CHARLOTTE, NC (WBTV) - A New Jersey political analyst claims that President Obama will dump Joe Biden weeks before the Democratic convention in Charlotte next year. 

The President's choice for a running mate will be first term U.S. Senator Kay Hagan, who is a Shelby native, according to Alan Steinberg, who wrote all this on a blog in New Jersey. 

Hagan, formerly a politician in Greensboro, was swept into office on the President's coat-tails when he won North Carolina in 2008, the first time the state voted Democrat for president since 1980. 

Steinberg says North Carolina will be a pivotal state in 2012 and Hagan, niece of former Florida Governor and U.S. Senator Lawton Chiles, would help Obama here. 

Smoke and haze has made its way into the Carolinas and local emergency crews say they've been inundated with phone calls to 911 wondering why.

According to the National Weather Service - the smoke and haze is coming from wild land fires that continue to burn in the state of Georgia. Officials say the smoke and haze  could stick around until sometime Saturday afternoon.

CLEVELAND COUNTY -  Communities In Schools of North Carolina (CISNC), the leading dropout prevention organization dedicated to empowering students to stay in school and achieve in life, is proud to announce participation in a statewide partnership with Walmart to collect school supplies for economically-disadvantaged students in North Carolina. 

The 2011 “Build A Backpack” back-to-school supply drive is the largest school supply drive ever conducted by Walmart in North Carolina, involving all 138 local Walmart stores across the state. 

CISNC has identified 77 counties that will benefit from the “Build A Backpack” program. 

To expand its reach across the state, CISNC has partnered with other trusted nonprofits.  These partner agencies are assisting CISNC in counties where there are Walmart stores but not a local CISNC affiliate. 

The campaign, which kicks off on July 17 and runs until August 21 involves Wa