PENDLETON — Gubernatorial candidate Mike Braun outlined his plan for the office during a video statement to the Madison County Tea Party.
Braun was supposed to be at the Thursday meeting but had to remain in the nation’s capital for a Friday vote.
He is one of six candidates seeking the Republican Party nomination for governor. Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch, Eric Doden, Brad Chambers, Curtis Hill and Jamie Reitenour are all seeking the nomination.
Currently completing his first term in the U.S. Senate, Braun said he never intended to run for more than two terms.
“I was asked to run for governor,” he said. “I was going to run for one or the other he said of the two elected positions. The governor sets the agenda for government.”
Braun said if elected governor he would never declare what are essential and non-essential businesses in the state if there is another pandemic like COVID-19.
He said people running for governor in the past came up through the farm system of politics.
“Government is the biggest business in the state,” Braun said. “I will go through each agency to make sure they’re staffed properly to serve the public. Are we getting a return on our investment?”
He said two issues that will be addressed is the cost of health care in the state and education, arguing that parents should be directing their children’s education toward a career path.
“We need to grow the work force,” Braun said. “I want to make sure parents are in the driver’s seat when it comes to education.”
Braun said another issue is the increase in property taxes.
He noted that Crouch wants to eliminate the state income tax, adding it is one-third of state revenue.
“Property taxes should never go up more than the growth in the economy,” he said. “The legislature should have capped the property tax bills.”
Braun said with the increase in assessed value of real estate, it should have been addressed by the Legislature.
“This impacts the elderly, those on fixed or low incomes,” he said.
