Vander Plaats favors phasing out gambling dependence

JOHNSTON – GOP gubernatorial candidate Bob Vander Plaats said Friday he wants to build a vibrant private-sector business climate while shrinking government and working to “wean” Iowa off gambling in hopes of gradually phasing out casinos and the state lottery.

The Sioux City businessman also ruled out running for governor as an independent or third-party candidate if he fails to garner the Republican nomination for governor in the June 8 primary election. He made his comments during and after the taping of Iowa Public Television's “Iowa Press” show.

“I have no interest, no desire and no intent on running an independent candidacy,” he said. “I don't believe me running as a third party does anything for the Republican Party of Iowa, I don't think it does anything for the future of Iowa. I believe we need to make this choice right now.”

Vander Plaats made it clear he believes he will defeat GOP rivals former Gov. Terry Branstad and state Rep. Rod Roberts, R-Carroll, in the June balloting and beat first-term Democratic Gov. Chet Culver next November because the current anti-incumbent environment is “tailor made” for his candidacy as a political outsider with private-sector expertise.

Vander Plaats said he believes he will draw support from the GOP base, Tea Party activists, independents and conservative Democrats by offering real-life leadership, experience and results for a “bold future” while Branstad is tied to the past as a four-term incumbent and Culver and Roberts are “stuck” in the present as current office-holders.

“I don't have a record they can easily attack. I have a record of results,” he said.

Vander Plaats said he favors eliminating the state's corporate income tax and “drastically” reducing both the commercial and industry property taxes and the state's capital gains tax as part of an effort to “level the playing field” for businesses to compete and create jobs in Iowa. He contrasted that with Culver and Branstad, who turned to expanded gambling every time the state hit “an economic glitch, an economic hiccup.”

“I want to create real jobs and real industry where the ripple effect is dynamic in the economy,” Vander Plaats said.

“I think as governor, we need to wean ourselves off of gambling but you do that by putting in real business and industry,” he added. “I would love to see where Iowa would say we don't need gambling anymore.”

Vander Plaats conceded that counties which currently have state-regulated gaming casinos would need to see economic growth before residents would vote to break their association with gambling. He also said he has concerns that efforts to promote the state-operated lottery are sending a message to young people to trust their fortunes to luck rather than hard work.

“Iowa's way to play is get a good education, work extremely hard, make the right choices and when you do that your ship's going to come in,” he said.

Vander Plaats also touted his education reform initiative that would remove state mandates in favor of more local and parental control and emphasis on student achievement.

Speaking to reporters after the IPT taping, Vander Plaats said he would support increasing accountability for both teachers and students by using proficiency testing and other measures for evaluating teachers and requiring graduating high-school seniors to pass a test or portfolio evaluation before they received their diplomas.

“I think it's one thing to have 21

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century standards but, if you don't hold students accountable to those 21

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century standards, that's a concern,” he said.

rod.boshart@gazcomm.com