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☀️ In Today’s Edition

1. A Giant Flag Divides Greenville
2. Around Our Network
4. What We’re Reading
5. Our Recent Stories

The American flag that catapulted Greenville into national news is hard to miss.

It’s 40 feet tall, 80 feet long, and the pole that holds it up is 130 feet tall. Standing outside a Camping World recreational vehicle dealership, the flag audibly flaps in the wind and can be seen from blocks away.

It’s also about 15 times bigger than Greenville’s local ordinances allow. The city spent more than a year trying to get the store to take it down. Then, last month, the General Assembly passed H.B. 926, which restricts cities and counties from regulating the size of official government flags flown on private property. Eleazar Yisrael report on the big flag and its fallout.

A Flag the Size of a Basketball Court Divides Greenville

Camping World’s CEO said the flag is a display of patriotism, while others said local ordinances exist for a reason. Then, the state legislature stepped in.

“You have a group of people that say you shouldn’t restrict the American flag,” said Henry Hinton, who hosts a popular local radio show. “And then you have a group of people who say this guy’s a CEO of a major national company—a billionaire who is taunting us by telling the city council that he is not going to adhere to the rules that everyone else has to adhere to.”

Have a news tip for our team? You can reach us at scoops@theassemblync.com.

Around Our Network

Another round of anti-Trump “No Kings” protests took place around the country over the weekend, including in Durham and Fayetteville.

eCourts, the state’s new digital records system, went live in 13 more counties last week, bringing the platform to every county in North Carolina. But the system has been plagued with challenges, as The Caucus reports.

Apex is considering whether to annex and rezone a rural parcel of land for a proposed data storage facility, raising questions about whether local leaders envision it becoming an industrial zone, or remaining rural pastureland. INDY has more.

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What We’re Reading

Lawmaker Arrest: State Sen. Norman Sanderson was arrested Saturday in Raleigh and charged with driving while intoxicated, per WRAL.

A Victim of Its Success: For the third year in a row, the state’s low-tuition-college initiative is facing a multimillion-dollar deficit, WUNC reports.

I Spy: CBS 17 reports that a 192-acre former NSA station in the Blue Ridge Mountains is on the market for $30 million. It currently houses the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute.

Our Recent Stories

In Siler City, Fear of ICE Hangs Over Latino Community

Residents of this majority-Latino town are afraid, cultural events have been canceled, and the community is at risk of isolation.

When Trump Says Jump

The White House has ordered red states to redraw congressional districts. North Carolina Republicans plan to oblige.

Waiting for Leandro

It’s been 601 days since the state Supreme Court heard arguments over funds for public schools. Can they put off a decision forever?