Democratic canidate for the District 46 South Carolina State Senate seat.

Kent Fletcher, 33 of Bluffton, South Carolina, is the Democratic candidate running for the District 46 South Carolina State Senate seat. Fletcher served as a Marine Corps officer and now wants to serve his fellow citizens with his vision and goals to benefit Beaufort County. Recently this reporter had a chance to exchange an email interview with Fletcher discussing Fletcher’s history, key concerns, ideals and beliefs. Any undecided voter can benefit from this article by learning more about Fletcher to make an educated decision.

Biography of Kent Fletcher

Kent Fletcher is a native of Huntington, W.V.  A former Marine Corps officer, Kent has continued his public with the University of Phoenix Savannah Campus.  Kent worked with Obama for America and was a S.C. State Delegate.  He is the current Democratic Candidate for S.C. State Senate in District 46.

Fletcher is a 33 year old graduate of the University of Kentucky and master’s candidate with Boston University.  A fluent Spanish speaker, Kent served ten years in the Marine Corps, and is a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Kent’s 13 years of government experiences stretches from his military to his current position working in education.  He is a proud Bluffton homeowner, and is the son of Mike and Cheryl Fletcher also of Bluffton.

What is your mission statement and vision statement?

I pledge to provide a practical approach to a 21st Century Beaufort County by continuing to seek the ever-present input of our people and the experienced delegation we have from Clementa Pinckney in the Senate to Bill Herbkersman and Kenneth Hodges in the House.

I envision a stable economy built on the combination of current and future tourism, local small business, and new industry like clean energy that will complement each other and attract a new infrastructure base in distribution that will be necessary to help Jasper County make their new port succeed.

What are your primary objectives with this election and key focus points that voters should know about you?

My primary objectives in this election are to win the District 46 seat for the people of Beaufort County and help usher our community further into the 21st Century.  We have a fantastic delegation from Beaufort, Jasper, Hampton, and Colleton Counties, and I look forward to representing Beaufort County with a mindset for progress that is born out of the people’s best interests.

Voters should know that I have a dedicated focus to stability through education and opportunities that can be realized with fairness for everyone.  We are at a point in our history where we have perhaps the best opportunity since John F. Kennedy to truly unite our nation, and it starts with a sharp focus on local government and personal empowerment that can result from a trustworthy and responsible leadership and representation.  I intend to bring that trust, responsibility, focus, and fairness back to the District 46 Senate seat.

If elected, what will be your first act as State Senator for District 46?

If elected, my first act as State Senator will be to swear in on the following day!  After that, I will make contact with the rest of the Lowcountry delegation from the bottom four counties, talk with the Coastal Caucus of the state, and make plans to get started on the legislative agenda with the Senate Caucus in Columbia.  My first priority will be reforming our public school system to make it stronger and bring S.C. out of the bottom five states.

What can help rebound our economy? What impact will our economy recession have domestically short-term and long-term?

Our economy can rebound when Middle-America can again have disposable income.  Today, the average consumer has a higher cost of living on everything from the gas pump to the grocery store shelf.  We need a tax break for the middle-class, a reestablishment of regulation on corporate America, and a reinvestment into our infrastructure with new industries like solar, wind, and wave energy.

In the short-term, our recession will slow consumer spending and aggressive investing for the average person.  It is unique this year however because the United States has been borrowing money to finance the ongoing military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq while we have lost most of our durable industrial base.  We are at a point now where we cannot simply wait for the market to correct itself, and that is why we have seen our tax money go into private banking and business.  The next step will be to invest in new energy for the long-term.

In the long-term, we will only know by the decisions we make today and in the next coming years.  Our economy and dollar are valued on production.  When we reinvest into America the same way we have throughout our history from mass production to information technology, we can recover.

With the concerning crisis of trade markets, what can a Democratic congress do differently if Barack Obama is elected?

A Democratic and Republican Congress can get bills passed that can provide both relief and opportunity when we elect Barack Obama is elected.  We have witnessed a handcuffing of our Congressional representation unless it has had to do with slashing taxes for the wealthy and corporate America, deregulating the markets, or continuing a flawed strategy in the Global War on Terror that centers around keeping troops on the ground in Iraq.

All Americans and our neighbors will benefit from an Oval Office that is a more open office that recognizes our government is designed to have three equal branches.  An Obama Administration can allow Congress to provide health care for all America, opportunities for a quality and affordable education, a strong and well-resourced military, and policies that recognize the best interests of our entire nation as well as others.

What plans do you have that will enable Beaufort County to grow and compete both locally and globally?

The first thing I plan to do when I get to Columbia is join the Education, Labor, Commerce, and Industry, and Transportation Committees.  I will go to work with our Lowcountry delegation, Coastal Caucus, State and Local School Superintendents, and the rest of the Senate and Assembly to upgrade our education resource funding for the 21st Century by protecting public schools through quality teacher pay, technology, and basic supplies that are necessary for our children and young adults to compete in a global economy.

I will work with the same, replacing the educators with the business leaders, to bring new clean energy to Beaufort County and the Lowcountry that will help provide more good paying jobs and a marketable resource for South Carolina.

Finally, I will be diligent in the job of bringing our state tax investment back to improve our highways and bi-ways with improvements that provide for better traffic flow, more safety, and long-term durability.

If elected, how accessible will you be to hear the voice of the people and demonstrate the people’s concern in state legislation?

If elected, my office will always be open for the people of Beaufort County and others to address their concerns.  I have built a successful campaign in just six-months based on the concerns of everyday people, and I will carry that practice to the State House by harnessing the best ideas from the collective experience, wisdom, education, and abundance of common-sense that exists in our own community.

Do you plan to increase or decrease the size of government, and how so?

I do not envision an increase or decrease in the size of government, rather in the responsible management and distribution of resources.  State revenue drives the services we can currently provide from environmental protection, to education, health services, to our state’s national guard, and so much more.

We know how much money we take in each year, and we get to decide how much we want to add for these same services or take away.  Whether public or private, a dollar spends the same way and things cost money.  I plan to work on the side of the people that protects the people and provides opportunities for everyone and prevents success from coming at the dire expense of others.

How will Kent Fletcher impact the state of South Carolina and the Nation?

Kent Fletcher will impact the state of South Carolina and the Nation the same way we all have the potential to do; giving back the talent, years of experience, and love that helped provide me opportunities all my life.  Each day, I commit to waking up with how my actions impact my household and those around me.  I want people to feel good about their stable futures, know that I will work for them whether we agree or not, and that the remember how valuable they are to the fabric of society no matter where history may find them!

Adam