Democratic Lt. Gov. Bev Perdue and Republican Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory, both considered strong contenders for the nominations of their respective parties in the campaign for governor, addressed business leaders in Greensboro today. The two, who were joined by Libertarian candidate Michael Munger, spoke at Embassy Suites Piedmont Triad International Airport at a forum hosted by area chambers of commerce.
NC Treasurer Richard Moore, the other major candidate for the Democratic nomination, canceled about an hour before the event, organizers said.
I spoke briefly to Munger, who said he has gathered a sufficient number of signatures to get his name on the ballot in November, but focused most of my attention on Perdue and McCrory, as North Carolina voters will have to choose one candidate from each of the major parties on May 6 to advance to the general election.
Munger, a political science professor at Duke University, told me he believes North Carolina needs to reduce the regulatory and tax burden on businesses, and do away with corporate incentives, which he said tend to give politicians bragging rights but fail to spur overall economic growth. Instead, he said, the state should invest in its community colleges and in transportation and communications infrastructure.
Perdue describes herself as a pragmatist, and her brand of Democratic politics seems to depart little from that of sitting Gov. Mike Easley, Senate President Pro Tempore Marc Basnight.
“I believe this area can be the future of aerospace in North Carolina,” Perdue said of the Triad. “You’ve got Piedmont International Airport healthy and well and prospering. You’ve got FedEx and HondaJet, and all that serves as a lead-in to secure other military industries.”
Her support of corporate incentives also represents a continuation of Easley’s economic development program.
“I believe we need to continue to provide tax incentives to small businesses to allow them to be competitive in the global economy.” Perdue said, adding that as governor she would try to persuade all 50 states “to discontinue incentives [but] I don’t think FedEx and Dell would be sitting here without incentives.”
Perdue, who cast the tie-breaking vote to pass the lottery in 2005, said she would push for an amendment to the state constitution to ensure that lottery funds can only be spent on education. “I know some of you hate it and some of you like it,” she said. “I’m a realist, a pragmatist. We are watching it closely to make sure it’s done right.”
McCrory is an interesting kind of centrist candidate. His rhetoric on immigration appeals to a certain conservative and nativist sentiment that runs strong in this state, but his advocacy of mass transit makes him more progressive than many prominent Democrats in the state. And with Charlotte’s new light-rail system, he has a record to match.
“I think the more choices you have, the better,” McCrory told the audience at Embassy Suites. “You put bike paths and pedestrian paths where you think they might be needed, not just today, but for the future.”
In discussing gangs, he made a connection between illegal immigration and criminality, and demonstrated a cognizance of recent events in the Triad.
“We have a serious gang problem right here in Greensboro,” he said. “You also have international gangs. In Charlotte we had a shootout with an El Salvadoran gang, all illegal immigrants. Let me repeat, all illegal immigrants. And thank God, they missed and our police didn’t.”
Later I asked McCrory if he agreed with the five leading candidates — Democrats Perdue and Moore; and Republicans Fred Smith, Bill Graham and Bob Orr — that undocumented immigrants should not be allowed to attend North Carolina community colleges.
He clearly is: “I am opposed to it. They’re illegal.”
I took the question a step further and asked if he also would be in favor of denying undocumented immigrants access to emergency rooms, and the mayor drew a distinction.
“I believe in helping people for their health and safety,” he said. “I would not deny anybody help for their health and safety.”
