Add N.C. Sen. David Hoyle, a Gaston County Democrat, to the list of possible commerce secretaries under Gov.-elect Beverly Perdue.
Hoyle, long known as a business advocate, said he has not talked with Perdue about the job and isn't campaigning for it. He was asked about his interest in the post, though, by friends of Perdue, he said.
"I didn't say 'yes,'" Hoyle said, "and I didn't say 'no.'"
In the Senate, Hoyle co-chairs the finance committee, which oversees tax law changes and ensures the state has money to operate. That position, plus being Senate President Pro Tem Marc Basnight's roommate in Raleigh, has made him one of the most influential members of the Senate. He has reliably voted for budgets that Republicans criticize as imposing high tax rates, but he has also been a consistent voice for lowering the corporate rate.
Hoyle, a successful businesman in his own right, just won a ninth term in a Republican-leaning district. He also has kept his hand in many of the successful efforts to recruit large new employers to the state, such as Google.
On the other side of the ledger, he considered retiring from the Senate this year, is about to turn 70 and owns a home in Banner Elk with a spectacular view where he would like to spend more time.
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Hoyle would be the best choice. He deserves to finish his publice service in a position where he'd be appreciated instead of having to constantly save his Democrat colleagues from themselves in the Senate.