On Thursday, former Tennessee Agriculture Commissioner John Rose announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination in the Sixth Congressional District to succeed incumbent Rep. Diane Black (R-TN-06), who recently announced that she is a candidate for governor.
Rose was appointed as Agriculture Commissioner by former Governor Don Sundquist in 2002, and served in that job until 2003.
Rose joins State Rep. Judd Matheny (R-Tullahoma) as the second candidate who will be competing in the August 2018 Republican primary for the party’s nomination to succeed Black in the November 2018 general election.
“I’m John Rose and I’m doing something I’ve never done before – run for public office. I’m a farmer and small business owner who is ready to take bold action for the betterment of Tennessee’s 6th District. I’m going to work to earn your vote and keep it as your next Congressman,” Rose posted on his Facebook page on Thursday.
“I am a farmer and small business owner who is ready to be actively involved in pushing the conservative movement that inspired so many as President Trump sought office for the first time,” Rose elaborated on his campaign website.
“Chelsea and I were two of the voters who elected President Trump and today, we are two of the many who are disappointed with a Congress that will not end the Obama era mistakes and get to work for a better America,” Rose said of himself and his wife.
Of his personal background, Rose said, “I am the eighth generation in my family to farm in Temperance Hall, a small community in DeKalb County. I was raised in Cookeville where I graduated from Cookeville High School and went on to Tennessee Tech University. Since I was a kid, farming has been a passion of mine. It was a natural choice to study agriculture at Tech. From there, I earned a Master’s of Science Degree in Agricultural Economics from Purdue University. And lastly, I went on to Vanderbilt University where I earned a Law Degree.”
On the issues, Rose says on his website his “belief about effective immigration policy is three parts:”
1. Build a wall.
Building a wall along our southern border will aide in enforcement of the law, and will send a message that America is serious about the immigration problem.
2. Enforce the law.
Our country has laws in place that govern immigration. Immigrants who are in the United States illegally are not “undocumented”; they are illegal and should face the consequences of breaking the law—deportation.
3. Design a system that works.
We have to do better when it comes to temporary visa and guest worker programs. We need a system that allows those who wish to enter this great country legally and pursue The American Dream a chance to do so without watching illegal immigrants be rewarded for breaking the law while hopeful, law-abiding immigrants wait their turn in line.
On other key issues Rose says:
- I support repealing Obamacare
- The right to keep and bear arms is a right guaranteed by our Constitution. It is fundamental to America. In Washington, I will be a reliable voice and vote for protection of 2nd amendment rights. I am a life member of the National Rifle Association (NRA) and will stand firm in securing our American freedoms.
- I support welfare reform that provides support to those who need it most and won’t send our country further into debt.
- I believe the federal government has a role to play in education, but the Department of Education should not exist to pass down standards that are one size fits all.
- I will vote to defund Planned Parenthood.
- I support the President in his temporary travel ban on the countries that present the greatest threat to our security.
With one year to go until the August 2018 Republican primary, the battle lines between Rose and Matheny are now drawn.
[…] Also running to succeed Black in Congress is John Rose, a small business owner and farmer who served as state agriculture commissioner from 2002 to 2003. […]
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