The Watauga County Republican Party gathered conservative representatives from the local and state level for their Lincoln-Reagan Dinner Saturday featuring United States Rep. Jim Jordan as the keynote speaker. 

The tradition “brings together proud members of our Republican family to celebrate the enduring values and visionary leadership of two of our greatest presidents,” said Braxton Eggers, the Watauga County Board of Commissioners chairman.

In response to the event, Indivisible High Country hosted a “Fed Up” protest and food drive ahead of the dinner. With about 100 people lining the streets chanting and singing songs such as, “hey hey, ho ho, Donald Trump has got to go,” and, “no hate, no fear, immigrants are welcome here,” cars joined the queue to deliver food to Hospitality House.  

Protest organizer Diane Nilan said the Watauga GOP was the audience the protestors needed to speak to.

“They need to know that not everybody in the area is for what the GOP is for and that we are concerned about issues like poverty and wellbeing of people and health care and all that,” Nilan said.

Also joining the protest was Indivisible Neers, a college organization that is part of the Indivisible network. The club’s purpose is “focusing on the needs of students, faculty and staff within Watauga County,” said Matthew Felipe, club president and senior political science major. 

Felipe, as well as several peers, took part in the protest singing songs and passing out informational flyers. 

Felipe explained many students have seen or experienced some sort of political violence.

“It needs to stop, which is why we are out here today, because we’re the ones who are going to make it stop,” Felipe said.

“Jim Jordan is going to be here and so we came out to protest him and to protest everything that’s going on with Mr. Trump” said community member Mary Irish. “We have to be out and we have to be loud.”

Notable attendees of the dinner included former chairman of the Republican National Committee Michael Whatley, North Carolina House Rep. Ray Pickett, North Carolina House Rep. Kelly Hastings and North Carolina Sen. Ralph Hise.

Virginia Foxx, North Carolina’s congresswoman from the 5th District, was unable to attend the event, although she provided a video greeting for the attendees. Foxx spoke about her work on the House Rules Committee, which she has been leading since the beginning of this year.

Foxx has faced criticism from her opponents for being disconnected with her home district and not hosting a town hall in over fifteen years. May Bouboulis, a member of the Watauga County Republican Women’s Club disagreed with this sentiment, citing Foxx’s involvement in the community.

“She knows her people well enough,” Bouboulis said. “She shows up at every event we have. If people have a problem with her, her office is always open.”

Hise also praised Foxx’s work ethic.

“She doesn’t hide in the corner,” Hise said. “If she has to pour coffee in every cup in the district, she will.”

Jordan, a longtime congressman from Ohio, was invited to the dinner by Foxx. Jordan is a close ally of President Donald Trump and made national headlines in 2023 during the election to replace Kevin McCarthy as speaker of the house. Jordan lost the nomination after three rounds of voting and the role of speaker eventually went to Mike Johnson.

In 2015, Jordan helped found the House Freedom Caucus and became its first chairman. The caucus was founded on principles of right-wing populism and fiscal responsibility.

“We did a lot of work on border security policy on the Big Beautiful Bill,” Jordan said. “It was an investment for the agents, judges and the wall. We increased visa fees to try to offset the cost and we largely did.”

Jordan believes the “Big Beautiful Bill” was a step in the right direction to improving the government’s deficit through tax cuts and regulatory reform, though he said there is still a lot of work to do. 

“The number one thing we need to do to address the debt is we’ve got to get growth,” Jordan said. “The economy is doing well, the Fed just lowered rates. But regulatory reform and tax cuts are what I think are really helpful.”

Jordan also praised “traditional values” the caucus works to uphold including pro-life principles, pro-family principles and freedom of speech.

“The Big Beautiful Bill put a school choice component in the tax code for the first time,” Jordan said. “We’ve had a huge impact.”

Don Gossett, a retired lobbyist from Florida, was invited to the event by a friend. He believes reliance on traditional values are what set Democrats and Republicans apart.

“There’s a difference in character and decency,” Gossett said. “If you have good character, you’re less likely to lie to your constituents to get their vote. The other side tells you what you want to hear and then reverts back to their lack of character.”

Gossett supports a ban on insider stock trading for members of congress and called out the federal government’s work with non-governmental organizations as money-laundering with taxpayer money.

Another speaker at the Lincoln-Reagan Dinner was Whatley, a Watauga County local and candidate for senate in 2026 against Roy Cooper. The race is expected to be one of the most expensive in U.S. history.

In his speech, Whatley highlighted his relationship with President Trump, the two having worked together during the recovery period after Hurricane Helene. Whatley praised Trump’s decisiveness in making sure the affected areas got the aid that they needed and defended the administration’s plans to eliminate the Federal Emergency Management Agency. He shared a promise from Trump that “Western North Carolina will not be forgotten.”

After Whatley spoke, Jordan took the podium. Jordan praised Whatley and expressed his confidence in his chances against Cooper. 

Jordan also Commended the current administration’s efforts in empowering families, adding work requirements for welfare and taking unprecedented measures against bureaucracy.

“To accomplish anything important, you have to accept risk,” Jordan said.

The speeches at the dinner continued with Joseph Welborn, the president of App State’s College Republicans and North Carolina state lawmakers Pickett and Hise, who criticized Cooper’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The dinner came to a close with memorials for three local members of the party who died in the past year, as well as a memorial for Charlie Kirk by pastor Chad Cole.