Vilsack delivers state of the state
TODAY: (Updated 10:32 a.m.) DES MOINES -- Iowa is better off than it was eight years go but still faces a long list of serious challenges, Gov. Tom Vilsack argued in his final Condition of the State address this morning.
Vilsack spoke before a joint legislative session as he prepares to leave office and campaign full time for the presidency. His speech doubled as an accounting of his accomplishments and a call to Iowans to rise to the problems left unresolved.
“Together, we have endured a war, an attack on our country, and the toughest fiscal challenge our state has faced in 50 years. While challenges remain, we built a state better prepared for what lies ahead,” Vilsack said in a text released before his 10 a.m. speech in the Iowa House chamber.
“I have given it my all and done my best. As I leave I am confident that Iowa’s best is yet to come -- starting right here and right now,” Vilsack said.
Vilsack said Iowa’s environment, its schools and its economy have improved during his two terms in office. He contends the state is leading an “energy revolution” through its commitment to the development of renewable energy sources.
He argued his administration’s efforts to welcome newcomers made Iowa a more tolerant place. And programs such as Vision Iowa and the Iowa Values Fund have fueled new economic optimism in communities where local attractions and jobs were created with state financial help.
“Our work helped to employ a record number of working Iowans, improve family incomes and establish Iowa as the undisputed renewable fuel and energy leader in the nation,” Vilsack said.
But he insisted many challenges remain as he hands the reins to Democratic Governor-elect Chet Culver and a Legislature controlled by his party.
Vilsack urged the state’s new leaders to continue a commitment to early childhood education, reducing dropout rates among minority students and making college more affordable. He said Iowa should both raise teacher pay and reform the decades-old teacher pay system.
“The legacy of this new era of leadership must not be the preservation of the old but an acceptance of the new. Blaze a new trail. Iowa teachers deserve it, and Iowa children depend on it,” Vilsack said.
Vilsack urged lawmakers to find a way to provide universal health care coverage and to curtail teen smoking. He also advocated lifting the state’s ban on some forms of embryonic stem cell research. Vilsack signed the ban into law during his first term.
He also renewed his previous call for legislation requiring all schools to adopt anti-bullying policies.
“Pass the anti-bullying legislation. Do it for them. Do it for us. Do it now,” Vilsack said.
Vilsack made no mention in the text of his run for president. But the speech gave him a last high-profile chance to tout his record in a state where precinct caucuses start the race for the White House in 2008.
“We have to win here. There’s no question about that, and everybody knows it,” Vilsack said in an interview Monday. “This gives you a chance to remind people of what you’ve done. It gives people a chance to see you in a leadership position and role again.”
Vilsack’s role will change quickly this week when he moves from Terrace Hill to a Des Moines apartment.
As Vilsack spoke Tuesday, his staff had already begun clearing his formal office of eight years worth of mementos, everything from prestigious awards to Pittsburgh Pirates heirlooms. Vilsack and his wife, Christie, he said, spent much of last weekend packing boxes that will be shipped to his home in Mount Pleasant.
“I feel sorry for my kids already. Twenty-five, 30, 40 years from now, they’ll be wonder why we kept this stuff,” Vilsack said.
A state trooper will no longer drive Vilsack around. With that in mind, Vilsack said he recently purchased a new car – fuel-sipping, energy-conserving hybrid.
“First of all, the parking won’t be quite as good,” Vilsack said.
But Vilsack likely will spend more time campaigning than driving. He faces long odds in a presidential race that features several better-known names.
His next campaign appearance is scheduled for tonight in Cedar Rapids, just hours after his last big entrance as Iowa’s governor.
“I will have more time and more energy to focus on the campaigning for this job I’m seeking,” Vilsack said.
Todd Dorman can be reached at (515) 243-0138 or at todd.dorman@lee.net.