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GOP Hopefuls Share Views On Gov’s Race
The Memphis News
The four major contenders for the Republican nomination for governor have been sharing the same stage a lot since the 2010 race came to life in January.
The latest four-way appearance came earlier this month at the Northeast Shelby Republican Club’s annual Pasta & Politics Dinner in Cordova:
Shelby County Dist. Atty. Gen. Bill Gibbons:
“First of all, I am the ‘Gun Crime Is Jail Time’ DA. I’m proud of that. … All of us are going to say we support the Second Amendment. But I’m the only candidate who as part of my job supports your right to bear arms. Under Tennessee law, if you have reasonable belief or fear that your life is in danger or you are in danger of a serious bodily harm, you have the right to use deadly force to protect yourself. In over 20 cases in the last years, as DA I have made the decision that citizens were justified in using deadly force … to protect themselves under state law.”
Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam:
“There’s a thousand-pound gorilla waiting on the next governor when he walks into the office. Basically, the state ended up over a billion dollars short this year. The current administration used the rainy day fund and stimulus money to make it work. The next governor’s not going to enjoy that. We need to have a governor that has hands-on experience fixing a budget.”
Lt. Gov. and state Senate Speaker Ron Ramsey:
“The problem in Washington, D.C., right now and one reason that I think that the economy is in a spiral is because small-businessmen in particular are not necessarily afraid of what the Obama administration has done – they’re afraid of what they’re going to do. You need to send the right message to let people know we are a pro-business state.”
U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp of Chattanooga:
“I’ve got news for you, the Democrats are not going to let us off on any of these big issues. ... We’d better not nominate somebody who the Democrats can run to the right of on guns and taxes. If we do, we’ll lose. There’s three big issues in this state that can kill a candidate no matter which party you are from – life, guns and taxes. … I’m the only one of these four that is all-in. I don’t (get to) go back to my old seat. They do – all three.”
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