IMHO: Of course these people are not being listened to. They are not rich enough to buy politicians.
Excerpt
SUMMARY: In rural Wilkesboro, North Carolina, nearly a quarter of residents live in poverty, well above the national rate. Residents there say their needs and concerns are not being discussed in the national political dialogue, which means for some, they won't vote at all. Lisa Desjardins reports.
HARI SREENIVASAN (NewsHour): All right, this was your assignment for today, but since the election is so close, we have got you working on lots of different things.
And, as part of our Chasing the Dream series, you just recently went out to rural North Carolina.
LISA DESJARDINS (NewsHour): That's right.
And out there, we found a large group of people and a very large issue that the truth is the campaigns have nearly ignored.
It is a place rich in landscapes and in spirit, fiercely proud of its Appalachian heritage. But amid that beauty and strength, the towns of Western North Carolina are struggling, and many feel no one is listening.
MARK TRUDELL, North Carolina: I don't have a savings. It is pretty much paycheck to paycheck.
DARLA DIETZ, North Carolina: And I don't think politicians realize how many of us. This is the face of poverty.
LESLIE DIETZ: They don't understand that there are people that actually try to get by and honestly make a living, and they automatically assume the worst.
LISA DESJARDINS: It's a conversation happening far outside of Washington.
As the economy slowly improves in many places, here in Wilkes County, at the edge of the Blue Ridge Mountains, by many accounts, times are getting tougher. Wilkes saw median income plunge 30 percent since the year 2000 down to $33,000 per household. That's the second steepest drop in wealth in the nation.
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