Mount Pleasant Magazine Sept/Oct 2020

23 www.ReadMPM.com | www.MountPleasantMagazine.com | www.VOICEforMP.com There is no mistaking Cunningham’s passion for coastal conservation. He ran his 2018 campaign largely on a platform to protect the Carolina coast from offshore drilling and is adamant that the only way to accomplish that is through a federal rather than a state ban. “Oil spills don’t care about state lines — a federal ban is the only way to protect our coast,” he remarked. Mace agrees with him on this issue but believes in giving states control over their own coastline as “the only way to move the ball forward against drilling along our coast” and garnering bipartisan support. Cunningham also supports clean energy initiatives — such as Rep. Donald McEachin’s effort to achieve a 100% clean energy economy by 2050 — and legislation that anticipates the effects of climate change. “If we are going to have meaningful action on climate change, we have to do so in concert with the private sector,” he said. With the state of the economy on everyone’s mind, Mace has some bold proposals to tackle economic recovery: a tax credit of 1% for every month that banks, lenders and landlords suspend or defer rent or mortgage payments, and the Penny Plan, which would require the government to spend just one penny less than the following year for every dollar spent. She is interested in joining the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee in Congress, claiming rapid growth in places like the Lowcountry calls for easier access to critical funding. “I want to build here, not there,” she explained. Regarding the current cultural climate, Cunningham is a fierce defender of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act to increase transparency in policing, to improve training and practice and to hold law enforcement accountable for misconduct. “I have tremendous respect and appreciation for our law enforcement. Police budgets are mostly paid for by local governments, which have been fiscally exhausted by COVID-19. That’s why I think it’s Citadel graduate Nancy Mace showing her support for veterans at Patriot’s Point. Congressman Joe Cunningham gets up close and personal with constituents on his brewery tour. feature