News-Record.com

From today's paper:

RALEIGH - Governor-elect Bev Perdue says O. Max Gardner, a governor and Democratic power broker in the first half of the 20th century, is one of her favorite political figures in Tar Heel history. Gardner was in office at the beginning of the Great Depression, and Perdue said he set an example relevant to the current economic crisis.

"He used the time as a transformational period for the state of North Carolina," Perdue said. Instead of simply cutting the state's budget, Gardner invested in roads and universities so the state would be positioned to prosper when the economy turned around.

And even as North Carolina faces a budget shortfall that could be as large as $1.6 billion this year, according to state economists, Perdue says the state needs to invest in education, transportation and other pillars of economic development.

"The day I take office, I'm going to be prepared to deal with a global economic crisis," Perdue said.

Gov. Mike Easley, whose term ends in January, has ordered state agencies to cut as much as 5 percent from their budgets. The goal, according to officials who briefed legislative leaders last week, is to have $1.2 billion extra on hand to plug shortfalls in the $21 billion budget the General Assembly passed last year. That doesn't account for extra cuts that would be needed if problems worsen, or another $300 million shortfall faced by the state-funded employee health plan.

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