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North Carolina GOP Plans to Rig US House Map for Trump
"These shameless politicians are abusing their power to take away yours," Democratic Gov. Josh Stein told voters.
Oct 13, 2025
"The General Assembly works for North Carolina, not Donald Trump."
That's how the state's Democratic governor, Josh Stein, responded on Monday after Republican legislative leaders announced plans to vote on redrawing congressional districts for the 2026 midterms to appease the president.
"The Republican leadership in the General Assembly has failed to pass a budget, failed to pay our teachers and law enforcement what they deserve, and failed to fully fund Medicaid," Stein continued. "Now they are failing you, the voters."
"These shameless politicians are abusing their power to take away yours," he added. "I will always fight for you because the voters should choose their representatives, not the other way around."
Since Texas Republican lawmakers passed and Gov. Greg Abbott signed a new congressional map gerrymandered for the GOP in August after pressure from Trump, legislators in other states have pursued similar efforts.
Some Democrats in blue states have responded with proposals to draw GOP-held districts out of existence—including California Gov. Gavin Newsom, whose redistricting plans are on his state's November ballot.
Newsom was also among the critics calling out North Carolina Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger (R-26) on Monday:
As The Associated Press reported Monday:
North Carolina Republicans already created a map in 2023 that resulted in GOP candidates winning 10 of the state's 14 US House seats in 2024. That division compared to the 7-7 seat split between Democrats and the GOP under the map used in 2022.
Now, only one of the House districts—the 1st District, currently represented by Democratic Rep. Don Davis—is considered a true swing district and could be targeted by the GOP for an 11th seat.
Former Democratic Congressman Wiley Nickel, who did not seek another term in the House of Representatives after the North Carolina GOP redrew the map two years ago, slammed state lawmakers for trying to oust Davis: "I've seen this movie before—and I didn't like the ending. NC Republicans gerrymandered me out of my seat and cost Democrats control of Congress. Now they’re coming for Don Davis. They couldn't beat him at the ballot box, so they're going to cheat. That's not democracy—it's rigging the system."
Rep. Deborah Ross, one of the other three Democrats representing the state in the US House, said Monday that "for multiple election cycles, Republicans in North Carolina have used partisan gerrymandering to silence voters and manipulate their way into office. With this announcement, we have now reached a decisive turning point for our democracy—a moment when the courts and our elected representatives will need to decide whether it's acceptable for Republicans to blatantly rig elections to cement their hold on power."
"The context is critical. North Carolinians from both parties should be alarmed by credible reports that Phil Berger is pursuing redistricting as part of a corrupt bargain to secure a political endorsement from Donald Trump," she continued. "Republicans are waging a war on American voting rights because they know the truth—their policies are unpopular, their candidates are unlikable, and they can't win a majority in Congress without stacking the deck in their favor."
"Now is the time for people of good faith from both parties who care about the future of our democracy to make their voices heard. Will we allow a corrupt deal to go unchallenged? Will we allow power-hungry politicians to select their voters? Or will we stand up for the bedrock American principle that voters should be empowered to select their leaders?" she asked. "I'm committed to fighting for every North Carolinian who is tired of being silenced by Republicans in Raleigh and Washington."
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As Trump Boosts Coal Industry, Black Lung Miners Say They've Been 'Cast Aside to Die'
“The Trump administration was handed tools to protect black lung and they are doing everything in their power to toss those rules in the trash,” said one campaigner ahead of a planned protest.
Oct 13, 2025
As the Trump administration moves ahead with a massive bailout for the coal industry as part of its "drill, baby, drill" pro-fossil fuel energy policy, miners suffering from black lung disease and their advocates are set for a Tuesday protest in Washington, DC to draw attention what they say is the government's failure to protect them.
Last month, the Department of Energy (DOE) announced a $625 million investment “to expand and reinvigorate America’s coal industry," despite the sedimentary rock being arguably the worst fossil fuel for both air pollution and the climate amid an ever-worsening planetary emergency. Burning coal for energy is the single largest contributor to planetary heating, accounting for over 40% of worldwide carbon dioxide emissions.
US Secretary of Energy Chris Wright said at the time that “beautiful, clean coal will be essential to powering America’s reindustrialization and winning the AI race," as generative artificial intelligence requires stupendous amounts of energy.
“The companies might be getting a handout, but the miners ain’t getting none."
The DOE's announcement followed the Mine Safety and Health Administration's (MSHA) blocking of a rule it finalized during the Biden administration to protect coal and other miners from silica dust, prolonged exposure to which causes black lung disease, which is formally called coal worker's pneumoconiosis.
The inhaled coal dust triggers chronic inflammation, causing scarring of lung tissue, reduced lung elasticity, and impaired oxygen flow. Lung and heart failure, infections including pneumonia, lung cancer, and other illnesses cause a slow and painful death. The disease is irreversible and there is no cure. According to the American Lung Association, "an estimated 16% of coal workers are affected" by black lung disease in the US, "and after decades of improvement, the number of cases of black lung disease is on the rise again."
As Trey Pollard of Appalachian Citizens' Law Center explained in an email Monday:
The rule was supposed to go into effect in April 2025. But instead MSHA blocked the rule, blaming mass layoffs at the [National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health] conducted by Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The mining industry also took the rule to court, where the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals put an indefinite pause of the rule after the administration failed to oppose the industry’s request. The next court update is scheduled for mid-October, a full six months after the rule’s planned enforcement date.
"Every day of delayed enforcement increases miners’ exposure to silica and their risk of black lung disease," Pollard added. "On October 14, miners, their families, and their supporters will gather in front of the Department of Labor to demand the administration fight to preserve the silica rule and to call for an end to the delays."
TOMORROW: Support miners rallying in DC outside the #USDOL!The longer the Trump admin waits, the more miners will get #blacklung. We must act now. ⛏️✊ Rally info here: loom.ly/xsY-jGE OR watch our instagram livestream w/ @appcitizenslaw.bsky.social
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— The BlueGreen Alliance (@bluegreenalliance.bsky.social) October 13, 2025 at 1:32 PM
The Washington, DC demonstration is being organized by the National Black Lung Association, with support from the United Mine Workers of America, Fayette County Black Lung Association, Kanawha County Black Lung Association, Wyoming County Black Lung Association, Virginia Black Lung Association Chapter 1, Virginia Black Lung Association Chapter 2, the Alliance for Appalachia, Appalachian Voices, Appalachian Citizens’ Law Center, and the BlueGreen Alliance.
“The Trump administration was handed tools to protect black lung and they are doing everything in their power to toss those rules in the trash,” BlueGreen Alliance executive director Jason Walsh told The New York Times' Lisa Friedman Monday.
Friedman interviewed miners suffering from black lung disease who said they felt abandoned by Trump, despite their support being a significant factor in his reelection.
“The companies might be getting a handout, but the miners ain’t getting none,” said 71-year-old National Black Lung Association president and retired miner Gary Hairston, who has been living with the disease since he was in his 40s.
Judith Riffe, whose husband Bernard died in March of complications from black lung disease after more than 40 years of work in West Virginia coal mines, told Friedman she wishes that the Trump administration would fight for miners as vigorously as it does for fossil fuel companies.
“Sure, they talk about how much they care about coal but come down here and look," Riffe said. “They’re mining a lot more now, the coal trucks and everything are running, but there’s no benefits for the coal miners coming in."
“The coal miners have supplied this country with electricity," she added, "and now they’re just cast aside to die.”
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Ceasefire Sparks Fresh Calls for Global Media Access to Gaza
Press groups are also demanding justice for the more than 200 journalists slaughtered in Palestinian territory over the past two years.
Oct 13, 2025
Since a fragile ceasefire in the Gaza Strip began on Friday, press freedom advocates and critics of Israel's genocidal assault have issued new calls for international media access to the decimated Palestinian territory, including the largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy group in the United States.
"We encourage American and international media outlets to demand direct, unsupervised access to Gaza in the wake of the ceasefire agreement," the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said in a statement on Monday, as Hamas returned 20 hostages taken on October 7, 2023 and Israel released over 1,900 imprisoned Palestinians, most of whom were taken captive by Israeli forces over the past two years.
CAIR urged reporters to demand access to "the 1,700 Palestinian men, women, and children going free after Israel occupation forces abducted them from Gaza, held them without charge, and reportedly subjected them to torture in prisons run by Itamar Ben-Gvir," the country's far-right minister of national security.
As Drop Site News' Ryan Grim noted on social media, some Palestinians are already speaking out about the torture they endured:
“Although many media outlets will understandably cover the release of Israeli hostages, it is important to also cover the stories of Palestinian civilians who were kidnapped and other Palestinian hostages who may not go free, such as Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya," said CAIR. "Ignoring Palestinian suffering would give the appearance of bias and create a warped, one-sided image for the public."
"It is particularly critical for American journalists to overcome the Israeli government's attempts to hide the aftermath of the US-funded devastation in Gaza," CAIR added. "Reporters must immediately receive access to Gaza so they can see and report on the consequences of the genocide for themselves."
Unsuccessfully pursuing a Nobel Peace Prize, US President Donald Trump announced last Wednesday night that Israel and Hamas had agreed to the first phase of his proposed plan for Gaza. On Monday, Trump addressed Israeli lawmakers. He also signed a peace deal document, as did Egyptian, Qatari, and Turkish leaders.
A report published last week by the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft and the Costs of War Project at Brown University found that the Trump and Biden administrations provided at least $21.7 billion in military aid to Israel since October 2023. The two-year Israeli assault—widely decried as genocide—has killed at least 67,869 Palestinians and wounded 170,105, the Gaza Health Ministry said Monday. Thousands of people remain missing, and experts believe the true toll is far higher.
Among those dead are hundreds of Palestinian journalists, who have worked to not only survive Gaza but also share stories from there over the past two years, as Israel has largely prevented any international reporters from entering the territory.
The various tallies of journalists slaughtered in Gaza go up to at least 271, which includes Saleh al-Jafarawi, a Palestinian reporter and content creator killed on Sunday. According to The New Arab:
Reports in Arabic media state that the armed militia was affiliated with Israel, and members of the group had been killing displaced Palestinians who were making their way back to their homes in the aftermath of the truce.
When he was found, after being announced as missing early on Sunday, he was wearing a press jacket.
The reporter had amassed a large following on social media for his fearless dispatches from on the ground, despite himself being displaced, starved, and his home bombed.
As Middle East Eye reported Monday, the slain journalist "was buried the same day as his brother Naji al-Jafarawi was released from an Israeli prison as part of an exchange of captives."
After Saleh al-Jafarawi's death, multiple social media users shared a video of him welcoming the ceasefire that started on Friday.
Jonathan Dagher, head of the Middle East Desk at Reporters Without Borders, or Reporters Sans Frontières (RSF), said in a Friday statement that "the relief of a ceasefire in Gaza must not distract from the absolute urgency of the catastrophic situation facing journalists in the territory."
Over 200 journalists have been killed by Israeli forces, "and the reporters still alive in Gaza need immediate care, equipment, and support," he noted. "They also need justice—more than ever. If the impunity for the crimes committed against them continues, they will be repeated in Gaza, Palestine, and elsewhere in the world. To bring justice to Gaza's reporters and to protect the right to information around the world, we demand arrest warrants for the perpetrators of crimes against our fellow journalists in Gaza."
"RSF is counting on the International Criminal Court (ICC) to act on the complaints we filed for war crimes committed against these journalists," added Dagher, whose group has filed five complaints with the tribunal since October 2023. "It's high time that the international community's response matched the courage shown by Palestinian reporters over the past two years."
The board of the Foreign Press Association in Jerusalem also released a statement on Friday. It said that "the FPA welcomes the agreement between the warring parties on a ceasefire in Gaza. With the halt in fighting, we renew our urgent call for Israel to open the borders immediately and allow international media free and independent access to the Gaza Strip."
"For the last two years, the FPA and its members have asked, through all channels, to be let into Gaza to report on the reality of the war. These demands have been repeatedly ignored, while our Palestinian colleagues have risked their lives to provide tireless and brave reporting from Gaza," the group continued.
Israel's Supreme Court is set to hear arguments in a related case next week, "but there is no reason to wait that long," the group added. "Enough with the excuses and delay tactics. The restrictions on press freedom must come to an end."
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