While Bay Staters have not had to participate in the craziness of the midterm Senate elections as in other states, the Massachusetts gubernatorial election is not without heat. The candidates for the 2010 race for the governor's seat are the Democratic incumbent Deval Patrick, Republican Charles Baker, Independent Tim Cahill and Jill Stein from the Green-Rainbow Party.
Following the gubernatorial campaigns of these candidates, the Daily has found Gov. Patrick and incumbent Lt. Governor Timothy Murray to be a forceful team. They are clearly proud of what they have accomplished over the past four years and are eager to continue plugging away at the many issues that the state faces. Patrick has led Massachusetts to becoming a national leader in the areas of health care coverage, education and clean energy. He has gained strong momentum in these areas among others, and it is in the Commonwealth's best interest to keep up these efforts.
Patrick has worked to catch Massachusetts' primary and secondary education up to that of the highly esteemed colleges and universities that make this state famous. He vehemently opposed cuts to Chapter 70 funding, which served to ensure that schools continue to receive state education aid.
He signed a bill, known as the Governor's Achievement Gap Act of 2010, which will serve to reduce the achievement gap between higher-performing schools and underperforming schools, as well as expand access to charter schools. This is pioneering legislature, so much so that it earned Massachusetts' schools $250 million in federal funding. However, it is new and Patrick's continuance as governor would allow him to implement and refine the program even as he continues to work on preventing hikes in college students' loans and tuition fees.
Probably most prominent in Bay Staters' minds, however, are the issues of taxes and unemployment. Especially for college students, most of whom anxiously await the day they are unleashed onto the job market, these issues stand out the most.
Patrick recognizes this and also the fact that while Massachusetts' unemployment rate may be below the national average, the state is not even close to where it should be. Real progress in tackling unemployment will come with the streamlining of permits and the reduction of taxes for small businesses.
In 2008 Patrick signed into law an act that eliminates loopholes in the corporate tax code used by out-of-state corporations and reduces the corporate tax rate while generating revenue for Massachusetts.
His goals are to give the money back to those who most need it most and to create jobs for them. If the state — and the country — are going to recover from the economic downturn, then they have to learn that prioritizing is required. Patrick appreciates that these priorities should lie with students, middle-class families and those working to start up small businesses. By creating jobs, advocating for medical and environmental innovation, supporting small businesses and the middle class, and streamlining legislative processes to reduce government spending, Patrick is recognizing this fact.
Patrick's opponents, mainly Charlie Baker, do not realize that government spending cannot just be reduced without these people feeling the effects. Charlie Baker plans to reduce business and income tax to 5 percent, as well as reduce the state sales tax. However, tax reduction should not be seen as the goal. Rather, tax reduction is the result of streamlined policies and equitable systems. It is the result of making temporary sacrifices for long-term benefits. The Patrick-Murray administration has made considerable progress on this front, and it is worth our while to allow them to continue to work on these problems. For this reason the Daily endorses Deval Patrick as the choice candidate for governor of Massachusetts.
