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Gubernatorial candidates speak out on economy, healthcare
She said she supports giving teachers a boost in pay and holding them accountable. "It's inexcusable that we have some teachers who allow students to fall behind and don't know they're behind," she said. Citing the different pathways to education such as the Virtual High School and Early College, she said any kid in the state can take any kind of course they want to take. And she emphasized that all kids need to learn some kind of skill. Regarding jobs and the economy, Perdue said that just as North Carolina built an industry of pharmacy biotechnology in the 1970s, there are new opportunities in agri-biotechnology and aerospace for North Carolinians that can be developed to build a workforce with job opportunities from Murphy to Manteo. She added that the state will still maintain a market in its bedrock industries such as furniture and textiles. "There will always be a textile footprint in North Carolina," she said. On the issue of health care, Perdue said she stands in support of the future of the middle class. She said her first goal was that every kid in the state has health insurance followed by making health care affordable and available for small businesses. Perdue also told the journalists that she stands for open government. While there is a need to protect privacy in some situations, she said the government should "err on the side of transparency." Regarding environmental issues, she said she opposes off shore drilling. "We'll never solve the gas problem with drilling off the coast of North Carolina," she said. If there are major points of difference with Perdue and her Republican opponent regarding policy, none stands out more distinctly than the issue of off shore drilling. "I'm a strong advocate of off shore exploration and development," Charlotte's mayor Pat McCrory told the journalists in a speech given an hour before Perdue spoke. "It would help the entire economy, especially the eastern economy," he said. He said critics have said that the benefits would not occur for many years and that the amount of fuel it brought would be insignificant; however McCrory said he does not believe that to be the case. He cited off shore drilling of Mississippi where it was accomplished in a few years and has not had any real environmental effect. He said the benefits would amount to a 35 percent royalty for the state, monies which could be used for beach re-nourishment and for research at the universities development new energy strategies. "Off-shore facilities would also bring a lot of new jobs," he said. McCrory said he will work with other governors throughout the Southeast to develop an energy plan. He said conservation must be a part of it, but also the creation of new energy sources including by not just wind and solar, which he said is all the Democrats are proposing. "That won't meed our needs," he said. "We need the development of clean coal industry so we can shut down our dirty plants," he said. Also, "we need to look at developing nuclear power." He said that the four nuclear plants outside of Charlotte provide much of that city's energy, but said they were all built the 1970s. He said the major responsibility of leaders is to prepare. He spoke of his father advice to him when he was a young man. "It is important to continue the economic viability for the next generation while protecting the quality of life we have here." McCrory called the governor's role as one of a salesman for the state. "Not just outside it but also within it," he said. "The major roll of a leader is to get out and be visible," he said. "We've had far too much of a closed government."
E-mail Frank at sentinelpublisher@ gmail.com.
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