Oak Ridge Republican Town Councilmember Mayor Ann Schneider has filed to run for the North Carolina House District 62 seat, arguing that her six years on the Oak Ridge Town Council – including four years as mayor – makes her “uniquely prepared” to be the state representative for the small towns in District 62 as well as for the cities of High Point and Greensboro.
Schneider and her husband of 36 years have lived in Oak Ridge for a decade and a half and are the parents of three adult children. A small business owner, she is also active in the community and has recently served on the board of the North Carolina Mayor’s Association.
In order to win the Republican primary in March, Schneider will need to come out on top of a group of competitors that includes some seasoned politicians with solid name recognition.
Also running in the Republican primary are former state Rep. John Blust, Michelle Bardsley, Jaxon Barber and High Point City Councilmember Britt Moore.
Schneider says she believes her mayoral experience is a very good launching pad for the District 62 seat that’s opening up due to the retirement of long-term NC state Rep. John Faircloth. Schneider stated in a press release that she “has already built strong relationships with local leaders and with representatives in Raleigh, who awarded more than $9 million to Oak Ridge” during her tenure as mayor.
She’s promising to bring her “expertise” to the rest of District 62.
In the press release announcing her candidacy, she also promised “to serve the needs of residents, who want a representative who will defend their constitutional rights, lower taxes, fight inflation, and preserve our state’s livability.”
Other priorities she’ll be stressing on the campaign trail include parents’ rights, creating excellence in schools and providing North Carolinians more school choice – helping make schools “free from political indoctrination.”
Her campaign literature states: “Ann will provide critical support for new and existing businesses, while working to strip away unnecessary regulation. She’ll stand up for common-sense housing growth, balanced with strong support for agriculture, and protections for the natural and historic resources that define our state’s high quality of life.”
Another key concern she wants a chance to address at the state level is the crime rate – and she says she’s committed to offering more support to first responders and veterans.
Just what we need…another Virginia Fox. Start burning the books now!
This dreadful woman has no right to run as a Republican. She voted for a 20% property tax hike in a single year, refusing to adjust the tax rate to a revenue neutral level. In the previous revaluation, the prior Town Council had reduced the tax rate from 8.4 cents to 8 cents,. The revenue neutral rate was 7.4 cents, but at least they mitigated the new tax hike . Mayor Ann Schneider stuck us for the whole bill – with no apologies, and no adjustment of the tax rate.
Her acolytes even tried to claim that they never even raised our taxes! But in last month’s election they came dead last and next to last. They were replaced by two actual conservatives, and when the new council was sworn in they immediately deposed this tax & spend liberal and installed a new Mayor. Unfortunately, she can’t be removed in an election yet – which is why she’s trying to “Fail Upwards” and get promoted before she gets voted out.
She even supported a scheme to spend nearly $1,000,000 of Oak Ridge taxpayer money on a dilapidated old wreck of a 1932 house that was valued at $116,000! Really.
If all this were not bad enough, the woman is an awfully conceited and arrogant individual, earning the moniker by which she is known in Oak Ridge – “Queen Ann”.
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Support ANYONE but this woman.
John Blust is an honorable and decent man, and a genuine conservative. I shall be happily supporting him.
[ He has no knowledge of this message, or me. ]
Definitely John Blust. I know and have known John for many years. He is honorable, trusting, ethical does what is right ( not what is politically correct). I fully support John!
Ann Schneider never did vote to increase the property tax rate in Oak Ridge. The increase in tax money was the result of the county revaluation of the value of your property. The Town Council does not have any control over property revaluation.
As for the cost of the Farm House Community Center is no where near one million dollars.
As for the two “ Actual Conservatives” that you mentioned, the first thing that they did after being sworn in was to elect the most liberal member of the Council and only registered Democrat on the Council as Mayor.
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Ah, the Parsing Politician !
McClellan – who finished dead last in the election and lost his seat – correctly but disingenuously claims that Schneider did not raise the Oak Ridge Property Tax RATE. True. She didn’t need to, because she knew full well that the revaluation would result in 20% more tax revenue for the Town Council.
In the previous revaluation, the Council cut the RATE from 8.4 cents to 8.0 cents, so as to reduce the tax hike on Oak Ridge homeowners. A revenue neutral policy would have dictated a rate of 7.7 cents if I remember right, so the council still got more revenue even as they cut the rate.
This time they didn’t even throw us a bone, just sticking us with the entire tax hike that resulted from the reval. Schneider, McClellan and Pittman knew exactly what they were doing, even as they claimed not to have voted to raise taxes. That lie didn’t fly, so now they say they didn’t vote to raise the tax RATE (which is true). Nobody bought their BS, and McClellan & Pittman were booted out, replaced by two conservatives.
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– And yes, the new Mayor is indeed a Registered Democrat, but the two new members installed him because Schneider is TO THE LEFT of him. And she claims to be a Republican!
Can you say RINO …? [ REPUBLICAN IN NAME ONLY ]
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What angers people (including me) is not so much the tax hike, but the lying about it. Schneider, McClellan & Pittman were insulting our intelligence and taking us for fools when they previously claimed not to have voted to raise taxes. They’ve abandoned that specious claim, but too late. Now they’re gone – but Schneider needs to be prevented from fooling conservatives into voting for her.
She’s the epitome of a tax & spend liberal.
And I didn’t even get into the Redmon House fiasco…