Issue Position: Jobs and a Better Economy

Issue Position

The 47th District is one of the hardest hit areas in North Carolina. Four of the six counties in this district have higher unemployment than the state average. The losses in Rutherford County have been devastating. But you wouldn't know it by looking at how Senator Hise and this legislature have spent their time and energy. We've seen a lot of divisive and ideological social issues that won't create a single job. We've seen a lot of cynical bills trying to boost one party's electoral prospects. What we haven't seen are honest attempts to get our people back to work and strengthen our economy. In fact, they have abandoned and neglected many of the job recruitment tools that we ought to be strengthening.

I reject the short-sighted, black-and-white notion prevalent in this legislature that government cannot be pro-business and invest in its people at the same time. I believe state government can be a constructive partner with private industry to foster a vibrant economy. Government cannot and should not do everything, but it can provide a helping hand. This is especially important as we face a future economy where we're not just competing against neighboring states, but with innovative countries all around the globe. We're not going to rise to a level where we can effectively compete with China and other emerging economies if we're racing to the bottom with South Carolina and Mississippi.

I will work for stronger and smarter economic development policies. We have to start with education to ensure long-term economic growth and meet our short-term workforce needs. But we must make other important investments if we want to boost our competitiveness in an increasingly interconnected world economy. We need to improve our infrastructure to better move our people, products, and ideas. That includes not only highway and other transportation policies that look out for rural areas, but also better access to the most modern energy and knowledge systems like broadband that can help rural areas compete. We need to boost research through our universities and other state institutions to produce the breakthroughs that lead to the industries and jobs of the future. We need to encourage entrepreneurship by supporting people who start new businesses and simplifying or eliminating burdensome regulations that can make starting a business too costly or confusing. And we need to redouble our job and business recruitment efforts that the current legislature has often ignored. All facets of our economic development strategy should work to promote small business and manufacturing -- two sectors that are especially important for our district and can restore prosperity to rural areas.

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