Moore brings campaign to Upstate

View larger image

Photo: TIM KIMZEY
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tommy Moore, right, visits with Roland Salley, production coordinator, at the S.C. Vocational Rehabilitation Center in Spartanburg Thursday afternoon. Moore made several campaign stops throughout Spartanburg County Thursday. (NOTE: with Bob Dalton story--for NEWS)
Order photo reprints

Jobs, health care and education are critical issues in this year's governor's race, and Democratic candidate Tommy Moore tried to score points in all three areas during a visit to Spartanburg on Thursday.

Tours of the Vocational Rehabilitation Center and the ReGenesis Community Health Center, along with a meet-and-greet with educators at the Broken Teapot restaurant in Woodruff were among his many stops on the day. He also attended rallies at Walnut Grove and the Beacon Drive-In, and a fund-raising luncheon at the Piedmont Club.

Moore's tour of ReGenesis was led by state Rep. Harold Mitchell, D-Spartanburg. Mitchell, who has taken heat for supporting Republicans Andre Bauer in the lieutenant governor's race and Karen Floyd in the state superintendent of education contest, said he is solidly behind Moore.

Mitchell said Gov. Mark Sanford's vetoes of ReGenesis' breast cancer screening program and an affordable housing initiative convinced him that the state "needs someone in the Governor's Office who can see the impact" of such programs.

"How do you cut funding for a federally qualified health center serving as a safety net for the indigent population?" Mitchell said.

Moore, a state senator from Clearwater, also criticized Sanford for the vetoes, saying he doesn't consider the needs of the poor when making such decisions.

"Mark Sanford says he's a different kind of governor, and I'll give him that," Moore said. "All he sees are numbers, and we see people who need help."

Sanford campaign manager Jason Miller said Mitchell and Moore's criticism is unfounded. He said breast cancer outreach and awareness are important to Sanford and his wife, Jenny, and pointed out that Sanford included $1 million in his executive budget to expand the state's breast and cervical cancer screening program for low-income residents.

Miller also said that Sanford didn't want to favor ReGenesis over other groups.

"While we believe this to be a worthy organization, this health care center had not been singled out for line-item funding in the past, and Gov. Sanford doesn't believe that politics should decide whether we fund one health care center over another."

State Sen. Glenn Reese, D-Boiling Springs, said that Moore's visit to Spartanburg was a successful one. He said Moore picked up about $30,000 for his campaign at the luncheon.

Moore said that one theme played out at every stop during the day -- that people are concerned about "the leadership void" in the Governor's Office.

"It's not about sitting in a room and talking about a philosophy or an ideology," Moore said. "We're talking about programs that will improve the lives of all of our citizens."

Robert W. Dalton can be reached at 562-7274 or bob.dalton@shj.com.