Bill Daughtridge, Candidate for NC Treasurer, Speaks at April 24th CAPAC Meeting

The regular monthly meeting of Conservatives, Arise! was held at 6:30 p.m. on April 24,  2007, at the Riverside Steak House, 2301 Stantonsburg Road in Greenville, NC.  Seventeen persons were in attendance.  Chairman Joe Sturz presided.

 

Dr. Lyn Barnes gave the opening prayer and Leon Bonner led in the Pledge of Allegiance.  After the meal Rachel Sturz introduced the speaker for the evening, State Representative Bill Daughtridge of Rocky Mount.

 

Rep. Daughtridge began by mentioning areas that are of concern to him.  Specifically he has co-sponsored Jessica’s Law and pushed for a bill that would help smaller towns to pay for waste water treatment systems.  According to NCFREE he has been designated as the second most business-friendly person in the House.  The frustrating part is that there are a lot of bills he would like to see introduced, but the Democrats block them because they don’t want to have a “yes” or “no” on the record beside their names.

 

Following are some of the comments by Rep. Daughtridge:

 

There is an illegal immigration crisis in North Carolina.  Over 30% of first graders speak Spanish as their first language.   Illegal immigrants are a drain on social services, education and health care.   Since the Federal Government is doing nothing, the states are going to have to do all they can on their own.  Illegal immigrants do work that others will not do AT THAT PRICE.   Employers should be brought to task.  They just want cheap labor and don’t seem to be concerned about the negative impact on the economy.

 

Rep. Daughtridge stressed that, next to the Governor, he feels that the State Treasurer’s position is the most powerful.  The Treasurer invests the state pension funds, reviews contracts on all State land deals, monitors the overall debt capacity of the State and fills a seat on the Board of Education.   Presently there is no business person on the Council of State and Daughtridge thinks that that needs to be rectified.

 

He is especially concerned about education in North Carolina.  He is for having more Charter Schools and for the Charter Schools and Community Colleges to offer more courses for those with mechanical skills and expertise.  Not everyone wants to go to college.  His skills and abilities may lie outside of academics.  This problem has to be addressed because, when one-third of students between the ninth and twelfth grade drop out, there is something drastically wrong.  Our education system is not meeting the needs of our youth or the needs of businesses.   In the realm of education, North Carolina has to start comparing itself with other states.   North Carolina state tests that measure yearly growth are not very helpful.  We need to know where our weaknesses are on the national level.

 

Finally, Rep. Daughtridge stated that decisions should be made not through political expediency but the State Treasurer should be looking at the long-term results.  What is ultimately good for North Carolina?

 

After a vigorous question and answer period, the meeting was adjourned by Joe Sturz.

 

Rachel Sturz, Acting Secretary, May 2, 2007