[NCSteve]

I have three questions:

First will Mrs. Shubert be willing to do something substantial about the cesspool of corruption, fraud, and mismanagement that is NCDOT? Contracts are written and accepted with the contractor having no intention of honoring even the spirit of the agreement. District and Division Engineers misplan and mismanage projects and still get bonuses from the state and kickbacks from the contractors. The entire management structure of NCDOT is fraught, top to bottom, with nepotism, patronage, fraud, bribery, and outright theft. NC taxpayers are being defrauded of hundreds of millions of dollars every year and every single Governor for the last 30 years has turned a blind eye.

Second, will Mrs. Shubert bring the department of Health and Human Services in on a short leash? Will she do something to disassemble the massive bureaucracy built up around a socialist welfare state being shoved down the throats of NC citizens without legislative voice? Will she push the legislature to repeal family-unfriendly laws and will she use the force of executive office to overturn reams of administrative code that enforces dictatorial control over the lives and hard-earned wealth of millions of NC taxpayers?

Third and finally, will Mrs. Shubert push the General Assembly toward meaningful education reform, starting with the complete overhaul, even repeal if necessary, of the abomination that is NCGS 115c? Will she do something to bring NCDPI under control and break the stranglehold held by the NEA and the NCEA on the futures of the children of NC?

These are the things I am looking for in a governor. I know may others here will agree. Let us know, Mrs. Shubert. You have given me real hope that a bona fide conservative will run for Governor in NC.

[FernForGovernor]

Dear NCSteve

Yes, yes and yes, but please don't take my word for it. Go to my web site, www.ForFern.com and read the Raleigh Reports I've been posting, particularly the last two, and read them in pdf format. Go the the legislative web site, www.ncleg.net and check my voting record. Contact the education reformers in the state; they'll know me.

I've already made a run at correcting abuses in state purchasing and contracting, but you can't solve that problem from the legislature. I've also done as much as anyone to push educational reforms, but again, the legislature's control in this area is more limited than you might imagine. The executive branch chooses the degree of enthusiasm with which they enforce the laws the legislatures passes. The old saying "Personnel is policy" has a lot of merit, and the Governor controls most of the personnel in government.

North Carolina is overdue for major reforms in many areas, including those you mention. I'm giving up a very safe Senate seat because I want to solve the problems facing this state and I've determined that I can do far more as Governor than from the Senate. A "bona fide conservative" is running for Governor and your help would be greatly appreciated.

Senator Fern Shubert
Candiddate for NC Governor