News and events in Oak Ridge, Tennessee
Carol M. Swain
A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of visiting Knox County and meeting with some of the city’s movers and shakers. I was particularly impressed by the patriotism and faith of the people who attended an event hosted by Rep. John Ragan.
My presence in Rep. John Ragan’s district was to share with the community ideas and themes from my book, “Be the People: A Call to Reclaim America’s Faith and Promise.”
John Ragan
The phrase, “Citius, Altius, Fortius” (faster, higher, stronger), is the Olympic motto. It is meant to inspire competitors to achieve greater performances than their peers and predecessors … to “own the record.”
Olympic athletes invest, literally, thousands of hours of their lives chasing their dream for a quadrennial chance at a medal and, perhaps, a record. Iron self-discipline drives these people to endure grueling early morning workouts. These are followed by many hours of skills rehearsal and practice followed by even more hours of conditioning.
To the Editor:
For over 200 years, my family has called Anderson County home. I’ve always been proud of my heritage and where I live, and I want nothing more than to ensure that the place where I was raised remains a secure community for generations to come.
The best way that we can make sure that Anderson County has a thriving economy and can provide jobs for its citizens is to elect representatives who understand that we as residents know better than anyone, especially big government, what this county needs. For this reason, I urge you to examine every candidate regardless of how you have voted in the past.
John Ragan
The Declaration of Independence, in its first paragraph, boldly asserts that America should be a separate nation based upon “the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God.” In the very next paragraph, the text posits, as a self-evident truth, that “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights,” including life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
No place in our nation’s founding documents is the phrase “social justice” to be found. Nowhere is it cited as a divinely endowed right.
Clinton High School English teacher DeWayne Emert, left, announces that a Tennessee Education Association organization has endorsed Democrat Jim Hackworth, center, in his campaign for the state House of Representatives. Also pictured is Ryan Mackay, Tennessee Democratic Party deputy field director.
CLINTON — Education could be one of the key battlegrounds in Anderson County’s hotly contested race for Tennessee House of Representatives.
This week, Democratic candidate Jim Hackworth said teachers are unhappy with changes made during the past few years and are “tired of being treated like second-class citizens.
“They want someone who will listen to them and ask them what they think to improve education,” said Hackworth, a former four-term legislator who is trying to take back his old seat in the Tennessee House of Representatives.
Tennessee Rep. John Ragan, right, talks to Andrew Kern, left, of Lenoir City, and Ken Wood, of Tellico Village, during a campaign kickoff ceremony Wednesday.
The state House district that includes Oak Ridge and most of Anderson County could be key to Republican plans to maintain a majority this fall–and possibly even gain a supermajority.
“This is one of those races that is going to make or break that supermajority,” said Holt Whitt, a member of the Republican Caucus field staff in Nashville.
Whitt is helping Rep. John Ragan, an Oak Ridge Republican, prepare for the Nov. 6 election, and he attended a Wednesday morning campaign kickoff ceremony for Ragan.
Tennessee Rep. John Ragan will kick off his 2012 campaign for the state House of Representatives during a Wednesday morning ceremony in Oak Ridge.
The ceremony starts at 11 a.m. at Ragan’s campaign headquarters at 103 Jefferson Ave.
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