Pat McCrory's Most Valuable Character Attribute - Optimism

Pat McCrory presented his plan to improve public safety and reform North Carolina's criminal justice system

July 30, 2008

CRAVEN COUNTY NC NEWS -- Once again, Mayor Pat McCrory, the Republican nominee for governor, has shown his most valuable character attribute - optimism. McCrory seems to always view the cup as half full. Whether it is discussing energy exploration or getting tough on crime, McCrory believes in the abilities of the North Carolina people to rise to the occasion and win.

While continuing his Jobs Tour in North Carolina, Pat McCrory presented his plan to improve public safety and reform North Carolina's criminal justice system at the North Carolina Sheriffs' Association Conference in New Bern located in Craven County, NC. He highlighted many key differences between his record of effective executive leadership and the lieutenant governor's record of supporting a failed status quo for the past eight years.

The Republican nominee governor, Mayor Pat McCrory said:

"When it comes to fighting crime, I've been on the front lines for the past 12 years while the lieutenant governor has turned a blind eye to the problems. I've seen county jails overflowing with people sleeping on floors, gangs infiltrating our schools and illegal aliens filling our jails. I've seen our state judges and district attorneys work out of cardboard boxes and I've seen our state mental health patients transferred to local jails. When I led a bipartisan group of mayors and law enforcement officials to Raleigh to work on solutions to these problems, the lieutenant governor was nowhere to be seen. Now she's ‘forming a plan' that's ‘emerging and changing' that calls for another government commission to meet in Raleigh and talk about the problems. Where has Lt. Governor Perdue been for the past eight years?

"Now that she is campaigning for governor, Perdue is drafting a plan that should have been written eight years ago. North Carolina needs a governor who cares about public safety even when it's not an election year. We need action and effective executive leadership."

As Mayor of Charlotte, McCrory responded to an inadequate state criminal justice system by:

• Hiring hundreds of new police officers
• Expanding funding for a local crime lab because the state lab couldn't handle workload
• Transferring local funds to state district attorneys.

McCrory defined his vision for improving public safety if elected governor by saying he will work to:

• Increase salaries for judges and district attorneys
• Lobby for an immigration court and detention centers for juveniles
• Build a bigger and better crime lab
• Pass anti-gang legislation with stronger penalties
• Provide more flexibility for local administrators of courts
• Build more prisons
• Reform mental health program so we don't have overflow patients going to local jails
• Lift the death penalty moratorium.

Well you have to admit. The Republican nominee for North Carolina governor has a concrete workable strategy to fight crime, and has shown a propensity for ingenuity. In my opinion, an Immigration Court is an excellent way to address the problem of illegal immigration on a state level. Especially when currently, there are sixteen North Carolina's paroled illegal immigrant sex offenders awaiting deportation.

McCrory seems to have an uncanny way of viewing a complete mess, the North Carolina legal system, and finding solutions that can productively fix major flaws in that system. This ability obviously comes from his optimistic view on life in general. Thus far, in every proposal in which McCrory has positioned himself, he has shown an optimistic "Can Do" attitude. McCrory also appears to refuse to dwell on doom and gloom. Instead dismissing the "What ifs?" in favor of "How we can . . . " This is a remarkable personal trait, and it is a much needed asset for the position of the next North Carolina Governor.

Published by:
Rob Cross
mailto:editor@357news.com

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