<< Back to News

McWherter talks about, gets to work

Patrons of Dixie Barbecue arriving in time to beat the lunch hour crowd Friday may have recognized one of the restaurant’s “employees” — Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mike McWherter.

McWherter spent part of the day bussing tables and washing dishes at the restaurant as part of a statewide tour that has seen him visit several small businesses.

After completing visits to all 95 counties to meet with each county’s leadership to discuss infrastructure needs to boost job recruitment, McWherter said he is now touring the state doing “everyday” jobs at small businesses that have also included balancing tires, building couches and running a printing press.

Following the day of work, McWherter said he gathers those he has worked with to get their take on what state government should be focused on.

“I think this is as much a listening tour as it is anything else, and I’m finding what people tell me is they’re interested in jobs and education and health care,” he said.

McWherter said he takes a “two-prong” approach when it comes to maintaining and recruiting jobs. The first is to target industries associated with large industries located in the state, such as Hemlock and Volkswagen. McWherter said he would like to ensure that these associated industries are also located within the state.

“I think that’s how we get our investment back,” he said. “I don’t care where you live, in Washington County, Johnson County or Weakley County, you’ve got an investment in all of those large corporations that have come here because we’ve given them tax credits and tax incentives, so I think the way that we get paid back all across the state of Tennessee is to make sure that we get the full benefit of those industries being here and targeting those associated industries is a big part of it.”

The second part of McWherter’s approach is to address existing businesses within the state. He credited small businesses for leading the nation out of the recessions of 1981 and 1991, but he said this recession has lasted longer because of a reluctance among small businesses to hire.

“We’ve got a proven model that works in bringing industry into this state and giving tax credits and tax incentives and training credits for these large corporations,” he said. “What we’ve got to do now is have a similar program for what I call small business, the entrepreneurs, the mom and pops and the rural farm operations. If they’re creating jobs, we need to be giving them the incentive to do that.”

McWherter said he feels his small-business background would help him with these matters if elected and that the state needs a leader focused on maintaining and creating jobs, which he said has been a priority of his since entering the race for governor.

McWherter will also be in the area today, as he is scheduled to appear at the Muster on the Mount event held at Rocky Mount Park.