Sometimes, politicians go out of their way to make a statement. Recently, Rep. Phil Roe (TN), a GOP doctor from Tennessee, went rafting locally at Pigeon River -- in part to survey the water quality. A local news article covers the environmental concerns residents have here but read an excerpt of the piece about Roe below:
Congressman Phil Roe rafted down that stretch of river Thursday afternoon. The representative for Tennessee's 1st Congressional District believes the river has dramatically improved over the last 20 years as nearby residents have fought for cleaner water. But, he also believes more progress is needed.
He wanted to look at the water quality himself.
"Just to see what it looks like," Rep. Roe explained. "We're going to go where the power is generated. Big Creek is a creek that comes out of the mountain and you get to really view a pristine mountain stream and see how this river should look."