Bryan Gossage,
Republican candidate for State House District 41
The Party Line
recently sat down with Bryan Gossage, two-term Apex Councilman and
Republican candidate for North Carolina’s 41st
House District.
The Party Line:
Tell us a little about yourself – where you grew up and went to school.
Bryan Gossage:
I grew up in what was then a fairly rural part of southern California. Except for kindergarten I went to
public school and I loved growing up in the foothills of the beautiful
San Gabriel mountains.
I graduated from the California State University with a Bachelor’s Degree in
Sociology, and during and after college I worked for a Republican state
legislator. After I graduated, I moved to
Sacramento for a fellowship with the State of
California
that focused on Information Technology policy and public/private
partnerships. That’s where I met my wife, Chloe.
TPL:
When did you and your family
move to
North Carolina?
BG:
Chloe and I moved to the
Triangle area about eight years ago, and we moved to Apex in 2002. Our
daughter, Madeline, was born at Western Wake [WakeMed Cary] in 2005.
TPL:
Do you have any other family
out here?
BG:
We both have roots in North Carolina, so there are aunts, uncles, and cousins
scattered from Gates County to Scotland County.
TPL:
Tell us more about your
activities in Apex.
BG:
Well, we’ve attended Hope Chapel in Apex for a number of years, and in
2002 I started a PR firm in Apex. In fact, there is a neat story about
my business: One of our clients won the 2008 NC Small Business Award,
which was exciting because I got to go with them to the awards ceremony
in Washington, D.C. and to a reception at the White House.
TPL:
Sounds like a great
transition to your public service in Apex and Wake County. What can you tell us about that?
BG:
In 2003, I was elected to
the Apex Council and won re-election in 2007, and I’ve been our town’s
delegate to the Triangle Council of Governments for that entire time.
From 2004 to 2006, I served on the Wake County Library Commission. In
2007, I was appointed to a two-year term on the county’s Juvenile Crime
Prevention Council.
TPL:
Sounds like you are well
prepared for the State House. Tell us more about your decision to run
for the legislature.
BG:
During my years of public
service, I’ve heard common concerns from our citizens – they struggle to
pay ever-increasing taxes passed by a Democrat-controlled legislature,
they see that legislature’s out-of-control spending and they’re
frustrated with continued corruption in the State House. I am running
because I’ll be a strong, sensible voice for
Wake
County. North Carolina needs experienced, innovative leadership,
and that is exactly what I will bring to Raleigh.
TPL:
Briefly, what do you see as
the most pressing issues facing citizens in
North Carolina and, specifically, people in your
district?
BG:
Our economy, our state’s
educational system, and our transportation needs in western Wake County.
TPL:
We frequently hear in the
media: “It’s the economy, stupid!” What are the Democrats planning to
do? They’ve controlled every level of our state government for most of
the last 100 years, and have not offered much in the way of innovative
solutions for the challenges Wake County faces.
BG:
Fiscal conservatives know
that we cannot tax, subsidize, and regulate our way out of an economic
slowdown.
This is a critical issue,
and the North Carolina General Assembly can do its part by passing laws
that help create an environment that fosters long-term job growth. We
can do that by encouraging investment and research and development.
The state needs to cut
wasteful government spending and debt, lower the gas tax, reduce taxes
for families and businesses, and provide tax credits to make health
insurance more affordable and accessible.
TPL:
If you pay attention to
local and state news, it is no secret that our state’s education system
is in disarray. Dropout rates are sky-high, with nearly a third of high
school students failing to graduate. How do we start to fix things?
BG:
My dad, brother, and
sister-in-law are all public school teachers, so I know how important it
is for our kids to receive a quality education.
I’ve heard the same
complaint from educators and parents that the educational bureaucracy
seems unresponsive to their concerns.
The first thing we can do to
improve the learning environment in Wake
County is to change to at-large
elections for Wake
County school board members
while maintaining their districts.
We also need tests for
students that are more accurate and reliable, and we need to make sure
schools get the resources they need to attract, train and retain the
best teachers.
Lastly, we need to invest in
community college and state university programs that help students make
the transition from high school to high quality jobs.
TPL:
Crumbling bridges and
crowded roads need our state’s help. How do we address the state’s
needs to build and repair our critical transportation infrastructure?
BG:
Most importantly, we completely stop
the transfer of money out of the Highway Trust Fund – right now. We
cannot keep taking hundreds of millions of dollars out of that fund
every legislative term and expect to adequately fund our transportation
needs.
TPL:
Or we end up with toll roads, like 540 will be in western Wake County. Meaning some citizens end up
paying twice for a road?
BG:
Exactly.
It’s really important that
Wake
County legislators fight
for Wake County’s fair share of funding for
congestion relief, and put a stop to a system that has money go to those
districts with the most politically powerful individuals.
TPL:
Councilman, thanks so much for spending part of your day with us. You
will make a great addition to Wake County’s Republican delegation at the
state capitol.
And to our readers, we hope
you will support Bryan
in the 2008 election. You can learn more about him on the web at
www.JoinBryan.com .
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