EDITORIAL: A governor willing to dream big: Jay Gonzalez

Oct. 28--Jay Gonzalez wants to be a governor who helps Massachusetts tackle and solve the big challenges before us.

The public finance attorney and candidate for governor is looking to leverage his experience as secretary of Administration and Finance under Gov. Deval Patrick and as chief executive of a health insurance company to tackle some of the state's biggest problems.

And he says he has the government finance experience necessary to solve them.

His approach stands out from the much more cautious strategy of his opponent, Gov. Charlie Baker.

In his first term in office, Gov. Baker has been a good leader, but not an ambitious one.

His stable management and incremental steps forward have led to important fixes in areas like repairing the MBTA and addressing the opioid crisis.

There isn't much that's negative to charge him with.

But his leadership has not resulted in grand solutions worth crowing about.

We don't see a great plan to fix the health care system. We don't see a clear path forward to fix Greater Boston's transportation woes, certainly not the entire state's.

This is why Mr. Gonzalez' proposals are intriguing.

He is not afraid to put new solutions, even controversial ones, on the table, including supporting safe injection sites and insurance coverage for medical marijuana -- two ideas he put forth at last week's debate at the Whaling Museum.

He believes the commonwealth must reach for an expanded vision of success, one where solutions to broken government promises -- of a functional transportation system, equal access to education, and quality health care for all -- are actively pursued.

Mr. Gonzalez has set out to challenge Baker in his bid for reelection because, he says, the current governor is not aiming high enough.

He supports repairing roads and bridges at a more rapid pace than Gov. Baker has, while also moving forward with a targeted plan for expanding public transportation including the faster, electrified Stoughton rail route locally.

The development of SouthCoast Rail has been a long-standing goal for this region to create new jobs and better access to existing ones. The governor's Middleboro plan is a needed and timely interim solution but it will not create the efficient commuter service to Boston that the quicker Stoughton train will. We believe Mr. Gonzalez is more likely to build it.

Mr. Gonzalez also wants to increase financial support for regional transit authorities to expand public options and dependability across the state. He sees Massachusetts' failure to solve growing traffic gridlock and equipment breakdowns as a problem that could threaten the state's economic growth and has said it is the most frequent issue he hears when talking to voters.

Likewise, obstacles to quality education and access to daycare are also holding the state back. "We have one of the worst transportation systems in the country. We have an education system...with one of the biggest achievement gaps in the country," he told an editorial board of GateHouse newspapers recently. "We're number one in the nation for how expensive our child care and preschool is...and we're falling behind other states in access to that. We're definitely near the bottom in terms of affordability for our public universities and community colleges."

These are problems that require bold leadership, according to Mr. Gonzalez.

In support of his agenda, Mr. Gonzalez has said he will look to tax wealthy higher education institutions, if elected, and re-initiate the millionaire's tax in the Legislature, taking the required steps to amend the state Constitution and putting the tax, which was removed from the ballot earlier this year, into place.

The former Medicaid insurance CEO said he also wants to eliminate health insurance companies in favor of a single payer system to simplify the existing system and make it more financially sustainable. Massachusetts, he said, with its universal health care system, is the state best-positioned to get this done.

"We need bold leadership and I am running on a very ambitious agenda to take these things on," Mr. Gonzalez said.

Mr. Gonzalez' plan is risky and he has admitted he may not achieve all of his goals. His proposal to raise an additional $3 billion in revenue from wealthy colleges, like Harvard University, for example, has gotten push back for both its viability and potentially lengthy process.

Nevertheless it is refreshing to hear a Massachusetts candidate put forth specific plans for investing in the state without adding new taxes to working families. And it is exciting to aim for solutions that go beyond minor fixes.

"I know we may not accomplish every single thing I want to do and that I think we need to do, but I also know we're not going to accomplish any of them if we don't even try and I'm going to try," he said.

Unlike his challenger, Gov. Baker has not proposed solutions for raising new revenue and that may be why his plans ultimately fall flat.

We believe Gonzalez' willingness to take big risks makes him a good solution for the entire state, especially Gateway cities like New Bedford and Fall River who face unique and often daunting challenges.

His candidacy may be a long shot in this election, but we believe it is a shot worth taking.

The Standard-Times endorses him for governor.

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