RELEASE: JACKSON COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE RELEASES LETTER CONFIRMING AINSWORTH NEVER ARRESTED AS OPPONENT FALSELY ATTACKS

Will Ainsworth, a candidate in the Republican runoff for lieutenant governor, on Monday released a letter from the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office that offers conclusive proof he was never arrested in that area as his opponent has falsely claimed in television and radio ads and mass mailings costing thousands of dollars.

“You have NO record of arrest/confinement at Jackson County, Alabama Jail.  Per the Circuit Clerk’s Office, you have ONE Citation/Ticket in the year 2001 for operating an unregistered boat,” the letter from Jackson County Chief Deputy Rocky Harnen reads.  

(Photos of the letter and a maliciously false mailing from the Twinkle Cavanaugh campaign are attached with this release.)

Ainsworth said he appreciates the clarification by the Jackson County sheriff and noted that the false attacks and lies indicate more about his opponent’s character than his own.

“If we can’t trust Twinkle to tell the truth as a candidate, how can Alabamians ever believe a word she says as an elected official,” Ainsworth said.  “As a career politician and a product of the Montgomery swamp, she has based her entire campaign on lies, deceit, and dirty tricks in hopes that some of her false attacks will stick.  I have confidence that Alabama Republican runoff voters are too smart for her dirty tricks.”

Ainsworth said the Jackson County incident involved a simple ticket he was issued for piloting a friend’s unregistered boat while in college in 2001. 

Cavanaugh’s campaign has also alleged that Ainsworth was once arrested for the theft of $15,000.  

In truth, Ainsworth participated in a college prank roughly 20 years ago when he and his classmates ‘kidnapped’ a fiberglass tiger that the Auburn Chamber of Commerce had placed downtown. 

To illustrate the dishonesty and absurdity of his opponent’s attacks, Ainsworth barnstormed the state on Monday with with a life-size fiberglass tiger statue and a motorboat during a pre-runoff “Truth Tellin’ Tour.”

RELEASE: LT. GOVERNOR CANDIDATE WILL AINSWORTH RUNOFF DAY SCHEDULE FOR JULY 17, 2018.

Will Ainsworth, a candidate for lieutenant governor, will cast his ballot and watch election returns for the Alabama Republican runoff on July 17, 2018 at the following times and locations:

7:00 a.m. - Ainsworth and his wife, Kendall, will cast their ballots as soon as polls open at the Guntersville Rec Center, which is located at 1500 Sunset Dr, Guntersville, Alabama 35976.

7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. - Ainsworth will join friends, family, and supporters to watch Republican runoff election returns at Wintzell’s Oyster House, which is located at 14455 US-431, Guntersville, AL 35976

He will be available for interviews and media inquiries at both locations.

RELEASE: FORMER ALABAMA REPUBLICAN PARTY CHAIRMAN BILL ARMISTEAD ENDORSES WILL AINSWORTH FOR LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR

Former Alabama Republican Party Chairman Bill Armistead on Friday announced his endorsement of Will Ainsworth for lieutenant governor in the July 17 Republican runoff election and joined an already impressive list of proven conservative leaders who are supporting the newcomer’s candidacy.

Armistead, who served as ALGOP chairman from 2011 to 2015 and held a seat in the Alabama State Senate from 1994 to 2002, said his nod was prompted by Ainsworth’s outsider status, his strong record of fighting tax increases, and the false and baseless attack campaign that his opponent his launched, among other factors.  The Columbiana Republican’s full statement read:

“I had no intention of getting involved in this race until I saw the untruthful attacks on Will Ainsworth.  I am sick of politicians running dirty campaigns and fabricating attacks against their opponents.  The differences between Will Ainsworth and Twinkle Cavanaugh are as stark as night and day.

While Will Ainsworth has helped defeat more than a billion dollars in tax increases during his one term in the Alabama House, Twinkle was the head cheerleader for the billion dollar tax increase known as Amendment One.

While Will Ainsworth built three successful businesses, created jobs, and signed the front of paychecks, Twinkle spent decades running for political offices, living off the checks of Alabama taxpayers, and working as a lobbyist with the D.C. establishment and Montgomery insiders.

While Will Ainsworth has worked to reform state government, impose term limits, and fundamentally change the way Montgomery operates, Twinkle has devoted her career to helping create the swamp that has bred corruption.

And, perhaps most importantly, Will Ainsworth has offered a solid, well-thought, and issue-based plan for the future of Alabama while Twinkle has based her campaign on false and misleading ads that are built on half-truths, innuendo, and fiction.

It’s rare when voters have the chance to elect a true citizen-servant who represents a fresh, new generation of conservative Republican leaders.  I know I will be marking my ballot for Will Ainsworth in the July 17 runoff election, and I encourage all true Christian conservative Republicans to join me in voting for him, as well.”

RELEASE: AINSWORTH AD CALLS FOR TEACHERS TO BE TRAINED, CERTIFIED, AND VOLUNTARILY ARMED TO STOP SCHOOL SHOOTER SITUATIONS

Republican lieutenant governor candidate Will Ainsworth on Monday began airing a new campaign commercial that promotes his plan to combat school shooter situations by training, certifying, and voluntarily arming teachers.

The ad may be viewed at this link: https://youtu.be/1comO-uS59E

“Our new ad should serve as a call to action because every school shooting that takes place in another state around the country brings us one step closer to an active shooter attacking classrooms here, in Alabama” Ainsworth said.  “Signs reading ‘Gun Free Zone’ are a magnet for those who wish to do harm, so we must provide teachers with the training, knowledge, and ability to defend their students with something more lethal than a ruler and a No. 2 pencil.”

Under the provisions of legislation Ainsworth introduced during the regular session, teachers and administrators who are approved by a local school board, local superintendent, and local law enforcement director may volunteer to undergo mental health evaluation and complete thorough law enforcement training in areas like firearms safety, crisis management, active shooter engagements, and hostile situations.  

Once certified, teachers would be authorized to voluntarily “carry, possess, store, or otherwise control an authorized weapon while on the premises of a public school.”  Much like undercover air marshals who are allowed to be armed on planes, the identities of armed educators will be provided to law enforcement agencies but otherwise kept confidential.  
Its script reads:

Following the deadly school shooting at Santa Fe High School in Texas on Friday, Ainsworth called  called on Gov. Kay Ivey to convene a special session on school safety so his legislation and other needed classroom security measures may be passed and put in place during the upcoming summer break.      

The new campaign ad for Ainsworth, who is a first-term member of the Alabama House representing portions of Marshall, Blount, and DeKalb counties, is part of a massive $1.2 million media buy placed by his campaign and currently airs on network and cable stations across the state as well as in on-line digital and social media formats.

OP-ED: FROM MORNING TO MIDNIGHT, ALABAMIANS ARE TAXED ENOUGH ALREADY

As featured in Alabama Today

From morning to midnight, Alabamians are taxed enough already

By Will Ainsworth

May 10, 2018

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Consider the fact that from the moment you open your eyes in the morning until you close them again at night, you are being taxed.

The electricity that powers the light that you turn on as soon as you awaken and the water you use to shower and brush your teeth are taxed.

The over-the-counter medications that you take in the morning for headaches, allergies, or other conditions are taxed.

The car you drive to work and the gas and fluids that make it run are taxed.

The coffee you drink and the doughnut you eat for breakfast are taxed.

The salary you earn at work, the lunch you eat, and the landline that you use to talk to clients or customers are taxed, taxed, and taxed.

The Internet service that you use to send and receive emails is taxed.

The groceries you purchase on your way home are taxed.

The smartphone that sends your texts to friends and family is taxed, and the apps and games you download to it are taxed, as well.

The cable or satellite television that you watch before going to bed is taxed.

In addition to the levies that I named above, there are dozens of additional taxes that you pay each day.

My point is a simple one. Alabamians are taxed enough already.

That is why I have dedicated my term in the Alabama House toward fighting the tax raisers, combating new levies, and killing tax bills that were introduced.

Working alongside a group of deeply conservative freshman and sophomore House members, I helped block roughly $1 billion in taxes over the past four years.

When Robert Bentley proposed $700 million in new taxes in 2015, I was among the first legislators to oppose his plan and highlight his broken re-election campaign promise of “no new taxes.”

Alabama currently collects enough revenue to meet our needs and provide essential services, but our state government lacks the flexibility to shift money to meet emergencies and unexpected challenges.

In years past, whenever a new tax was approved, its proceeds were earmarked for one specific purpose or another. Some of these earmarks are constitutional, which means the voters, in their wisdom, dedicated the taxes to an agency, initiative, or spotlighted need during referendum elections.

Many of Alabama’s statutory earmarks, however, were put in place many years ago through back room bargains between lobbyists and long-retired politicians who no longer roam the State House halls. Removing these earmarks will allow us to avoid new taxes and set priorities based on need, not on decades-old, money-hoarding schemes that lobbyists locked into our budgets.

At 91 percent, we have the highest percentage of earmarked tax dollars in the nation. The national average is just 24 percent, and the next highest state behind Alabama is Michigan with 63 percent. Rhode Island is the lowest in the United States with only 4 percent of its tax revenues being earmarked.

Attempting to raise taxes without first addressing earmarking is like pouring water into a bucket that has a large hole in the bottom of it. No matter how much water you pour, the bucket is never going to fill up. That is why I sponsored legislation that attempted to plug the hole in the bottom of the bucket first and prevent any more trips to the taxpayers’ well.

My bill would have removed the statutory earmarks that exist in our code, which would allow us the freedom to budget like families gathered at the kitchen table – placing our bills on one side, our income on the other, and setting priorities that meet critical needs while living within our means.

Unfortunately, the same special interests that carved out those earmarks and the career politicians that do their bidding united against my legislation. If elected, I plan to use the bully pulpit of the lieutenant governor’s office to make another push for commonsense, conservative un-earmarking legislation

By right-sizing state government, attacking waste where it exists, and removing the handcuffs that earmarks present, Alabama can resolve its fiscal problems without forcing its citizens to pay more taxes.

State Rep. Will Ainsworth (R - Guntersville) is a Republican candidate for lieutenant governor.  Elected to the Legislature in 2014, Ainsworth currently represents Alabama’s House District 27, which includes portions of Marshall, DeKalb, and Blount counties.