Comments by Van Zant | Eastern NC Now

Mr. Garrison's reasoning is rather faulty. He is working on his degrees. Mr. Hickman has his degrees. He's working on getting to know area people. Mr. Hickman was born and raised here. Mr. Hickman is already a professional teacher with certifications and experience. As a former service member myself with some intimate knowledge, I know and can appreciate that Mr. Hickman has worked on sensitive projects and information that most are not trusted with. Mr. Hickman has created and run his own successful business. Again, a lot of people have not done that either.

It seems like Mr. Garrison is just starting out. More power to him, but he does not have the qualifications and abilities of Mr. Hickman. Thinking he does is delusional.

Commented: Monday, November 10th, 2025 @ 6:46 pm By: Van Zant

Stan: Yeah, conservatives need to come out heavy in the primaries to support you and all proven conservatives. These RINO GOPers get way more excited about beating conservative Republicans than they do about defeating Democrats.

I've also about run out of patience with those that run as conservatives while working against conservatives. How can people working against me be for me? It does not compute. It's a diabolical self-serving game they are playing.

Commented: Sunday, November 9th, 2025 @ 5:36 pm By: Van Zant

You all's party chairman is still spending money and making public pronouncements in the party's name without authorization from the executive committee.

Commented: Friday, November 7th, 2025 @ 6:45 pm By: Van Zant

This seems to be the trend. We see it around the country. It's certainly happening in the North Carolina GOP. Same thing in local GOP.

Commented: Thursday, November 6th, 2025 @ 10:58 am By: Van Zant

I talk to a lot of people that wonder why the Beaufort County Republican Party seems to be so anti-conservative. It's not really a question. It's a fact backed by strong evidence. The party seems to be constantly at odds with long time conservative commissioners Deatherage and Richardson. At the same time, they give preferential treatment to former Democrats Waters and Walker. They're the ones that changed their registrations to run for office. Both of the former Democrats allied with the Democrats when they got on the board. The party didn't even mind when Waters continued to write checks to Democrat candidates.

Which leads me to Commissioner Dunn: The Party leaders tried to kick him of the executive committee for disloyalty. He was exonerated by higher powers, because he was guilty of nothing. The county Republican Party had no problem with members Waters, Cox, and Varcoe writing checks for and or publicly endorsing Democrats. The party also had no problem with that loose cannon Forest woman campaigning against Republicans and FOR Democrats at Republican Headquarters while serving as a Republican officer!

Lately, the Republican Chairwoman and a Republican officeholder have publicly attacked a conservative Republican school board member while acting as if they ARE the Beaufort County GOP!

I also hear that a shadowy kingmaker committee loosely attached to the county Republican executive committee is planning for "victory" against conservative Republicans in the upcoming Republican primaries.

There's a lot more to this. Stay tuned.

Commented: Tuesday, November 4th, 2025 @ 8:28 am By: Van Zant

Whatley is an insider elitist lobbyist that ran roughshod over the Republican PoO and Republican activists in his time as NCGOP chair. He got a free ride during those years. He does not deserve the free ride into the senate election that he thinks he is entitled to. Don Brown is the ONLY senate candidate that will get my vote.

Commented: Sunday, November 2nd, 2025 @ 7:43 am By: Van Zant

Why are 5 Board of Education members against having a local lead attorney?

Commented: Saturday, November 1st, 2025 @ 5:56 am By: Van Zant

Having done some research, I doubt there are many people around that know more about Title IX than Mr. Rader and Mr. Hickman. Glad the board followed their lead on this matter.

Commented: Thursday, October 23rd, 2025 @ 8:30 am By: Van Zant

Yes, the Beaufort County GOP coddles RINOs and ALSO viciously attacks conservative Republicans.

Commented: Sunday, October 19th, 2025 @ 9:54 am By: Van Zant

The Marxist Progressives of the last century immediately saw Christianity in the United States as a problem, so they infiltrated it from within. Here in the 21st Century is the result.

Commented: Sunday, October 19th, 2025 @ 7:58 am By: Van Zant

After doing just a bit of research on this I've concluded that it is the folks pretending to be the BC Republican Executive Committee that are the ones way out of line. Been calling some of the Repub. Exec. Committee members. None of them have addressed this or the School Board member stuff either. I have heard references to some sort of shadow committee that was created by the Executive Committee before the last Republican Convention. If you read the Republican PoO all of this is not legal according to their own rules. Even if this was a current committee, which they are not, they would still have to report to the committee at large.
It appears that the things these people are accusing Mr. O'Neal of are things they are guilty of themselves. Beaufort County has its own political mafia.

Commented: Wednesday, October 8th, 2025 @ 7:19 pm By: Van Zant

So, here is what we have learned:
1. The BC School Superintendent continues to find ways to attack anyone not jumping through his hoops.
2. The mainstream media is happy to take his script and run with it without recognizing the real story.
3. Some BC Republican Party leaders pretend they can speak for the entire party, and again, the mainstream media helps them do it.
4. The Beaufort County Republican Party Executive Committee is left with the mess and the quandary of what to do with it.

Commented: Tuesday, October 7th, 2025 @ 6:48 pm By: Van Zant

People recognize a political hatchet job when they see it. This says more about the character of the school superintendent than anything else. Identifying others joining him in his narrative meant to destroy someone he sees as a political threat is also very enlightening. A lot can be learned from this episode.

Commented: Sunday, September 21st, 2025 @ 10:18 am By: Van Zant

SD: Best wishes on your surgery and recovery.

I'm pretty sure the elected officials in question do not use conservative news outlets.
Yes, I agree the Executive Committee needs to address this. I hope they have the spine to do so. It is my understanding that this committee has been dominated in recent years by dictatorial leadership. These times require a strong committee rather than a committee in name only or a rubber stamp brainless mob. Just what is the function of this organization. Is it to elect Republicans or is it to undermine conservative Republicans?

With the very important municipal elections upon us we do not need a self-destruction event by the local party. It is time for people to swallow all the small thinking and consider greater things.

Commented: Saturday, September 20th, 2025 @ 1:31 pm By: Van Zant

CV: You're right. Cheeseman has a well-established record of wading into politics. I'm confident that the superintendent is happy with the leftist out of town board attorney, but real blame for that should be on the RINO majority school board itself. I'm told that the current Beaufort County Republican Chairperson is close with those RINO members as well as with the superintendent. She's obviously no fan of Ms. Davis. Under present conditions, Republican majorities on these boards are very misleading to the public. Citizens in the community should be very careful in their evaluations of Republican officeholders and candidates in this setting. The Republican Party organization itself needs to invest heavily in a self-policing effort. At this time, they are not being responsible to the public and are doing more harm than good.

Commented: Saturday, September 20th, 2025 @ 6:59 am By: Van Zant

WS: Maybe someone didn't like the line of questioning by this member at the last meeting. Personally, I'm glad to see board members asking tough questions.

Commented: Thursday, September 18th, 2025 @ 2:50 pm By: Van Zant

Despite the gross financial mismanagement of the Winston-Salem/Forsyth School System that have been uncovered by the State Auditor, I'm hearing that the State Board of Education is not interested in the subject. So much for checks within the system. The public really needs to understand how important our local races are (School Board; County Commission; municipal races). It's no joke.

Commented: Thursday, September 4th, 2025 @ 10:39 am By: Van Zant