by allison | Jun 20, 2022 | From the 2024 Campaign Trail, Why I Ran (Twice)
On February 13, 2017, I wrote an opinion column for the Chattanooga Times Free Press. Less than a month into Donald Trump’s presidency, the country was so tense I felt like I was trapped in a house with the smoke alarms blaring. In my op-ed, I wrote about the cruel...
by allison | Jul 7, 2022 | From the 2024 Campaign Trail, Why I Ran (Twice)
Like most middle-aged people, I have some gauzy memories of summer. You know, playing kickball in the street, catching fireflies in jars, riding bikes until the streetlights came on. But here’s another summer memory that’s stuck with me: my neighbor Mark sitting in...
by allison | Jul 19, 2022 | From the 2024 Campaign Trail, Why I Ran (Twice)
You might have noticed the arrow on my campaign signs. It’s a compass pointing north. “True north” is how I explained it to my husband when I got the idea. “Magnetic north,” he said. He’s a hiker. “It’s a metaphor,” I said. My mother, who spoke in metaphors, used to...
by allison | Aug 17, 2022 | From the 2024 Campaign Trail, Why I Ran (Twice)
Nothing makes my blood boil more than a boilerplate email from my government representative. If I’m concerned enough about an issue to call or write them, I expect something more than a canned reply. Don’t thank me for contacting you when you famously avoid contact...
by allison | Aug 28, 2022 | From the 2024 Campaign Trail, Why I Ran (Twice)
Last night I attended the TN Democratic Party’s Three Star Dinner in Nashville, where people from every corner of the state gathered to discuss our fight to turn Tennessee blue. Resolute is the word that comes to mind. The guy who brought the house down was keynote...
by allison | Sep 24, 2022 | From the 2024 Campaign Trail, Why I Ran (Twice)
Nothing has made me sadder than seeing Jesus co-opted by politicians. I grew up Catholic at a time when the Church was trying to hew a little closer to its humble beginnings. Abortion–the biggest conservative political catalyst of the last 40 years–wasn’t a hot-button...
