SOUTH CAROLINA — Billly Webster is a businessman with a storied history.
He joined the George H.W. Bush administration as a White House fellow and later became President Bill Clinton’s director of scheduling.
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And before all of that, he was the president of the largest Bojangles franchise at the time.
The Greenville Democrat now has his eyes on the South Carolina governor’s mansion.
He spoke to The Political Beat’s Joe Bruno about his past experiences and his goals if elected as the state’s next governor.
“I feel like that, the issues that confront us, I understand. We’ve added a million people in the last 15 years. We’re going to add a million more in the next 10 our infrastructure is not ready,” Webster said. “We’re, you know, urban sprawl and sort of unmanaged development threatens our clean water, hardwood bottom lands, salt marshes, oceans, beaches, and if we don’t protect those things that make us unique as South Carolina, by the time my grandchildren are born, those places will be gone.”
Billy Webster says he can win and he can lead. The Greenville Democrat built four businesses and spent time in two Presidential administrations including as director of scheduling for President Bill Clinton
“The first week I was there, the President called me in and said, I’m going to six countries in the Middle East next week, including Joe Syria, where only one American president had been in 50 years,’” Webster said. “And within, you know, 2436 hours, we had 1500 people in the air communications: professionals, security professionals, food, Air Force, one secret service. I mean, it’s, if you like logistics, and I love logistics. It’s a great job.”
Webster wants to put that problem-solving experience to use as South Carolina’s next governor. He wants South Carolina to join North Carolina in expanding Medicaid
“We got half a million unemployed, uninsured folk in this state that has implications, not only human cost for them, it’s what drives up our insurance premiums, because those folks get health care, but they go to the ER, or some of them, if they have mental illness, they end up in jail,” Websetr said. “So, you know, I think Medicaid expansion solves a whole bunch of problems that confront our state.”
And he has spoken out against additional abortion restrictions, including Senate Bill 1095, that would make getting an abortion in South Carolina illegal for any reason unless the woman’s life is in danger.
“If a bill like that ever reached my desk, I would veto it, but as soon as I could get the cap off the pen. I mean, it is an insult to women and their physicians in the state, and the collateral damage with respect to unplanned pregnancies or miscarriages,” said Webster. I mean, the bill is replete with language that puts at risk every woman and their pregnancy in this state. It’s wrong. It’s reprehensible. And the fact that it passed out of committee, you know, it just makes me so angry, I can hardly talk about it.
But Webster says he has an independent mind and will work across the aisle if elected
“Nothing gets done in this state without a collaborative effort with folks across the aisle. I do not consider myself anywhere but on the 50 yard line, and I think it is unique among candidates on either side that I’m committed to getting stuff done fixing the problems that confront us, and I can only do that with bipartisan support. Much of this legislature that is on the Republican side,” he said. “I know they’re my friends. I’ve grown up with many of them. And, you know, look, this is my parents used to say, I vote for the person, not the party. I’m going to legislate with people. I’m not legislating with a party. Potholes aren’t Republican potholes or democratic potholes. You know, educating a child is not a Republican problem or democratic problem. These are just, these are South Carolina’s problems. They’re not a party’s problems.”
Webster is facing two challengers in the Democratic primary and says what sets him apart is he is an outsider.
“Everybody else is a career politician. I’m the only person who has experience in every one of the every one of the needs that face our state problems are hard to fix. I’ve been doing that my whole life,” Webster said. “You know, it’s, it’s the sticker, it’s Don’t talk, just do I plan to do and get this stuff figured out. Lot of it’s going to be hard. Can’t do it without Republicans. Can’t do without Democrats. I’m going to work hard and do my best to get these problems solved.”