South Carolina Democrats wound down the weekend Saturday afternoon hearing from the three men who would be their governor nominee in 2010 - the standard-bearer they will elect to lead them into what Democrats described all weekend as their best chance in a decade to take back the governor's seat.
Education Superintendent Jim Rex, state Sen. Robert Ford, and state Sen. Vincent Sheheen put on a low-key debate before several hundred party faithful to close out the Democrats' annual convention and big political weekend in Columbia.
The three - survivors of the five-man field that started the race months ago - will face off in the Democratic Party Primary on June 8.
They differed on major issues facing the state, including how to fix public education and create new jobs.
They agreed heartily, however, on one of the signature messages to have come out of S.C. politics in 2009: The state's image is damaged.
"We have to do some things differently in South Carolina," said Rex, winding up an hour of questioning by two reporters from Columbia's WLTX. "We have to look at who we elect to higher office in South Carolina."
Sheheen, answering a question about how he would turn around the state's image, said: "I'm hurt by what has happened the last few years." When the governor and the Legislature cease all the infighting and strive to govern, he said, the rest of the world will begin to take note.
Ford, who represents the Charleston Senate district where aircraft maker Boeing's expansion of its U.S. operations is expected to transform the state, answered by reminding voters that politicians are mere men.
"They're electing a public servant, not a prince or a god," Ford said.
Democrats hope to make big headway in the 2010 elections by blaming Republicans for the state's myriad of problems, including record unemployment, historic budget deficits and looming cuts in services the state provides. The GOP has been in charge of all branches of state government for nearly a decade.
One of the first questions asked of the three Democrats was how they would create jobs in South Carolina.
Sheheen said he would concentrate on small businesses, by creating a state Division of Small Business and Entreprenuership, and develop a statewide energy plan that includes alternative sources.
Rex said he would bring about a state Office of Job Creation, with the goal of spurring prosperity across the state, and concentrate on educational training.
Ford's job plan centers around gaming - specifically the return of video poker to the state.
He also wants to exploit the state's natural beauty by bolstering the filmmaking industry in South Carolina.
Ford says video poker could generate $1 billion in tax revenue, which could pave the way to hire 10,000 new teachers. Filming could generate 80,000 to 100,000 new jobs, Ford said.
"The heart of my plan is revenue," Ford said, answering a question about how he, as governor, would replace the revenue that's been lost by the 2006 repeal of property taxes as the primary source of education funding, known as Act 388.
All three candidates said the Republican-led repeal was a mistake, with ongoing consequences, and Ford and Sheheen voted against the measure in the General Assembly.
"It's been an unmitigated disaster in South Carolina," Rex said, adding, however, that any over-reliance on property taxes to fund education also is problematic.
Sheheen and Rex both said they favor increasing the state's lowest-in-the-nation 7-cents cigarette tax to the national average, which is around $1.40 a pack. But Ford said the cigarette tax as a source of revenue is a diminishing source because of the yearly declining number of smokers.
"The cigarette tax will fade away in five years," Ford said.
The candidates agreed, generally, that green jobs should co-exist with a strengthening state economy.
Rex and Sheheen both advised against drilling off the S.C. shore for oil, due to possible damage to the ecosystem, which supports tourism, the state's No. 1 industry.
Rex said he is open to drilling offshore for natural gas. Ford favors drilling offshore for oil.
In one of the few pointed moments in the hour-long debate, Rex took on Ford and Sheheen for bad-mouthing public education, noting that S.C. students and schools have shown improvement across several areas in recent years.
"If you want a first-rate educational system, you must fund it," Rex said.
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