Talking Points: Here’s what Georgia governor candidates Abrams, Kemp said in Macon
Today marked the first time both candidates appeared together in the same venue since the primary and runoff
The state's two major candidates for governor, Democrat Stacey Abrams and Republican Brian Kemp appeared together on Tuesday afternoon before the Georgia Chamber of Commerce's Congressional Luncheon in Macon.
It marked the first time both candidates appeared together in the same venue since this year’s primary and runoff elections.
44-year-old Abrams has been in politics for the past 12 years since first running for office in 2006. Most recently, Abrams was House Minority Leader in the General Assembly while representing the 89th House District.
Brian Kemp, 55, is Georgia's current Secretary of State, and like his opponent during the recent primary runoff, Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle, retained his job during the current campaign for governor.
Stacey Abrams
Abrams spoke first and began her time on-stage with an anecdote about when she launched her campaign and visited Macon for the first time.
She detailed her experience with a mother of two in south Macon--who Abrams identified as ‘Pam.’
Abrams said ‘Pam’ told her that her daughters, ages 19 and 18, were on their way to college. The eldest wanted to be a teacher, and the younger daughter wanted to study criminal justice.
‘Pam’ told Abrams her 19-year-old was pregnant and that she would be raising her grandchild as she began her freshman year in college saying, “I need my daughter to go to college so her child can have a better life.”
Abrams asked ‘Pam’ what she wanted, and she replied that she wanted to buy a building near her house and turn it into a daycare center for mothers in similar situations as her daughter, but she couldn’t do it because no one would invest in her.
From there, Abrams began detailing her plans for Georgia should she become governor, saying, “I’m running because I have a plan for prosperity.”
Topic: Educate people from cradle to career
Abrams said she wanted to build a thriving and diverse economy that focuses beyond Georgia’s metro counties and focuses on all 159.
She said she wanted to do so by making childcare and early childhood education affordable through the Bold Start Scholarship program.
Abrams said she wants to expand access to 4-year-olds in Georgia and eliminate the Pre-K waiting list.
She said she wants full-funding and access to grades K-12 by revising the 40+ year old funding formula for schools and launch an afterschool STEAM initiative.
Abrams concluded the discussion of primary education stating, “If we invest in those opportunities, we will invest in their futures.”
From there, the discussion of education turned to post-secondary opportunities for students after graduation.
Abrams said she wanted easier access to more apprenticeships, free technical college and debt-free college. She said this would be possible by expanding the HOPE Scholarship program and REACH.
“Georgia is one of two states in America without a needs-based aid scholarship,” she said.
Topic: Economic growth
Abrams said she wants to invest in “financial wellness, financial literacy, improving credit scores, housing access and all the pieces that make the community stronger.”
She proposed investing in a Green bank and advanced energy jobs, saying Georgia has the capability to handle the various energy jobs due to its geographical location relative to other states.
But she also said it’s important to think about small businesses and how to help save their jobs while creating more.
“As excited as we are about Amazon, I’m just as excited about being the governor who helps 5,000 businesses create 10 new jobs that never leave the state. I’m going to do that through a small business financing pool of $10 million…access to capital has to be available,” Abrams said.
She proposed 22,000 apprenticeships by 2022, saying that “South Carolina did it a few years ahead ago of us and they are half our size. We are stronger and faster.”
Topic: Healthcare expansion
Abrams said Georgia needs to expand Medicaid.
“17 GOP governors have expanded Medicaid. We have the opportunity if we invest. We know that in states that have expanded, their costs have gone down, rural hospitals have been saved and everyone benefits. If Mike Pence of Indiana and Jerry Brown of California can both agree to expand, Georgia needs to get onboard. This is not a Democratic or Republican issue,” she said.
Abrams continued by saying seven counties have lost rural hospitals and their economies have been affected as a result--in both small businesses and large corporations. She said large companies would not continue to invest in the workforce if access to healthcare was not readily available.
Topic: Transit expansion
Abrams said it was important to build a transportation network across the state, not just into the metropolitan areas. She wants to connect the whole state so Georgia is a place that people want to go.
Topic: Military bases
Abrams said she wants to make sure Georgia is doing everything it can for active military and veterans.
She wants a fully-staffed military council that includes members of other Chambers of Commerce across the state and military bases, so Georgia’s military bases can avoid being on the next list of BRAC closures.
Abrams ended her time on-stage before taking questions, saying, “We’re the number one place to do business, but we have one of the highest poverty rates in the nation. We have some of the finest research institutions and one of the lowest graduation rates. We have some of the best doctors and one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the country. These are solvable problems, and I know Georgia is smart enough to solve them, but we have to have a leader who understands, we have to serve all of Georgia.”
Brian Kemp
Kemp followed Abrams and began his speech with an explanation of his background.
Growing up in Athens, he says he learned the value of hard work from high school football coach and Macon native, Billy Henderson.
He explained how he and his teammates won a state championship under Henderson because they believed "the impossible was possible."
During that time, he says he learned "the value of telling the truth, being straightforward with people, keeping your word and doing the right thing when no one was watching."
When he went on to college, he says he worked his way through by, "putting up acoustical ceilings, sweating on construction sites, whatever [he] could do to help [his] mom and [his] family pay the bills."
After graduation, he went into construction full-time. Thirty years ago, he started his first business with a "shovel, a toolbox and a pickup truck."
Kemp explained that he has "dug ditches, poured concrete, hammered nails and studs and built things literally from the ground up."
Along the way, Kemp says he's started several other companies in farming, manufacturing, banking and agribusiness, creating hundreds of jobs in Georgia.
After giving his background, Kemp told the crowd he and his wife, Marty, know what it's like to struggle saying, "We lived in spec houses that wouldn't sell... we lived in a double-wide trailer on her parents' property when those spec houses finally, thankfully, did sell. We literally lived like many people day-to-day during the recession and at times thought we were going to lose everything that we had."
He explained that like many other Americans, they "kept chopping" despite the challenges.
"I never imagined that I would be on this stage as the republican nominee for governor," Kemp said.
From there, Kemp began detailing his plans for Georgia should he become governor saying, "I was a frustrated small business owner.”
Kemp explained that his run for governor comes after he was fed-up with government overreach and oversight of the small business community involving "rules, regulations [and] taxes."
He says in the Georgia state senate, he did something about it.
"We cut taxes, we slashed regulations, and we stood up for our values back home. That is exactly why I'm running for governor, to put Georgians first," Kemp said.
As governor, he plans to carry on Governor Deal's legacy.
"But make no mistake, I will not rest on our laurels," he added. "We will march forward."
Topic: Economic growth
On the campaign trail, Kemp says he's spoken a lot about his "Four-Point Plan."
"The policy proposal begins with a vow," he said. "I will make Georgia the number one state in the country for small business."
Kemp explained Governor Nathan Deal has laid the groundwork and he plans to keep building.
"I'm going to keep building so Georgians in rural communities have access to jobs, so mom-and-pop shops in all four corners of our state can grow. I'm going to keep building so farmers see more in their checking account," said Kemp.
Kemp told the crowd that he knows how hard it is to start a small business because he's an actual business owner and not one just on paper.
"I know exactly what we need to do in government to spur economic development, job creation and expansion in our state," Kemp said.
He said he knows many have seen his chainsaw, but it is more than just a prop in a campaign commercial.
"As governor, we will cut regulations that make it harder to hire, expand and invest in this great state. We will make Georgia the small business capital of our country," Kemp said.
Kemp said he plans to strengthen rural Georgia, support criminal justice reform, grow economic development opportunities and fully fund public education.
He continued saying that as governor, he would tackle healthcare to lower cost and improve access.
"I will dismantle street gangs and the Mexican drug cartels that are flooding our streets with drugs, violence and fear," he said.
Kemp added he will continue efforts to reform our adoption and foster care system so "all children have the opportunity to learn, grow and thrive in Georgia."
Kemp ended his time on-stage before taking questions saying, "I have detailed plans to take Georgia to even greater heights by building off the legacies of great leaders like we've had, [like] Sonny Perdue and Nathan Deal. I have a record of accomplishments that you can trust. I have the business experience that you need to be the state's next CEO... we do not need higher taxes and bigger government in Georgia. We don't need to stop the progress that has been started over the last 16 years."