Reich Says He’ll Clean Republicans’ Mess

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Robert Reich declared himself an expert in cleaning up Republican messes to an audience of approximately 50 students, professors and professionals yesterday during a speech for Northeastern University’s Meet the Candidates series.

Reich, former secretary of labor for the first Clinton administration, suggested there are “remarkable parallels” between the state’s current situation and when he entered national office in 1993.

“The Massachusetts economy is sputtering and the budget is a mess,” Reich said.

Reich compared the state of the Commonwealth to that of the United States after 12 years of Republican presidential dominance. When a Democratic president entered office, over 11 million new jobs were created nationally, Reich said.

Massachusetts used to be a leader among other states when it came to education and job training, but not anymore, he said.

“We have had three Republican governors in a row who have not taken this job seriously in terms of leadership, in terms of values, in terms of vision,” he said.

A quiet recession has been taking place throughout Massachusetts, he said.

In Lawrence, 48 percent of children live in poverty, and with the added cost of housing, that figure increases, Reich said.

“We have a larger and larger population in this state called the working poor — they are working, but they are in poverty — and that’s just plain wrong,” Reich said. “And if I’m governor, I’m going to work very, very hard to reduce the population of the working poor.”

Reich said he would make certain anyone who needs a job would get one and poverty would not be an option for those people and their families. Job training is important to the state and to the working poor, he said.

“If you are working full time, you should not be in poverty,” he said.

Reich said the governor is cutting such programs as advanced education and after school programs, which are only “going to create larger problems later on.”

The only way the state is going to escape from the current budget crisis is through economic growth, Reich said.

“Economic growth depends on utilizing the two resources that we have that are almost exclusively and uniquely the state resources,” Reich said. “Number one is our people, and number two is our national resources.

“We have to make sure that we are getting the most out of our people and our natural resources,” he said.

Reich suggested using smart growth policies in which the state government focuses on economic development in the older cities and towns by maximizing the use of the infrastructures and the land. These policies would also protect the environment by preventing sprawling outside the cities and preserving open space.

“What’s happening in Massachusetts is we’re paving over so much of eastern Massachusetts that our ground water is suffering and our roads are being choked,” he said.

“So if you are utilizing smart growth, you are not pitting the environment against jobs,” Reich said. “You must focus economic growth to areas that will benefit the most and provide disincentives for sprawl.”

Reich’s speech made a good impression, according to members of the audience.

“I think that he’s very thoughtful and very right about the leadership needs. Iím very impressed,” said Peter Enrich, a Northeastern law professor and supporter of Reich.

“I thought that it was a great speech, very energetic but also quite intellectual,” said Denis Sullivan, a Northeastern political science professor.

“He related to the students who were here,” said Dan OíConnor, vice president of the Retired Educators Association of Massachusetts. “He talked about the issues for the young people, which he should at a university.”

O’Connor said he is still undecided, but Reich is under “serious consideration.”

“He has a wide-ranging background and knowledge in economics which is a plus today,” O’Connor said.