News

Democrats file complaint against Edwards over 'hyper-partisan' campaign mailer

By Lightning Reports, Published: February 26, 2024

The Henderson County Democratic Party on Monday filed a complaint against U.S. Rep. Chuck Edwards alleging that a recent mailer delivered to 11th Congressional District voters violated a section of federal law barring taxpayer funded communications that are “politicized” and that “disparage political parties.”

“The mailer that I received and that tens of thousands of Western North Carolinians received the week before Christmas titled “Crime is out of control in Asheville” was a misleading, hyper-partisan campaign mailer, attacking Asheville and disparaging its mayor and city council, most of whom are Democrats,” Leslie Carey, chair of the Henderson County Democratic Party, said in a news release.

Edwards said Democrats had chosen to "play politics with baseless complaints instead of working to unite our country and secure the border" and noted that the mailer had been approved by regulators.
The 77-page complaint, which was filed with the House of Representatives Communications Standards Commission, under their Rules and Procedures, alleges that Edwards has a long and well-known history of attacking Democratic elected officials in Asheville and Buncombe County, including the city’s mayor and council members and Sheriff Quentin Miller.
“If he wants to disparage Asheville and Buncombe County, that’s up to him. Just don’t use taxpayer money to do it,” Carey said. Mailers, such as the one at issue in this complaint, are mailed under the “franking privilege” that each member of Congress enjoys. As long as the mailer concerns “official Congressional business” the postage is paid by taxpayers. But if the mailer is found to violate well-established rules, the representative is subject to sanctions, the Democrats said.
Publicly available information on the House of Representatives website showed that in 2023 Edwards distributed more mass mailings, newsletters, alerts, social media posts and robo-calls than any other member of the North Carolina delegation and was No. 3 overall in Congress, at 250 communications.

“I can see why the Democrat Party would like to separate themselves from the crime problem they own," Edwards said in a response early Monday afternoon. "They support Joe Biden's open border policy that is putting communities all across America at risk. I'll continue my work to make sure law enforcement has the tools they need and stand steadfast in working to ensure we secure the border once President Trump is elected to office.

"Sadly, the Henderson County Democratic Party chooses to play politics with baseless complaints instead of working to unite our country and secure the border. My mailer in question received bipartisan approval from the communications standards commission.”