This week in North Carolina politics, Gov. Roy Cooper vetoes a river cleanup bill, saying it was insufficient; and Thomas Farr sits through a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on his nomination to be a District Judge on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina.

After multiple failed attempts by Republican leaders to repeal the Affordable Care Act, GOP lawmakers are back with their newest repeal effort. The Graham-Cassidy bill would cap funding to Medicaid, and many opponents say it would leave millions of people without healthcare coverage. 

Charles Frazier’s Appalachian novel and love story “Cold Mountain” became a modern classic. And now the story of Confederate deserter W.P. Inman and his journey to find his way back to his sweetheart Ada Monroe is on stage at the North Carolina Opera. 

Diali Cissokho and Kaira Ba have long had a dream of traveling to Senegal to record an album. This year they made it happen. The band just returned from M’bour, Cissokho’s hometown and the city where his family still maintains a large compound open to musical relatives and friends. 

Postcards from Madison County is a special series from WUNC and The Partnership for Appalachian Girls' Education that features personal storytelling from a unique summer program for Appalachian youths.

Skylar Shelton is entering 6th grade at Madison Middle School. She is from the Spillcorn community in Laurel. Skylar’s digital story is about her love for her Mamaw, and its title is "My Whole World."

About Postcards From Madison County

In North Carolina, women make up more than 51 percent of the population, yet they hold less than a quarter of the seats at the state legislature.