
April 18th/20th, 2008
"Picks and Pans for Governor"
Six people from the two major parties are running for Governor this year.
Two of them are Democrats and four are Republicans. Among them are a lawyer, a
state Senator, a Mayor, a Lt Governor, a former Judge, and a State
Treasurer.
Let’s start with the Democrats.
Beverly Perdue, a former school teacher, served in the State legislature for
thirteen years, and was elected Lt. Governor in 2001. She is a
down-to-earth, personable woman who genuinely seems to care about those in need, as
evidenced by her work on behalf of uninsured children and the elderly.
Richard Moore, now in his second term as Treasurer, has decided to run his
campaign mainly via television, rather than pressing the flesh. He is the
only major candidate who refused to appear on Triad Today’s Gubernatorial Forum
because his staff told me he was “just too busy to drive to Winston-Salem”.
This, despite having his pick of studio taping dates over a three month
period.
In any event, what troubles me about both candidates is that while they both
tout their commitment to more affordable and accessible health care, neither
seems willing to launch a full scale investigation of Blue Cross Blue
Shield, with an eye toward instituting a cap on premiums, and a ban on claim
denials.
Perdue, for example, agrees with Fred Smith, that if we all eat healthy and
exercise, our premiums will decrease. But vegetables and jogging have nothing
to do with going bankrupt if Blue Cross refuses to pay for your cancer
surgery.
Neither Moore nor Perdue have a viable solution for stemming the tide of job
losses in our state. True, a Governor cannot repeal NAFTA and CAFTA, but he
or she can impose severe penalties on companies who profiteer from the
loopholes in those agreements, and abuse the spirit of the Trade Adjustment
Assistance Act.
A Governor can also sign an executive order putting a moratorium on all
industry incentives. Instead, Moore, Perdue, and most other candidates for
statewide office promote the concept of re-training. I’m sorry but someone who has
made his or her living as a sock seamstress for 20 years is not necessarily
going to transition well into being a small business entrepreneur. Still,
Perdue has pledged to lobby her fellow Governors to get rid of incentives altogether, and that
is a step in the right direction.
Perdue is also the only one of the six candidates who has come out in favor
of reparations for victims of North Carolina’s forced sterilization program.
It is the most tragic chapter in State history, and her efforts could bring
much needed closure for those affected.
That brings me to my pick for the Democratic nominee. Richard Moore’s
refusal to take part in Triad Today set him apart in a negative way from all
other candidates of both parties, who each traveled long distances to take
advantage of a free forum to communicate with voters. In Moore’s case, we are left
with the impression that his time is more valuable than anyone else’s, and
we certainly do not need another Governor who is inaccessible. We’ve had that
for eight years. Beverly Perdue is both personable AND accessible. She is
also optimistic and seems genuine about wanting to make our state a better
place in which to live. And so, my endorsement for Governor on the Democrat
side is Lt Gov Beverly Perdue.
There are four major GOP candidates running for Governor this year: Attorney Bill Graham, former Justice Robert Orr, State Senator Fred Smith,
and Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory.
McCrory entered the race late, immediately changed the dynamics of the
campaign, and might have dashed Smith’s hopes for a cake walk on May 6.
But by coming to the dance late, McCrory lost out on early endorsements from
elected officials throughout the State, and that’s not good, especially for
a Mayor of Charlotte. Though Charlotte/Mecklenburg swings a lot of weight in
the State legislature, voters statewide don’t tend to support a Queen city
leader for statewide office. Take Richard Vinroot as an example. An
accomplished Mayor, Vinroot took on Mike Easley in 2000 and lost, then couldn’t
even get past Pat Ballantine for the nomination in 2004.
Nevertheless, McCrory is an effective leader who has managed to get
re-elected six times in a very diverse city, and he puts no stock in the curse on
Charlotte chief executives who run for statewide office. For one thing,
McCrory hails from a small town, and he is in tune with the needs and concerns of all North
Carolinians, having dealt with problems that are common to every sized locality,
ranging from job development, to illegal immigrant gangs.
His solution for healthcare reform is to reduce the number of mandates the
State requires of health insurers and providers. During our interview, he
told me that we should put roads where the cars are and not where the powerful
politicians live. And he is in favor of establishing an immigration Court in
North Carolina as well as an immigration detention facility. He also
opposes any moratorium on the death penalty, and that gives me pause. After all,
our criminal justice system has sometimes sentenced innocent men, and it might
serve us well to put a hold on executions for a while until we can
investigate other possibly flawed convictions.
Click here for page two.
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