond. Record-setting rain from the storm that killed at least five people was causing flash flooding in Savannah, Georgia, and Charleston, South Carolina, among other areas of the Atlantic coast. North Carolina is under a state of emergency after Gov. Roy Cooper declared it in an executive order signed Monday. Several areas along the state’s coastline are prone to flooding, such as Wilmington and the Outer Banks, according to the North Carolina Floodplain Mapping Program. Forecasters are uncertain of the storm’s path. After it moves off the Georgia and South Carolina coast and meanders over the ocean Tuesday and Wednesday, it could make another landfall just east of Charleston on Thursday, according to the latest official track from the Hurricane Center. Forecasters predict it would then move up the middle of North Carolina, through Virginia and into the Washington, D.C. area by Saturday.
Truist named sponsor for PGA Tour event at Quail Hollow Charlotte The PGA Tour has a seven-year deal for Truist Financial Corp. to be the new title sponsor for its event at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte. The Truist Championship will be the fourth name of the tournament since its debut in 2003. Now it’s a signature event and the deal with Truist keeps it that way through 2031. Truist takes over as the title sponsor after Wells Fargo chose not to renew its deal. Since Quail Hollow is hosting the PGA Championship for the second time next year, the Truist Championship will be held at Philadelphia Cricket Club in 2025. The Truist Championship is now among the eight signature events that offer a $20 million purse, with $3.6 million going to the winner and a limited field with no cut. Rory McIlroy won last year over Xander Schauffele. Wachovia was the inaugural title sponsor in 2003 through 2008. The tournament did not have a title sponsor until Wells Fargo took over in 2011.
Democrats hope the 60-year-old will help them in the Midwest The Associated Press
Paré, Goodwin take tour of short-staffed DMV location “How can the Agency solve problems when there isn’t a tool providing them with the data about what and where the challenges are?” Erin Paré (R-Wake)
A video posted to social media showed long lines at a DMV office located in Fuquay-Varina By A.P. Dillon North State Journal RALEIGH — A Wake County lawmaker called on the North Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles commissioner to meet local officials over long lines at a motor vehicles office in the southern part of the county. “This is the Fuquay-Varina DMV one weekday morning recently — completely unacceptable,” Erin Paré (R-Wake) said of a video she posted on the social media platform X. The video shows a line wrapping around the North Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles (NCDMV) office in Fuqua-Varina. “I have requested a site visit from DMV Commissioner Wayne Goodwin himself to discuss why our DMV in Fuquay-Varina is short staffed and is not allowed to fill its full complement of authorized positions given the high demand for services and unique complexity of workload,” Paré wrote. Paré invited Goodwin to meet with her, Fuquay-Varina Mayor Blake Massengill and Holly Springs Mayor Sean Mayefskie at the NCDMV office in question, an offer Goodwin accepted. In a Facebook post, Paré gave a rundown of the meeting, which she called “productive,” and See DMV, page A2
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Vice President Kamala Harris picked Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz to be her running mate on Tuesday after a breakneck selection process that began barely two weeks ago when she suddenly became the likely nominee. Harris’ campaign made the announcement before an evening rally in Philadelphia where the two appeared together for the first time. The decision marks another major milestone in the short period since the vice president moved to take over the top of the Democratic ticket following Joe Biden’s July 21 decision to step aside. She has been scrambling to build out a campaign since then and breathe
new life into the Democratic race against Republican Donald Trump. She clinched the nomination formally on Monday night. In choosing the 60-year-old Walz, she is turning to a Midwestern governor, military veteran and union supporter who helped enact an ambitious Democratic agenda for his state, including sweeping protections for abortion rights and generous aid to families. Harris hopes to shore up her campaign’s standing across the upper Midwest, a critical region in presidential politics that often serves as a buffer for Democrats seeking the White House. The party remains haunted by Trump’s wins in Michigan and Wisconsin in 2016. Trump lost those states in 2020 but has zeroed in on them as he aims to return to the presidency this year and is expanding his focus to Minnesota. See HARRIS, page A3
JOE LAMBERTI / AP PHOTO
Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, appear together for the first time at a campaign rally in Philadelphia on Tuesday evening.
Robinson, Stein spar over campaign ad “This letter puts Josh The two campaigns have exchanged letters accusing each other defamation and libel By A.P. Dillon North State Journal RALEIGH — Following a threat of legal action over an ad run by Josh Stein’s campaign for governor, lawyers for both Stein and Mark Robinson’s campaign have engaged in a back-andforth sparring match. The Elias Law Group, headed up by Democratic fixer Marc Elias, issued a six-page response to the Robinson camp’s request for removal of an ad about Precious Beginnings, a child care center operated by Robinson’s wife, Yolanda Hill Robinson. The letter, obtained by North State Journal, defends the ad’s claims as truthful, based on state documents and inspections.
“DCDEE reports show that Precious Beginnings was cited for (1) failing to wash childrens’ (sic) hands with soap and water after diaper changes; (2) failing to keep the walls and ceilings clean and in good repair; (3) failing to properly handle, store or clean and sanitize beds, cots, and mats between users.” the Stein letter reads. Stein’s lawyers also defended the ad’s claim that the daycare operated “at times without lights, heat or running water,” based on a complaint to the state agency. The response from Stein’s campaign lawyer also refuted claims that Stein was indicted or charged with a crime that involved past charges being brought over false claims in a previous Stein ad, calling these statements “false and libelous.” The letter argues that Robinson, as a public figure, would need to prove “actual malice”
to make a defamation claim, which they assert he cannot do. Stein’s lawyers conclude by stating: “The threatened defamation claim has no merit.” The firm representing the Robinson campaign fired back, addressing the past charges against Stein involving a false advertisement. “Strangely (for someone desperately trying to defend Stein’s lies) you note in your letter that Stein’s history of running false and misleading ads is, to quote you, ‘well-known in the political circles…and the legal community.’ In light of Stein’s troubling history of dishonesty, it is hard to take seriously the next six pages of your legal caterwauling,” wrote Robinson attorneys Charles Spies and Benjamin Mehr of Dickson Wright PLLC. Robinson’s attorneys went on to state, “Of course, if someSee AD, page A8
Stein and his campaign on notice that this advertisement contains false and defamatory information.” Letter to Josh Stein’s campaign from Mark Robinson’s attorneys
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