Introducing another statewide candidate to the Bulloch County area, Democratic gubernatorial hopeful DuBose Porter was the first guest on Wednesday's “Mornings unPHILtered.”
    Porter told host Phil Boyum his primary reason for running is he wants to help restore Georgia to a sound economic footing.
    Raised in Dublin, Porter said he has always been a strong supporter of education and supports the efforts of Georgia Southern, which has a campus in Dublin. He said he believes the best way to deal with the budgetary challenges facing the University System of Georgia is to collect the uncollected sales taxes from businesses across the state.
    Porter said he has an idea to build new, wood-fired energy plants, which would use lumber wood chips produced by Georgia's lumber industry. He said this would be a good way to get away from reliance on coal fired plants. Porter said that by utilizing wood chips for energy generation, jobs from logger to power plant employees would be created in the state.
    Boyum then stated that South Georgians were concerned how metro Atlanta's water issues could affect the southern part of the state. Porter said, as co-chair of the Water Policy Board, he urges strong conservation throughout the Atlanta area and the state. The biggest water saving measure, he said, would be to replace much of Atlanta old water infrastructure, which currently leaks out and wastes a tremendous amount of water each day. He also mentioned raising the height of the damn for Lake Lanier, which would result in millions of gallons of extra reservoir space in the lake.
    When asked who would pick up the tab for such improvements, Porter said they would be paid for by Georgia Environmental Facility Authority loans, which would then be repaid by those areas benefiting from those improvements.
    Porter said the state of Georgia's transportation is not good, and he encourages the use of multiple modes of mass transportation systems to relieve the congestion experienced on Atlanta's highways.
    Porter also said education is the key to reducing the state's prison population, which has become a financial strain on the state. Porter's Web site states that of all the states, Georgia has the highest percentage of its population in the correctional system.
    The second guest on “Mornings unPHILtered” was gospel musician Phil Cross. A Christian composer and performer, Cross is coming to Trinity Baptist Church in Nevils for a show on Sunday.
    Cross said he was coming to Trinity to join in the worship services and provide encouragement to the congregation. He said has been blessed by the Lord with the ability to write songs, and he will share his personal testimony which he will blend with his music for the concert. In addition to performing in the morning service at 10:45 a.m., he will return for a concert and worship service in the evening beginning at 6 p.m.
    His best-known song is probably "Champion of Love," which earned him the Gospel Music Association's coveted Dove Award. Cross has received other Dove Award honors including Songwriter of the Year. For more information on his music, go to http://philcrosschoral.com.
   
     “Mornings unPHILtered” airs live Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. on statesboroherald.com and also simulcast on WWNS-AM 1240 on the radio. You also can listen anytime at BoroLive.com on statesboroherald.com