Republican Don Carcieri’s victory over Democrat Myrth York has been widely viewed as a significant victory for Rhode Island’s business community.
It should be.
Throughout the gubernatorial campaign, it was Carcieri, the retired business executive who demonstrated a grasp of business issues and an understanding of the importance of dramatically changing the business climate here.
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It was Carcieri who criticized legislators who openly supported labor during contract disputes at McLaughlin & Moran and Providence Gas.
“Why not just put up signs at either end of the state telling businesses to stay out,” a clearly agitated Carcieri said during the campaign.
The differences between the two candidates were never clearer than in their contrasting views regarding the minimum wage.
York promised to raise the minimum wage, as part of an overall effort to help the “working poor” make ends meet. It is a noble approach, but it represents a Band-Aid method of remedying a serious problem. But Carcieri made no such promise. Instead, he suggested that we should be putting a greater emphasis on educating our work force and preparing individuals for better paying jobs.
That kind of talk is just what the decision-makers at existing – or prospective — businesses want to hear. Not that pay scales are being further mandated by government intervention, but that incentives may exist for training programs and job growth.
That the more “pro-business” candidate won the race for governor is good news for the Rhode Island economy, but business leaders should not take that victory for granted.
For the first couple of weeks after the September primary election, York enjoyed a solid lead over Carcieri in most polls. In fact, it seemed that her insistence on continuing an especially vitriolic series of television and radio ads against Carcieri accounted for much of her rapid descent.
Our point is this: Don Carcieri could have used more help from the business community during his campaign for governor.
Business owners need to work harder to support candidates who represent the pro-business policies that are so important to them. They need to spread the word themselves about why it is so important to improve the state’s business climate. They need to explain the serious tax issues they face and the impact that rising health insurance premiums has on their business. They need to make the general public aware that only in a better business climate will more and better jobs be created.
Don Carcieri’s victory was a victory for the business community. But it should not have been as close a race as it was. This should serve as a wake-up call for the business community.
Because if the governor-elect is to make good on his campaign promises and bolster the state’s economy, he is going to need help convincing a legislature – and a general populace – that pro-business initiatives are a good investment and the best approach to creating jobs and improving the lives of everyone.
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