Beverly Perdue became a lame duck the day she was elected, alienating the citizens of North Carolina and even the state employees she claimed were so dear to her.
When I go to the gas station, I want to scream at her. While many in Roanoke Rapids want to blame some vast conspiracy among the petroleum dealers here, the biggest factor in high gas prices here, so I’ve been told and tend to believe, is they built too many convenience stores, which drive up overhead and inventory costs.
(Later next week: The presidential endorsement)
Couple that with one of the highest gas taxes in the nation and you have people racing to Virginia to take advantage of more competitive prices.
That’s why I’m endorsing Pat McCrory for governor and why I'm glad Perdue saw the handwriting on the wall and chose not to run.
McCrory recognizes the Perdue administration has taxed us to the point it taxes us. He recognizes that North Carolina is in fierce competition for jobs and wants to make our state a welcoming place to do business.
But what impresses me most about McCrory is his views on education and improving the graduation rate of high school seniors in the state.
McCrory recognizes what many of us already know — not all high school students are going to college or even want to go to college.
That’s why he believes there should be two tracks as it was when he was in high school and even when I was in high school.
McCrory believes in the college track and the vocational track. He talked Friday about how we need both, how there are plumbers in the world who make more than attorneys and how there are college graduates who find themselves moving back home.
He calls it elitism and I believe it. While we need the engineers to design, we need the construction people to build. To me it makes sense to reshape the state’s educational system so there will be more seniors graduating and more finding jobs in their professional choices.
A sound vocational track makes it easier for high school students who want to go to places like community colleges or apprentice schools than four-year colleges or universities.
While Perdue proclaimed herself the education governor, it appears McCrory, if elected, could be the actual education governor.
As a stubborn independent voter, it is important to me to have a governor in Raleigh who can work across party lines and McCrory did just that as mayor of Charlotte.
Then there is the matter of tolling that keeps hanging over our heads. The repairs of the highway should be a matter paid with federal dollars and not state dollars that take away from state projects.
To me that makes sense and it makes sense that someone should be in Raleigh who is not going to be a lame duck upon their election — Lance Martin