Former North Carolina Governor Democrat Roy Cooper outlined his plans to address rising costs and economic pressures, and the issue of campaign finance spending and partisan gerrymandering at his “Make Stuff Cost Less” campaign event Oct. 8.
Cooper, who is running for North Carolina’s U.S. Senate seat, spoke to about 50 people in downtown Winston-Salem a little over three weeks before Election Day.
Attendees cheer for former Gov. Roy Cooper as he arrives for his "Make Stuff Cost Less" event Oct. 8 in Winston-Salem.
Cooper discussed his recent conversations with supporters and the issues they are facing. He said many people are facing rising costs and are now struggling to buy a home.
“I'm running for people like Meredith, who lives right here in Winston Salem, and her child Vivian has cerebral palsy,” Cooper said in his speech. “Vivian is insured by Medicaid. Meredith is scared to death that all of these attacks on healthcare coming from Washington are going to snatch Vivian's healthcare away.”
While he served as governor, Cooper helped expand Medicaid, overseeing the creation of 640,000 new jobs and extended paid parental leave. Cooper said that after his second and final term as governor in 2024, he didn’t think he would be back in the political scene. He spent time teaching at Harvard University while away from politics.
“I kicked off the dress shoes. I put on my Jordans. I looked for my next calling,” Cooper said in his speech. “Then I saw this administration take root, and I'd see two or three things happening almost every single day that reached a new level of chaos, any one of which we could talk about for hours. And I said, ‘Man, I've got to do something about this.’”
At the event, Cooper advocated for public education and criticized federal cuts to the Department of Education. Some of Cooper’s biggest points of emphasis included his desire to roll back tariffs, end the war in Iran and restore healthcare subsidies.
Cooper criticized his opponent, former Republican National Committee chairman Michael Whatley, for being a lobbyist for oil and utility companies.
“He has worked to pass legislation that allows them to raise prices and raise rates,” Cooper said in his speech. “As he cheers on the war in Iran, the oil stock goes up. And guess what? He still owns the stock. So that's money out of people's pockets and into his.”
Attendees don American flags in their hair as they listen to former Gov. Roy Cooper at his "Make Stuff Cost Less" event Oct. 8 in Winston-Salem.
Bipartisanship was also a point of discussion, with Cooper saying that reaching across the aisle is needed to get things done. He cited his experience working with the Republican supermajority as governor to achieve economic improvement and Medicaid expansion.
“I’ve had a Republican legislature for eight years when I was governor, and yes, we disagreed on things, and yes, I vetoed legislation, but we worked together in many ways,” Cooper told Elon News Network. “I think I got some receipts that I can bring to Washington to show that you can achieve consensus, and that’s what people want. People just want government to work.”
Cooper also discussed partisan gerrymandering and the impact of dark money groups and how expensive political campaigns are becoming.
With cheers from the crowd, Cooper said that there is more work to be done until the election. Cooper is leading significantly in polls, but he cited the fact that there hasn’t been a Democratic senator from North Carolina since 2015 and said that more work is needed.
“I'm a prisoner of hope. I truly believe that our best days are ahead of us as long as we work for it,” Cooper said in his speech.