If elected, Democratic gubernatorial nominee Terry McAuliffe promised he would bring “21st-century jobs” to Virginia, when he spoke to students in Politics Prof. Larry Sabato’s Introduction to American Politics class Wednesday.
McAuliffe ran for governor in 2009, on what he called a “platform of big ideas” such as building wind turbines and a high speed rail. He lost the Democratic primary to Sen. Creigh Deeds (D-Bath) who eventually lost the gubernatorial election to current governor Bob McDonnell. “I said if you don’t like my big ideas, don’t vote for me — and you didn’t,” he said.
After that experience, McAuliffe said he has shifted his political focus toward creating jobs, and thus spent much of his discussion on economic issues, including the sequester.
“[Virginia] receives more federal government money … than any other state in the United States of America, [and will take] a huge hit financially,” he said.
McAuliffe said the Virginia government should direct its focus to job creation, an issue he sees as particularly pertinent to recent college graduates across the commonwealth. But addressing the issue will require bipartisan collaboration, McAuliffe said.
“We should not get bogged down in a social, ideological agenda, because that … is not helpful to a governor to create new jobs,” McAuliffe said.
The gubernatorial candidate also addressed the issue of expanding and regulating health care across Virginia. “I’m all for the Medicare expansion,” McAuliffe said. “Federal money, which is your money, [should be] brought back into Virginia to create economic activity.”
A self-described businessman and entrepreneur, McAuliffe also served as the national co-chair for Bill Clinton’s 1996 reelection campaign and as the chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 2001 to 2005.
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