KNOXVILLE, Tenn.— Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Haslam has made a campaign stop at the Knoxville headquarters of the family-owned Pilot Corp. chain of truck stops.
Haslam, who was president of Pilot before being elected Knoxville mayor in 2003, told assembled employees on Wednesday morning that he was "incredibly proud of this company and what it stands for," despite the criticism leveled by his primary opponents, U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp of Chattanooga and state Senate Speaker Ron Ramsey of Blountville.
In Haslam's words: "Our opponents sometimes have some not-so-nice things to say, and I apologize for that to you guys."
Wamp has been airing a TV ad targeting Haslam as a "billionaire oil man," and his ties to Pilot have been criticized over price gouging practices by some truck stops in 2008.
In a message posted on Twitter on Wednesday, Wamp said: "Absurd how much Pilot Oil money Haslam is spending to blatantly mislead voters about my record."
Haslam maintains an unspecified stake in the company, but he has refused to divulge how much he earns from his part ownership.
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