BOSTON — Massachusetts gubernatorial candidates Republican Charlie Baker and Democrat Martha Coakley were in combative moods as they met on stage Wednesday morning for the second time in 14 hours.
Coakley said Baker’s economic plan “basically gives tax cuts to corporations and hopes that will trickle down. … We know that doesn’t work,” Coakley said.
Baker said Coakley’s plan “is not written down anywhere, and it’s not terribly specific.”
At a forum at the Westin Copley sponsored by the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce and focused primarily on business issues, the two argued over their plans for taxes and economic development.
Baker has laid out a proposal that focuses on changes to the state’s tax code. Baker pushed back against Coakley’s criticism by saying he supports tax incentives to companies that hire veterans and people on welfare and supports increasing the state’s earned income tax credit to help lower income workers.
Talking about income inequality, Baker said, “If Massachusetts is serious about participating aggressively and dealing with that wage problem, I can’t think of a better way for the Commonwealth to send a message to all the citizens of Massachusetts that it wants to play and wants to help by doubling down on that earned income tax credit.”
Coakley said she does not oppose raising the earned income tax credit, but does not see it as the cornerstone of a policy. “Most people in Massachusetts can’t wait until April 15 to make sure they can put food on the table,” Coakley said.
Coakley stressed the need to increase the minimum wage. When people are working two minimum wage jobs and cannot pay their bills, Coakley said, “That’s just wrong.”
Coakley added, “When those people get government benefits because they’re not paid enough, we all lose from that.”
Baker also supported raising the minimum wage during the past legislative session. But he would put in place tax credits for small businesses that employee low wage workers so businesses do not have to cut hours for employees.
Baker said his overall economic plan will cost $300 million over four years. With the state spending around $38 billion a year, “Any manager worth their salt should be able to figure out how to make that happen,” Baker said. Baker said Coakley’s proposals will cost “billions of dollars.”
Moderator Bob Oakes, a news anchor for Boston NPR news radio station WBUR, then asked Coakley about her plan for universal pre-kindergarten, which has been a cornerstone of her economic plan.
Coakley said it will cost $150 million to take 17,000 low-income children off a waiting list for pre-kindergarten. “If Charlie can find $600 million, I can find $150 million,” Coakley said, referring to a higher cost estimate for Baker’s economic plan.
Coakley would not rule out raising taxes. “I’ll start with my priorities,” Coakley said. “Let’s take a look at what do we need to do to make sure we invest the right way to get the return we want,” Coakley said. “I can work with the Legislature and others in the state to make that case if we need to do it.”
Asked about the greatest barrier to innovation in Massachusetts, Baker criticized the state’s tax and regulatory environment. “We are too complicated, too expensive, and we take too long to make decisions,” Baker said.
Coakley said Massachusetts has been a global leader in fields such as life sciences and high-tech. She said Massachusetts should work with the federal government on issues such as immigration visas for high-skilled workers. She said state government must invest in education and provide adequate infrastructure and housing.
Both Coakley and Baker stressed the need to invest differently in different parts of the state. Coakley, for example, pointed to work Mayor Alex Morse is doing in Holyoke reviving the Victory Theatre.