The Beat: Playing chicken politics?

Buncombe County’s political parties continued to butt heads last week in the run-up to the Nov. 2 election.

In a series of online posts, Xpress reported on several developments in the ongoing debacle over the local GOP’s 9/11 fundraiser at the Swannanoa Fire Department.

In “Fire Dept: We Were Unaware of GOP 9/11 Fundraiser’s Political Nature,” Deputy Chief Larry Pierson of the Swannanoa Fire Department said the party had proposed the event as “a ‘rappelling-a-thon’ to help cure cancer. … There was never any mention of any political objective, political fundraising, or any other political intent.”

In a video promoting the event, however, local Republican Party Chair Chad Nesbitt said they were holding the fundraiser “in order to defend ourselves from socialistic terrorism” and that the money raised would go toward “advertising in the media and our guerilla-marketing campaign to get the voters energized to vote” as well as to Hunt the Cure, a local cancer charity.

But Pierson said he wasn’t aware of the promotional video. “We would hope that anyone intending to use our facility would provide us with their clear intent,” he said, adding that from this point forward, he plans to require all groups wanting to use the facility to state their purpose in writing, “so there’s no confusion.”

Later in the week, Xpress also broke the story that “Local Cancer Charity Declines Money From GOP Fundraiser.” According to the post by Michael Muller, Hunt the Cure founder John Boggs asked that any moneys raised by the GOP on the charity’s behalf now be given to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital instead. “We’ve been getting a lot of negative publicity from this,” noted Boggs, adding, “We’re not political; we remain neutral.”

According to Dorothea Alderfer, the local party’s treasurer, the 9/11 fundraising event raised a total of $310. “From a fundraising standpoint, it was a big disappointment,” she told Xpress. “It was not a success for any of us.”

Alderfer went on to say that she hadn’t written any check to St. Jude’s and had never heard of Boggs. “Nobody’s asked me to write a check,” she said. “This is the first I’ve heard of it.”

WLOS-TV also picked up the story, interviewing Buncombe County Democratic Party Chair Charles Carter, who said the event “looks illegal. And we certainly wouldn’t do it.”

In response, Nesbitt said the party would “never intentionally do anything to break the rules” and claimed that “the Democrat Party has always had their fundraisers at high schools and other places that receive tax dollars, so this is the first we’ve ever heard anything in regards to not being able to have a fundraiser at a federal or state location.”

In a follow-up story the next day, the television station reported that Nesbitt had filed a letter of complaint with the State Board of Elections that “claims the Democratic Party has done the same things the Republicans are accused of, just not at the fire station, but at places like high schools and the courthouse.”

The party chairs then went on to trade on-air barbs, with Nesbitt accusing Carter of lying.

“This is what we call chicken politics, when you’re in a political game,” asserted Nesbitt.

“Wow, that’s a new term for me,” responded Carter. “I don’t know what ‘chicken politics’ is. … I’m going to yield the rest of my time back to Chad Nesbitt. I think the more time he spends on the air, the more people want to vote for Democrats.”

SHARE

Thanks for reading through to the end…

We share your inclination to get the whole story. For the past 25 years, Xpress has been committed to in-depth, balanced reporting about the greater Asheville area. We want everyone to have access to our stories. That’s a big part of why we've never charged for the paper or put up a paywall.

We’re pretty sure that you know journalism faces big challenges these days. Advertising no longer pays the whole cost. Media outlets around the country are asking their readers to chip in. Xpress needs help, too. We hope you’ll consider signing up to be a member of Xpress. For as little as $5 a month — the cost of a craft beer or kombucha — you can help keep local journalism strong. It only takes a moment.

About Jake Frankel
Jake Frankel is an award-winning journalist who enjoys covering a wide range of topics, from politics and government to business, education and entertainment.

Before you comment

The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.

2 thoughts on “The Beat: Playing chicken politics?

  1. stratman

    It sure looks like Buncombe Co. is a microcosm of the larger national debate this election year. The more the Republicans talk, the more people are sure they are bat-crap crazy. The far right is destroying the Republican party, and it couldn’t happen to a more deserving entity. In the interest of full disclosure, I am a former registered Republican who now votes Democratic for most offices. Republicans have left moderates like myself no other choice.

  2. Coolguyinnc

    First Bill Russell leaves the GOP after CHad Nesbitt’s and the Buncombe GOP antics. I wonder who’s next?

Leave a Reply to stratman ×

To leave a reply you may Login with your Mountain Xpress account, connect socially or enter your name and e-mail. Your e-mail address will not be published. All fields are required.