EDITORIAL: Good call on a bad nomination; more hurricane aid coming

Dec. 01--Merit: For South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, who joined fellow Republican Jeff Flake in opposing the nomination of lawyer Thomas Farr to fill a longstanding vacant seat in the federal court system's eastern North Carolina district. Scott's opposition essentially derails Farr's chances of confirmation, at least in this session of Congress.

Farr's nomination has been controversial from the outset, and for good reason. He was hired by state GOP legislative leaders to defend the congressional and state legislative boundaries that were created in 2011. Some were later struck down as blatantly racial gerrymanders. Farr also helped defend a 2013 electoral reform law that included voter ID and other measures that were described by a federal appeals court as targeting black voters "with almost surgical precision." The U.S. Supreme Court later concurred.

During hearings on Farr's judicial nomination, it was revealed that much earlier in his career, he was involved in re-election mailings sent out by the late Sen. Jesse Helms that were an attempt to intimidate black voters from casting ballots. It was those activities that led Sen. Scott to oppose Farr. Both of this state's senators -- Richard Burr and Thom Tillis -- backed Farr's nomination. Tillis said he believes Farr was treated unfairly. We disagree. Farr has been too close to voter suppression efforts for too long to uphold the image of impartiality that is needed on the federal bench.

Meanwhile, that eastern district vacancy remains open. It's time to find and confirm an acceptable candidate.

Merit: For the state's continuing efforts to provide North Carolina residents relief from the flooding and other damage caused by Hurricane Florence.

Earlier this week, the state Senate unanimously approved a measure that will send $250 million to beleaguered farmers and fishermen who were hit hard by the hurricane. About $240 million of that goes to farmers and about $10 million will go to commercial fishermen and shellfishermen. State Agriculture Secretary Steve Troxler told lawmakers that farmers' and fishermen's losses from the storm total about $8.3 billion, so these payments cover just a tiny portion of the damage to the industries.

Troxler said Florence hit just as farmers were getting ready to harvest their crops. He said it was like being robbed while taking your paycheck to the bank.

"There was no payday for a lot of people this fall," Troxler told a WRAL reporter. "It's just a bridge to get people to the next crop and help them get the financing that they need to withstand the loss they've taken."

Earlier this fall, lawmakers set aside $400 million for disaster recovery. This latest round of funding leaves about $69 million to be disbursed.

Meanwhile, Gov. Roy Cooper asked the state's congressional delegation to request another $6.3 billion in federal funding for Hurricane Florence relief. If we get it, it would bring this state's total federal aid for Florence recovery to $8.8 billion, about half of the state's reported $17 billion in Florence damage.

Merit: For Insurance Commissioner and State Fire Marshal Mike Causey, who came to Fayetteville this week to campaign for holiday season fire safety. Causey joined Fayetteville Fire Chief Ben Major and Battalion Chief T.J. McLamb, the city's fire marshal, for a demonstration of how quickly and badly a flaming Christmas tree can damage a home -- and the people in it. As they set a tree on fire, McLamb held a timer, showing that a room can be engulfed in flames within 30 seconds. The ceiling temperature from the blaze was reportedly above 1,000 degrees. "Nobody can survive that," McLamb said.

The officials also demonstrated a similar blaze in a room that was equipped with a sprinkler system. That one was mostly saved from the fire.

But few of us live in homes with sprinkler systems, so as we're putting up this year's holiday decorations, let's all remember to be careful. Electrical problems cause nearly half of all Christmas tree fires, so make sure to carefully inspect lights and other decorations before trimming the tree. Lights that have frayed or bare wires should be discarded. About a quarter of Christmas tree fires result from a heat source being too close to the tree. Keep that in mind as you decide where to set up the tree this year. "They can go up in a matter of seconds. If it's a live tree," Causey said, "keep watering the tree every day. Don't put it up too early or keep it up too long."

Across the country, Causey said, Christmas trees cause about 200 structure fires every year. One of every 32 Christmas tree fires takes at least one life. The rate for other house fires is one death per 143 -- a good measure of the comparative danger. A Harnett County woman died last Christmas Eve in a house fire that investigators believe started in a Christmas tree.

Moral of the story: Be careful and make sure your Christmas tree brings joy and not pain.

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