By Thomas Sherrill, reporter@thefranklinpress.com
Asheville – Franklin’s state representatives got a surprise Jan. 23, when they got invited to a roundtable discussion the next day at Asheville Regional Airport with U.S. President Donald Trump on Hurricane Helene relief.
Sen. Kevin Corbin (R-Franklin) said he was sitting on his couch with his wife, Beth, when U.S. Sen. Ted Budd (R-N.C.) called.
“He apologized for the late hour and said, ‘I wouldn’t call you this late unless it was real important,’ ” Corbin said. “He said, ‘Are you where you can stay up for a little while and take a call from the White House?’ And I said, ‘Sure, no problem.’ ”
Budd told Corbin he was one of 10 people invited to a roundtable the next morning with Trump after Air Force One landed at Asheville Regional Airport for a tour of the area.
Corbin said 10 minutes later, he got that call from the White House asking if he could participate. After getting detailed instructions by text that night, Corbin and Gillespie had to be present at 9 a.m. Jan. 24 to go through security and Secret Service.
While waiting for Air Force One, Corbin talked with Franklin Graham, CEO of Samaritan’s Purse.
“He’s a very interesting man, very humble, very professional,” Corbin said of Graham. “I was just very impressed with him. I’d seen him, I’d been around him a little bit.”
“When the president got there, we just had a dialogue about the storm,” Corbin said. “And he answered questions. The media was there and asked some questions. And basically, at the end of the conversation, what we asked of the president was $20 billion, with a ‘B’, in relief money. And we asked that that money come directly to the State of North Carolina. And we wanted to bypass all the red tape.”
The request also included extending FEMA support in the area for an additional six months. Corbin said FEMA has been active in restoring homes and businesses, but their response has been slow. The $20 billion would be for grants to help local businesses get back on their feet,
help with debris cleanup and have guardrails built in to ensure accountability in spending.
“We want to bypass any kind of bureaucracy that takes part of the money,” Corbin said. “You know, we want that money to go to businesses and to individuals to help rebuild their properties.”
“He didn’t write a check that day, but I think he agreed in concept with that,” Corbin said of the president, noting it was a bipartisan ask with N.C. Gov. Josh Stein also behind the $20 billion request. “And he indicated that he had no problem doing that with an executive order or other kind of executive action.”