Not letting age slow him down, 90-year-old Daviess County resident John K. Snyder appeared Monday on the national FOX News morning show “Fox and Friends” to announce his running for national office.
Snyder said Fox network contacted him about his candidacy on the Republican ticket for the Eight District House seat and asked him to drive to Indianapolis to appear on the show where he promised to be a “voice of reason.”
“Our federal government is out of control,” Snyder said. “As America slides deeper and deeper into unimaginable federal debt, we are risking losing control of our economic future to global forces.”
Two attributes will be highlighted during his primary campaign — Snyder will not accept political financial donations, and he pledges up front that he will not serve more than two terms if elected.
The father of six children and grandfather to more than 30 grand- and great-grandchildren, Snyder said, “I grew up in the Great Depression and served in World War II. I’ve seen what awaits my grandchildren if Congress doesn’t wake up and do the right thing.”
Not a novice to politics, Snyder has served twice as state treasurer and ran for governor once. He’s been a delegate to the Republican state convention 21 times and to the party’s national convention five times.
“I decided back in November I was running,” Snyder said. That was before Congressman Brad Ellsworth announced he would not be seeking a third term but would be running for the U.S. Senate. “I know something about finances,” Snyder said, adding that the financial situation in the U.S. wasn’t getting any better.
“I see all of this chaos, and I wonder what kind of America my grandchildren and all Americans will be living in 10 years from now,” he said.
He said that his grandmother had a saying during the Great Depression that is highly relevant for Congress today: “Use it up. Wear it out. Make it do or do without.”
According to Snyder, today some would probably say: “Spend it all, go in debt. Forget core values, place your bets.”
A long-time resident of Daviess County, Snyder spent many years crisscrossing the district first as a regional sales manager for a major school equipment company and then as a two-term state treasurer. During his time as state treasurer, Snyder instituted programs that delivered a higher return on investment of state funds than all previous state treasurers combined.
“I know well about the prudent management of government funds, and if the voters of the Eighth District send me to Washington, D.C., I’ll be about it once again,” Snyder said.
“After watching the insanity erupt among our elected Congressional figures over the past decade, where sound bites and empty posturing triumph over anything of real achievement, I felt sick,” Snyder said. “Sick of watching the values that made our country great get flushed down the drain. Sick that our country has achieved unimaginable levels of debt in mere months that will take decades to pay off. Sick that greedy executives suck up bonuses while taking emergency government subsidies. Sick that failed national government policies are being re-packaged as progress.”
Snyder recognizes that one Congressman cannot change everything. “But I can be a very loud 90-year-old voice in the nation’s Capitol,” he said.
Snyder will be facing seven other candidates in the Republican primary May 4.
Local News
90-year-old Washington man running for Congress
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2011 graduation rates announced
Data released by the Indiana Department of Education Tuesday shows graduation rates statewide increased 1.9 percent over last year and 4.3 percent over the 2009 rate to 85.7 percent; in total, 80 percent of graduates received a Core40 or Honors diploma, the most in Indiana’s history.
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Area high school graduation rates
Area High School
Graduation Rates
2011 2010Shoals 71.2% 72.5%
Loogootee 81.3% 82.7%
Pike Central 96% 91%
North Knox 73.2% 79.5%
South Knox 95.7% 92.8%
Vincennes 82.2% 80%
Bloomfield 97.2% 97.4%
E.Greene 81.6 90.4%
Linton 81.6 86.5%
Shakamak 91.8% 93.4%
WRV 85.3% 86.4% -
Local public graduation rates
Local public
graduation rates
Washington 83.4%
North Daviess 95.5%
Barr-Reeve 97.7% -
Meth labs still an ever-present danger
The Indiana State Police recently released meth lab numbers for the state and announced those numbers, along with the number of meth-related arrests, continue to rise.
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Levee asks for more funds
Four years after a devastating breach, the Bennington Levee in northern Daviess County remains in need of repair, and questions about how those costs will be paid and by whom, were the main focus of the regular meeting of the Daviess County Council Wednesday morning at the Courthouse.
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Petersburg men arrested in truck wash armed robbery
An Indiana State Police investigation into the Jan. 29 armed robbery at Blue Beacon Truck Wash located near U.S. 41 and I-64 has prompted criminal charges being filed against Larry Nathaniel Davis, 26, and Branden Joe Walburn, 26, both from Petersburg. Felony warrants were issued yesterday afternoon for their arrests. At approximately 11:30 Tuesday night, Indiana State Police executed the warrants and arrested Davis and Walburn without incident.
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Taking care of those who took care of you
With people living longer in today’s society, more and more adult children are faced with helping their aging parents make difficult decisions about their living situations.
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Senior and Family Services ready to help
Senior and Family Services of Washington has a magnitude of services available, according to Executive Director Jill Cecil.
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Free senior seminars
From March through November a one-hour seminar will be offered beginning at 10:30 a.m. on the last Thursday of each month at the Washington senior center, 211 E. Main St
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Important Phone Numbers for Seniors
Important Phone Numbers
Washington Senior Center 254-1881/1-800-536-1881
Odon Senior Center 636-4722
Petersburg Senior Center 354-8727
Winslow Senior Center 789-9405
Ride Solution 254-3225/1-800-369-8899
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