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North Carolina farmer points to dirt under his fingernails as reason why Democrats can't connect with rural US
By Hanna Panreck
Published April 10, 2026
A North Carolina farmer told CNN Friday that the Democratic Party was still unable to connect with the working class as Democrats hope to win back Congress, including critical seats in the state.
"This right here, getting it under your fingernails," the farmer, Ed Winebarger, said as he picked up a handful of dirt. "Democrats have a hard time with this. They can't show a connection to the working class."
Winebarger, however, was also critical of President Donald Trump's administration.
"Everything‘s expensive. Inflation hasn‘t stopped," he said. "It‘s continuing for supplies and now for fuel. Now we‘re at war. Transportation costs, fuel, machinery, equipment, labor. Amendments, fertilizers all more expensive."
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A North Carolina farmer speaks to CNN's John King April 10, 2026. (CNN/InsidePolitics)
"President Trump has always been clear about short-term disruptions as a result of Operation Epic Fury, but the administration has been committed to mitigating these disruptions while continuing to enact President Trump’s proven agenda to restore American prosperity," White House spokesman Kush Desai told Fox News Digital in a statement.
"Farmers were key to President Trump’s resounding Election Day victory, and the President continues to prioritize farmers with trade deals that have opened up markets worth trillions with billions of potential customers for American agricultural production, on top of slashing Biden era red tape."
King reported that success in North Carolina for the Democratic Party would require reversing five decades of party decline in rural areas.
"There‘s a lot of anger with the voting base. And America has traditionally gone after the angry candidate," Winebarger told King. "They feel represented by that anger. Democrats need to do more to connect rural America."
Republican Michael Whatley and Democrat Roy Cooper (Angela Weiss/AFP/Jacek Boczarski/Anadolu/Getty Images)
King also spoke to John Copus, a voter, at an event in Marshall, North Carolina, for Jamie Ager, a Democratic farmer running for Congress in the state's 11th District.
"I think we lost our way," Copus said. "I don't know, like we got caught up doing something that didn‘t connect with the people in rural America. And that‘s why we need to run candidates like Jamie, because he is of this place, like, he is our people. So, I don't think it‘s a lost cause."
Copus also said he understood why people voted for Trump in the last election.
"I get it, you know. I know why people, like, voted for Trump around here because, you know, everyone feels like it's stacked against them," he told King. "But that hasn't changed like that. I don't think any of those people are like, ‘Oh, we’re doing better now than we were,' because we're not."
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President Donald Trump arrives to address the nation from the Cross Hall of the White House April 1, 2026, in Washington, D.C. (Alex Brandon/Pool/Getty Images)
Former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley and former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper secured the Republican and Democratic nominations, respectively, in early March.
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Whatley and Cooper were heavily favored to win their contests in a state that has been tough for Republicans at the gubernatorial level and for Democrats at the presidential level.
https://www.foxnews.com/media/north-carolina-farmer-points-dirt-fingernails-reason-democrats-cant-connect-rural-us