Perdue opposes state mandates to counties, favors more medical insurance for children

Lt. Gov. Bev Perdue came into the New Bern Riverfront Convention Center with smiles, chuckles, hugs, and handshakes Friday. Then she turned serious, saying her opponent in the governor's race had mischaracterized her positions when he spoke earlier in the day.

Perdue arrived at the 101st meeting of N.C. Association of County Commissioners in her home town a little early for her 3:30 p.m. speech and took her time on the way to the podium, talking to many of the nearly 700 people attending.

Once on the stage, however, Perdue wasted no time clarifying positions that she said Pat McCrory, her Republican opponent, had misrepresented.

Perdue said she opposes state mandates to counties and has worked to lift one requiring counties to help fund Medicaid.

She said that as governor she would hold quarterly meetings with advisers from the counties' association. She hopes they can hold regular town hall-type meetings for a full partnership that "does not divide cities and counties but builds one North Carolina for all of us."

"I'm 100 percent against collective bargaining - spread the word -let me set the record straight," she said.

Perdue said she knows the state cannot fund insurance for all its residents, but she favors continuing and expanding medical insurance aid to the state's children. Adding onto existing health care is one of her three main goals for the state, particularly helping rural hospitals.

"I believe it is wrong for a little kid not to see a doctor when they get sick," she said.

Perdue gave a brief interview following her speech to the county leaders from across the state. She said those leaders "have more courage than I have. The hardest place in the world to serve is at the local level."

In the interview, she was asked what she would have the state do to address growing unemployment, which in July rose 26 percent statewide to 6.8 percent.

Perdue said: "We will respond like we did for the first hit we took behind globalization and infuse our community colleges with stimulus for courses to transition our workforce for a different job platform."

She said jobs also figure into any strategy she has for the state to deal with the country's economic downturn.

"We need to keep people working and provide financial assistance" and mortgage guidance, Perdue said.

Perdue said her vision of creating good jobs and providing good education for North Carolina includes recognizing a new lifestyle and economy in which people may work at as many as eight careers until they are 75 year old.

In this state, those jobs may include biotech and "green economy" jobs and defense and aerospace, she said. "Science innovation must happen here," she said.

And new defense industries - General Dynamics and Honda Jet - near Charlotte affirm that the state's military businesses can be across the state, she said.

"In just four years the defense industry in North Carolina has grown from $18 billion to $23 billion," said Perdue. "That's not chump change."