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Governor hopefuls duel over fuel

Offshore drilling among the hot topics at debate between McCrory and Perdue.

By Mark Johnson
mjohnson@charlotteobserver.com
Posted: Thursday, Aug. 21, 2008

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  • Recapping the debate

    Here's how Lt. Gov. Bev Perdue, the Democratic nominee for governor, and Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory, the Republican candidate, squared off on the issues:

    Opening Statement:


    McCrory:     Focused on gangs, mental health care reform and corruption in state politics.

    He also joked that his sister, Linda, almost didn't let him into her home because she'd seen a TV ad portraying him as “a danger to the middle class.”


    Perdue:     Talked about improving education, creating new jobs and increasing access to health care.

    She said she wanted a “new North Carolina” where “families worry less and dream more.”

    The economy


    Perdue: Said the state, among other steps, needs to latch on to the growth around its military bases: “We need to build new economies, aeronautics, the military and a green economy.”


    McCrory: Said he wants to “return the word technical to our community colleges,” emphasizing vocational and skill training in fields such as health care and electrical work where jobs are waiting.

    Health care


    McCrory:     Criticized mandated coverage in health insurance policies, saying the policies should offer a menu of options so they aren't too expensive for young people to buy.


    Perdue:     Warned that mandates exist to protect the insured, that health insurance should cover a variety of possible tests and procedures, such as mammograms. She highlighted a previous quote by McCrory, who suggested that government-provided health care is “sending the wrong signals” by encouraging teenagers to have babies. McCrory said he didn't recall the quote and didn't mean that he wanted to take away health insurance from children.

    Oil drilling and gas prices


    McCrory:     Wants to start drilling for oil off North Carolina's coast as soon as possible.


    Perdue:     Previously opposed drilling off the state's coast, but said she would appoint a panel of scientists and engineers to see if it's safe. She wants oil companies to drill elsewhere first.

    Death penalty moratorium


    Perdue:     Said she supports the death penalty but thinks the courts should work through the legal issues before the state tries to reimpose capital punishment. She touted endorsements from law enforcement groups that McCrory dismissed as “quasi-labor unions.”


    McCrory:     Said the state should lift its moratorium on the death penalty, noting that the man convicted of killing two Charlotte police officers in 1993 is still on death row.

    Mark Johnson and Ryan Teague Beckwith

DURHAM The Republican and Democratic candidates for governor didn't even make it halfway through their first televised debate Tuesday before they verbally dueled over who wants to drill for oil off North Carolina's coast.

“It'll create jobs. In the long term it'll lower the price of gas and natural gas,” said Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory, the Republican nominee and an unabashed proponent of building oil platforms off the N.C. coast.

Lt. Gov. Bev Perdue, the Democratic nominee, said she supports drilling off the coast – of other states, where oil companies already have drilling rights. Perdue said she wouldn't make a decision about drilling in North Carolina's ocean waters until hearing from a team of scientists and engineers.

“I want to be responsible and know for sure that if we drill off the coast of North Carolina we can do it safely,” Perdue said.

The issue has been banging around the governor's race because Perdue shifted positions last week.

In June, Perdue said she was “100 percent opposed” to drilling off North Carolina's coast. Last week, she pledged to consult experts. Perdue disclosed her new position on the day McCrory aired an ad criticizing her opposition to drilling.

The commercial, though, didn't specify drilling in North Carolina's ocean waters, and Perdue's campaign leapt on the omission, emphasizing that she doesn't oppose offshore drilling elsewhere.

The candidates sparred over health care, with McCrory criticizing health insurance mandates as discouraging young people from buying policies.

Perdue said customers who buy policies ought to get coverage for a broad range of procedures.

On rebuilding the economy, McCrory emphasized putting more focus on vocational training, saying that even in a slumping economy, companies need workers trained in mechanical and health care trades.

Perdue said that, in addition to “world class” public schools, the state must build or expand economic sectors such as aeronautics and defense industries.

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