Q&A with Pasadena delegate John Cushman III
ST. PETE BEACH, Fla. -- Times Community News caught up with John Cushman III at the Tradewinds resort, where the California GOP delegation is staying. Cushman, who lives in Pasadena, is chairman of a multinational real estate firm.
What city do you live in, and what do you do for a living?
I live in Pasadena, in the Granite Park residences. I am the chairman of the board of Cushman & Wakefield Inc., the largest private commercial real estate services firm in the world with 246 offices in 61 countries on six continents.
How did you become a delegate?
I am close to the Romney camp. I applied to become a delegate and was selected. I have been a supporter of Gov. Mitt Romney for a long time and was a significant supporter and believer in him as a part of the last election.
Why do you believe it’s important to be a delegate?
It is a great honor to serve as a delegate in what is the most important election in my lifetime.
What is the most important issue facing the GOP during this election? Generally?
The economy and business climate of Los Angeles, Southern California, the state and the nation are a mess. Most of the issues relate to “pilot error” from the administration.
The most important issues facing the GOP are the economy and lack of job growth. This is taking a serious toll on small business, the middle class and hurting all Americans.
The lack of clarity and certainty primarily coming out of the administration is compounded by the partisan gridlock with the Congress. Specifically, healthcare policy, tax policy, energy policy and, finally, the regulatory environment that is causing corporations, institutions and professional firms to slow down or postpone capital investments.
Capital investments are critical to growing the economy and creating job growth. We need to get unemployed American workers back to work. If we stay the course we are on with President Obama, we will most likely be in a recession in 2013 with the unemployment rate rising to more than 9%.
What is the most important issue facing Southern California in this election?
The important issues facing the GOP in Los Angeles County are not dissimilar to the issues I have set forth above.
President Obama has been a great disappointment to those who voted for him, believing he would be a strong leader in growing the economy and creating jobs. He has missed the mark on almost all of the promises he made to the American people. His foreign policy performance has been dismal.
We need a change in the White House before this president takes the American people over the cliff.
I have great faith in Gov. Romney and Congressman Paul Ryan, who have the vision, experience and plan that can get this country back on track with a smaller government that is agile and nimble, where they will surround themselves with people who have had real experience in running enterprises, people with solid credentials as it relates to foreign policy and people who care about preserving the free enterprise system and fostering entrepreneurial spirit.
According to the California Secretary of State, registered Democrats in Los Angeles County outnumber Republicans by more than a 2-to-1 margin. What are the challenges in forwarding the GOP’s issues?
Declined to answer.
-- Dan Evans, Times Community News
E-mail: dan.evans@latimes.com
Twitter: @EditorDanEvans