SCOTTSDALE (By Lesley Wright, Arizona Republic)
November 16, 2004 - Gov. Janet Napolitano demurred Monday on the question of
running for president in 2008, but said she fully intends to run for
re-election to a second four-year term as Arizona's governor in 2006.
That was enough to bring a round of applause from an enthusiastic audience
of nearly 300 people who attended "An Evening With the Governor" at
Scottsdale Community College, sponsored by The Scottsdale Republic.
Napolitano, considered a rising star in the national Democratic Party, said
her goals for Arizona extend well into a second gubernatorial term.
The governor's discussion, moderated by Scottsdale Republic General Manager Michael Ryan, ranged from issues of immigration (she would like a guest-worker program) to education (she wants to pay teachers more) to her favorite part of being governor (not having to drive).
Napolitano said she is just getting her hands on the issue of long-term water management, an issue that, like everything in Arizona, is coming under increasing pressure from a booming population. Fully a quarter of that population soon will be older than 65, the governor said, adding that the demographics should encourage everyone to support public transportation.
That aging population also means there is fertile ground for health care research, she said when asked if the state is relying too heavily on the biotech industry to pull Arizona out of economic malaise.
"I believe Arizona can be a national center for health care and health research," she said. "It's something we're always going to need. When we talk about biotech, we shouldn't overlook high-tech. We have leading researchers here and we need more."
All businesses, high-tech and mom-and-pops, need a good educational system to give them the workers they need, the governor said, touching on one of her favorite topics.
While education is hardly "done," Napolitano added, state land reform and water will be among Arizona's higher priorities in the coming months.
"We're the second-fastest growing state in the country and we're in the ninth year of drought," she said. "In the end, we are going to need conservation, we're going to need to fight for Colorado River water; we're going to have to work with our agricultural community and help them find other technologies."
Napolitano said she remains positive about working with the new Legislature, despite the hard-edged Republican tilt it took in the Nov. 2 election.
This time, the governor is holding out hope that the speaker of the Arizona House will talk to her.
"That was one of the frustrations of the last two years," Napolitano said. "That will change this year. We will have disagreements but, in the end, we have a job to do."
