Lt. governor travels state touting ‘Jobs for Virginians’

Virginia Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling plans to spend much of the next few months listening to the best ideas about creating jobs in Virginia.
That task will be his job if he and the man at the top of the Republican gubernatorial ticket, Robert F. McDonnell, win in November. McDonnell said earlier this week he planned to make Bolling his jobs czar.

Seeking re-election against Democrat Jody Wagner in November, Bolling kicked off his statewide “Jobs for Virginians’’ tour Friday, visiting businesses across the Shenandoah Valley to learn what is working during the current recession.
His last stop was at Waynesboro’s Reo Distribution.

“People have some great ideas if you take the time to ask them,’’ Bolling said. “I’m asking business leaders what is working and what is not working. The things I learn will help me.”

At Reo, Bolling heard from President Reo Hatfield and General Manager Tom Sikes about how the logistics company has prospered by getting a foreign trade zone designated for their business and by expanding the company’s export market.
Getting Virginia’s economy back on track by creating more jobs and restoring fiscal accountability are the top two priorities, Bolling said.

The lieutenant governor said state government can do its part by making the right strategic moves.
Bolling said those moves include designating a deputy secretary of commerce to focus on rural economic development and lowering the threshold for $1,000 tax credits per job for businesses that create 50 new jobs or for those that create 25 new jobs in distressed areas.

Another key under the McDonnell-Bolling strategy is to double the amount of money in the Governor’s Opportunity Fund for economic development to about $40 million every two years.

The fund is used to recruit business to the commonwealth.

Bolling said many of these moves will impact the economy short-term, but bring long-term benefits.
“If we make the right decisions, we can get the economy moving,’’ Bolling said. He said that 165,000 Virginia jobs have been lost in the past four years.

As for fiscal accountability, Bolling said the next budget for Virginia will be a rocky one.
But he said he and McDonnell will not live in what he described as the “financial fantasyland’’ that he charged has characterized the Kaine administration’s budget projections.

“Bob McDonnell and I will reduce spending,’’ Bolling said. “You can’t spend money you don’t have. Government has to do more with less and be smarter and more efficient.”
Bolling said a vote for the Democratic ticket of state Sen. Creigh Deeds and Wagner will lead to higher taxes, unrealistic financial forecasts and “will drive us deeper into the recession.”

Wagner’s staff said in a news release that she “has a seven-year record of job creation” under Democratic governors Mark Warner and Timothy M. Kaine. “While Bill Bolling spent the last seven years putting politics ahead of principle, Jody brought Democrats and Republicans together to reach common sense solutions and move Virginia forward. While Bill Bolling relies on rhetoric, Jody has a record that includes 200,000 new jobs, and a record that has made Virginia the ‘best managed state’ and the ‘best state for business.’ As lieutenant governor, Jody will continue that success for Virginia.”

Wagner served as state treasurer under Warner and secretary of finance under Kaine.
Her campaign manager, Elisabeth Pearson, said Wagner is also the owner of a small business, a Virginia Beach popcorn company.
Wagner, who practiced law before her state service, has also outlined a job creation platform that includes providing for future industries such as renewable energy and biotechnology, among others.