The Fourth of July marks a traditional stepping off point for political campaigning.
One of the surprise entries in the race for the White House hails from Columbus.
You may remember the first time you saw former radio announcer Ted Williams. He had fallen into homelessness because of drug addiction.
A Columbus Dispatch reporter found him panhandling at a freeway exit on a cold winter day in 2011.
The video went viral and shot Williams to fame.
Almost overnight, he found himself doing talk show appearances and landing voice-over contracts.
But a slide back into drugs and alcohol almost ended it all.
“I’ve been rich before and I've been poor. I've battled addictions and all of those things that the underserved have battled and I've risen to the top again,” Williams said.
Williams said he's running as an independent.
He's short on specifics about his campaign and platform. But he offered this about what he considers to be the biggest problem facing the country right now.
“Ourselves, the American people,” Williams said. “We've lost our love for one another first of all. We've lost respect. We have a lot of terrorism going on right here in our own backyard.”
Williams plans on speaking wherever he can find an audience, taking donations from whoever will give him one.
"If Donald Trump can run, so can I. I think I’d be a little more close to the ground,” he said.
Williiams said he's still doing Kraft Food voice-overs, while doing motivational speaking and promoting his book. He'll also make an appearance on Oprah's "Where Are They Now" series.
Past Ted Williams Stories
SLIDESHOWS: Images Of Ted Williams | Williams Reunion |Williams' Arrest Photos |