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Facts behind Liberal Spin |
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Hugh Webster for Congress NC 13th District
17 Main Street West, PO Box 1000, Yanceyville, NC 27379 Phone Number: (336) 514-2646 Email:
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 27, 2008
BURLINGTON, NC - Senator Webster's recent announcement of his candidacy for the United States Congress has received wide-spread coverage in the media, however some reports are tinged with residual liberal spin regarding teacher pay and modifications to compensation offered to members of the State Legislature.
Liberal Spin: "
But Democrats ousted Webster from his seat in 2006 after running advertisements that questioned why he voted against budget bills that contained teacher salary raises while seeking pay raises for himself." (AP story, February 26, 2008)
Facts: Yes, Senator Webster voted against the 2006 State Budget. That bill contained, among other things, multi-million dollar tax increases and teacher salary increases. Senator Webster took a hard-line stance against state tax increases during his 12 years in the State Senate, never voting in favor of a budget that raised taxes for the citizens of North Carolina.
Facts: Yes, Senator Webster introduced legislation to increase the $20,700 compensation of all State Legislators, which had remained unchanged since 1992 (14 years with zero raises). Despite warnings as to the potential political ramifications of the move, Webster held firm to his belief that the $20,700 annual salary offered to members of the General Assembly made it impossible for members of North Carolina's "working class" to represent themselves in Raleigh, forcing them to "submit to the control of wealthy lawyers out of touch with the needs and concerns of the average working family in North Carolina." Webster sought to release taxpayers from that oppression by setting the salary of State Legislators at a "working wage" that would allow all individuals, not just the wealthy and elite, the ability to afford to serve in the General Assembly. Webster was heard to say "this legislature has become a body of the rich, retired, and retarded. Which are you?" Webster cited the example of a member whom he referred to as "a brilliant young statesman from down east with two toddlers and a baby." "He was a valuable legislator and North Carolina needed him. He could not afford to serve and that is a shame. Incidentally, that person is a Democrat and his appointed replacement was defeated by a Republican. I suppose some might see some poetic justice in all that, but the people of North Carolina are the real losers," Webster said. "My proposal for legislative pay increases was calculated to exactly match the raises of rank-and-file state employees (not the higher-paids) over those years when the legislators got zero raises. School administrators and educators pay scales increased 50% across the board in the first 4-5 years I was in the Senate (NCAE tabloid publication)," Webster said. Democrats spent nearly $400,000 in the 2006 State Senate race to spin those facts into a negative advertising campaign, but the facts speak for themselves, proving once again that Senator Hugh Webster is unafraid to stand up for North Carolina's working class.
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Voter Information
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North Carolina's 13th Congressional District stretches through Rockingham, Caswell, Person and Granville counties, and reaches deep into Guilford, Alamance and Wake Counties. Find a map of your Congressional District, here.
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