GOP Congressional Hopeful Mike Prendergast Unveils Jobs Plan

Mike Prendergast, the Republican candidate challenging Democratic U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, unveiled his jobs plan on Thursday.

While he is an underdog, Prendergast, a retired colonel in the Army who served on the staff of former U.S. Sen. Bob Graham, has won the backing of prominent national Republicans including former Gov. Jeb Bush and former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich.

Prendergast called for reforming jobs programs set up by President Barack Obama's federal stimulus -- a measure which the Republican candidate opposed.

We allocated $200 million to Florida, but we created only 77 jobs in Hillsborough County, said Prendergast. We must do better. We can, and we will, use the taxpayers money more effectively and my plan shows how to achieve job growth.

Prendergast added that the best way to increase the number of jobs was to enact free-market solutions, cut the size of the federal government, protect small businesses and increase American exports.

My plan may not be the final solution, but it is a great starting point focused on jobs for the people of Tampa Bay, said Prendergast. But what is unacceptable for me and undeserving for the people of the 11th District is the blind spending that has buried us in a 12 percent unemployment rate with no clear plan to remedy the problems.