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Politics

Sink Tests Campaign Themes

March 10, 2010 - 6:00pm


In a speech Thursday to a hundred African American clergy and laity at the capitol, CFO Alex Sink demonstrated how difficult it can be to tell if state office holders are acting as campaigners or government officials.

Sink, the leading Democratic candidate for governor, seemed to be sounding only election themes, speaking on unemployment and education.

We are in an economic hurricane, Sink said, referring to the 11.9 percent unemployment figure released on Wednesday and the continuing recession.

Speaking on the floor of the House to African Methodist Episcopalian (AME) clergy and leadership, Sink started her speech by talking about her experiences marching in the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day parade in Miami in January. She said people watching the parade were asking the political leaders about jobs.

Sink said, Im thinking of the 1.1 million Floridians who are unemployed and the millions more hanging on with one or two part-time jobs. She also referred to the underemployed, Floridians who are overqualified for the positions they hold.

Drawing on her experience in both the private and public sector, Sink said she believes the state does have a role in encouraging business, but it is businesses that will put Floridians back to work.

Saying the state was facing an uncertain future, she said that budget cuts to NASA would leave 7,000 people on the Space Coast out of work. We must build a new economy with sustainable jobs and better paying jobs, she said.

We are in the ICU unit and the policymakers have to go to get working, she added.

We cant build a new economy without a strong public education system, Sink said to the loudest applause of her speech.

She also turned to the plights of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), one of the chief concerns for Bishop McKinley Young and the AME leadership. She recounted her experience with HBCUs during her banking career. While in Miami, she approved a key loan for Florida Memorial University. Sink also looked to future contributions to the state, citing Florida A&Ms plans to create a dentistry school, which she feels will be a great benefit.

These colleges fill an important niche, she said

While Sink did not refer to her gubernatorial ambitions, she stressed Florida needs competent leadership. She told of her favorite passage from the New Testament -- the parable of the talents in which Jesus praises men who multiplied the talents they had been given instead of isolating them from the world.

Sink hinted that she could provide some of that leadership.

I am a person who not only talks the talk but walks the walk, she said.

The clergy were in Tallahassee to take part in AME Day at the Capitol.

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