TN Rep. Holt Fights Feds, Backs Militia Takeover

I don't know that I ever heard of Tennessee State Rep. Andy Holt prior to his being fined for a.) operating without a permit while b.) illegally dumping nearly a million gallons of pig poop into public waterways from his pig farm operations. Fined $177,000 by the EPA which he refuses to pay a few months later, now Rep. Holt is taking his fight against the federal government into high gear.

On Monday, he tweeted a question to the armed militants who have taken control of a federal bird sanctuary in Oregon "#bundymilitia Where can I send support to your effort?"

And today he sent a letter to President Obama, saying "take your gun control and shove it" and concluding with another hashtag  "#MolonLabe" which is Latin for "come and take it", apparently he feels the President wants to send Federal agents to take away any guns he might have.

It wasn't long after reading about the above events, I recalled I had heard of Rep. Holt before - back when somehow he convinced the state legislature of pass a resolution inviting Right Wing talk show firebrand Sean Hannity to come to Tennessee to live. I found among my bookmarked pages this gem from the Nashville Scene from last February:

"And last month, when throngs of women chanted in the Capitol hallways over women's reproductive rights, the adamant anti-abortion Republican scribbled and carried around a sign that read, "I love women ... and their babies."

Sen. Ramsey's Attack on the Supreme Court

Why is Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey intent on taking out 3 members of the state's Supreme Court? Is it a political power grab?

The reasons appear quite murky and dubious, and the impact a high dollar political election campaign will have on the state's judiciary branch will likely diminish the role of our third branch of government. Slate offers a good perspective (hat tip to KnoxViews for the link):

"Three justices on the Tennessee Supreme Court are facing an election-year attack, not for any particular decision they have authored or even for any unpopular opinion they have espoused. No, in an ugly campaign in Tennessee that appears to be getting ever uglier, Senate Speaker Ron Ramsey, who is also the state’s lieutenant governor, is attempting to oust three state Supreme Court justices in their Aug. 7 retention elections, chiefly for the judicial outrage of having been appointed to the high court by a Democrat.

"When judicial races turn into spending races, what suffers most is not Democrats or Republicans, but judicial independence and integrity. As has been exhaustively chronicled by one nonpartisan study after another, judges don’t want to be dialing for dollars from the attorneys who litigate before them, and litigants don’t want to appear before judges who dial for dollars. All of the data shows that the effect is a decline in confidence in the independence of the judiciary and a spending arms race that spirals ever more out of control.

POSTSCRIPT: Whatever happened to the "laser focus" on jobs or education?

Tennessee Lawmakers OK Drones

"As approved by the Senate, the bill (SB796) says that drones can only be used to search for a fugitive or a missing person, in monitoring a hostage situation or when a judge issues a search warrant authorizing them. Any information gathered otherwise by a drone cannot be used in court and must be destroyed within 24 hours, the bill says.

The House added an amendment saying they can also be used "to protect life and property during crowd monitoring situations." In debate, crowds and traffic during University of Tennessee football games was cited as an example of where drone monitoring might be desirable."

The bill's sponsors project the use of "thousands" of drones over Tennessee.

On The Upcoming War Between Tennessee and Georgia

Since the Senate in Georgia is suing Tennessee to claim water and land, what battles will soon take shape?

One writer lays out the likely events in this must read article:

"An insurgency stands the best chance of success of convincing Georgia of its error. Invading Tennessee is easy enough, militarily. Occupying and governing Tennessee is vastly more difficult.

"As a soldier, I fought in both Iraq and Afghanistan; as a scholar, I performed most of the fieldwork for my doctoral dissertation in southern Lebanon. Nowhere in the world, though, have I ever encountered a more brutal, tribal and violent race of people than the Scots-Irish of East Tennessee. Any Georgian occupation force would inevitably get sucked into our petty politics and family vendettas. We might share a language, but Georgia would struggle to relate to its new foreign subjects, let alone entrench its authority over us."

Public Education Getting Hijacked?

Talking with friends recently I was reminded again that I'm all alone when it comes to following the actions of the state legislators in Nashville. Not surprising when in years past thousands of bills are introduced. Efforts are underway to limit each member to 15 bills seems to hit their goal, with less than 1500 introduced this session.

But awareness of those 1500 is mighty small outside of political junkies such as I. And what I'm seeing is quite perplexing - actions to privatize public education alone should be getting attention statewide but the actions are swaddled in language that defies simple explanations. The rapid changes of recent years are also seldom understood by residents in general despite the massive alterations to how education systems work in the state.

One major change getting pushed is the "voucher" program, which aims to steadily allow education tax funds to get shifted to private schools though these schools ultimately will decide which students to take in.

A stark and plain rebuke of this plan was made recently by Rep. Joe Pitts, which you can see here.

He also speaks plainly in a recent interview:

"If you think about it, we made significant changes to public policy in education in 2010 as a part of our First to the Top agenda proposed by Gov Bredesen – a Democrat, followed by nightmarish changes to the teachers’ environment in 2011 by eliminating collective bargaining, tenure, and removing TEA from their seat at the table, all in the name of “reform.”

"On top of all that we approved virtual schools, unlimited charter schools, put undue pressure on teachers and principals by adopting an assessment tool that is unnecessarily bureaucratic, adopted the Common Core, and are preparing to implement a new assessment called PARRC. Now, we are attacking our teacher preparation programs by looking at putting artificial thresholds on ACT and SAT scores for students who wish to go through their respective College of Education. I’ve said it before; we are giving our education system whiplash with these rapid-fire changes and creating massive confusion. Who can blame more seasoned teachers from deciding to retire instead of continuing in a system that does not appreciate their significant achievement and experience in the classroom and will subject them to the latest reform experiment?

"Perhaps the corporate robber barons of the reform movement need to be asked to leave the room and let the education professionals do their jobs. I have complete faith in our school districts across our state if we can offer our help instead of the cram down policies that have little to no basis in fact or success."

Go Hungry Says Sen. Campfield

Children in need are being threatened in legislation from Knoxville Senator Campfield. He wants to withhold food stamps from families if a child makes bad grades in school. Campfield wants kids in poverty to face more hardships, worse, face the prospect of going hungry, if they are also having problems with their studies.

Classy Campfield. Punishing kids is Ugly Government.

Another Tennessee government over-reach means lost jobs. The state wants to force private businesses to allow more weapons in the workplace. The massive investment and growth of the VW manufacturing complex in Chattanooga is in jeopardy thanks to this proposal.

More legislators, sadly including my new State Rep Tilman Goins, are refusing to allow funds for health care in the state from the Affordable Care Act go to those who might need it. Firstly, we've paid the taxes that create the funds and are obligated for the debt it creates too. The least we should expect in return is to receive the health care programs and expansions which would follow. Politics aside, even of the funds are turned away, other states will receive the funds, so why cut us out? The state's Federal representatives have made and are making calls for the repeal of the Act - but no go. Until or unless such a repeal takes place then don't let TN get less than their share. If the state refuses the money then residents will just have to find health insurance on their own.

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Sen. Niceley Wants Secret Armed Guards In TN Schools

Worst idea I've heard yet (and there is no shortage of bad ideas) in response to the massacre in Newtown, CT is from Tennessee Senator Frank Niceley, who wants to create secretly armed staffers and teachers in public schools. Worse, Governor Haslam seems to think this wackadoodle notion is worthy of consideration.

"Say some madman comes in. The first person he would probably try to take out was the resource officer. But if he doesn’t know which teacher has training, then he wouldn’t know which one had [a gun],” Niceley said by phone. “These guys are obviously cowards anyway and if someone starts shooting back, they’re going to take cover, maybe go ahead and commit suicide like most of them have.”

"Tennessee’s governor told reporters Monday that he’s open to including it on the agenda for a January conference to discuss school safety. Nicely said he expect the governor “to be receptive” to his plan to use tax money to arm and train teachers."

SEE ALSO: Newscoma points out that TN Senator Lamar Alexander says video games are to blame for the massacre in Newtown and former TN legislator Debra Maggert dared to oppose a NRA-supported gun-totin' bill and was quickly ousted from office.

Dangerous Dumbing Down - The Fatal Flaw in Gov. Haslam's Education Policies

Is the process of getting an education merely a system designed get a job and to create a workforce? I wrote about this topic in August, noting Gov. Haslam's push to steer education into job training. As he said at the meeting with business leaders:

"The state that's going to win is going to be the state that figures out how to understand market demand, then define that back to...middle schoolers and high schoolers in terms of what do they need to be doing to prepare, and then funds that appropriately," Haslam told the group. "So what I'm trying to do is figure out how do we tie that loop together?"

This idea isn't a new creation, it dates back to the early 1900s, as noted in an editorial by Michael Roth, president of Wesleyan University, in today's NYTimes. And Roth points out the idea was challenged then by John Dewey, calling out such efforts as an attempt to reduce humans to mere tools of industry:

"Who wants to attend school to learn to be “human capital”? Who aspires for their children to become economic or military resources? Dewey had a different vision. Given the pace of change, it is impossible (he noted in 1897) to know what the world will be like in a couple of decades, so schools first and foremost should teach us habits of learning.

"For Dewey, these habits included awareness of our interdependence; nobody is an expert on everything. He emphasized “plasticity,” an openness to being shaped by experience: “The inclination to learn from life itself and to make the conditions of life such that all will learn in the process of living is the finest product of schooling.” 

"The inclination to learn from life can be taught in a liberal arts curriculum, but also in schools that focus on real-world skills, from engineering to nursing. The key is to develop habits of mind that allow students to keep learning, even as they acquire skills to get things done. This combination will serve students as individuals, family members and citizens — not just as employees and managers."

Gov. Haslam has already said he plans to introduce legislation to tailor education to the needs of business and industry. While I see the value of having higher employment rates, it's a critical error to sacrifice education in order to fulfill an industrial business plan. The discussion and debate about education must include more than their desire for faithful employees - smart, broadly-educated populations can accomplish so much more.

Mark Clayton: Triple Tennessee Facepalm

Our humble state of TN made national political news - once again - for achieving a new level of Dangerously Stupid Acts. The cause this time was the election victory last week for a full-blown toon named Mark Clayton as a Democrat U.S. Senate candidate.

Seems the voters just plunked down their votes for Clayton because his name was first on the ballot - and when you add in the idiocy with which the state Dem party operates, as discussed by Southern Beale on her blog - well, it becomes clear that it was just about inevitable that Dangerously Stupid would win the day.

For many months, I was fairly certain that actress and activist Park Overall was going to win that primary - she campaigned with much energy and speaks so plainly, it seemed a no-brainer that she would make a very fierce competitor for the incumbent millionaire Senator Bob Corker. Never underestimate the power of ignorant voters is the lesson we are left with I suppose.

Add in the fact that it was not until after the election of Clayton that the state Dem party disavowed Clayton. I know of many smart Democrats in Tennessee and read some fine writing from many of them online. But the state party is as deaf as a post apparently. You folks might want to start crafting some standards and hiring some people who are competent.

It's bad enough folks would vote for someone they knew zip about. And it's mighty clear that for the last few years the state Dem party has zero ability to operate with any significance. (And for the record I have never been a member of any political party.) The official state Dem response to Clayton's win simply "urges Democrats to write-in a candidate of their choice in November.”

Like that's a good idea. They need to throw 100% of their effort into backing Park Overall, who would at the very least make mincemeat of Corker during a debate. 

But here's my real concern -  our state has loads of Conservative voters and party leaders, I get that. But I also know there are many, many of us non-Conservative, non-Republicans who live and work in our humble state and we get zero representation in government, from the city level to the state level and the federal level. Like many of us in this minority group, I still write and call my elected representatives to express my views on many topics - and at best, all we get back is a "thank you for writing" and "your views are important" replies. And that's a lie.

These folks will not ever stand up for us, will not ever even consider the merits of the issues we raise, and that dismissal is final and permanent. And electing a full-blown toon like Clayton will just make it worse.

Gov. Haslam's FAIL in Leadership

Gov. Haslam has a strategy to dodge his lack of leadership - "blame the media".

R. Neal at KnoxViews calls him out:

"Gov. Haslam is not happy with all the media attention on what he calls "crazy" legislation, and wishes they would focus on more important and positive things such as education reform.

If he thinks the legislation is "crazy" why does he keep signing it? He can veto it and make them get on board the crazy train twice. And it would send them a message. As it is, he only encourages them to continue embarrassing our state.

The media is just doing its job, part of which is reporting on state government. If the governor doesn't like the coverage, he should be a leader and encourage better legislation. 

In fact, he should probably be happy that his education "reforms," which are actually the first step in dismantling public education, aren't getting more press. People might wise up. Instead, the media is helping Haslam advance his radical GOP agenda by distracting the public from the more serious damage being done.

Fact check: "We're redefining accountability, and you'd be hard-pressed to find 100 lines of print in any paper of the state," Haslam said. "Now, today in the Legislature there's a conversation about saggy pants and what they should do there." Seriously? In just the last month the KNS alone had approx. 15 articles about teacher evaluations, and only five about "saggy pants." 

A google search for articles about Tennessee teacher evaluations yields hundreds of articles across the state and nationally (including the NYT). Not all of them are supportive, so maybe that's his real problem."

Newscoma calls him out too:

"Now we know that this is what we are dealing with during his time in the governor’s mansion and that we will be the laughing stock of national media. Instead of leading with some common sense, we are told “Blame the Media.”

It doesn’t have to be this way.

I honestly don’t think Haslam is a bad man but he also appears not to have a set of keys to the asylum where there is more talk of sex and perceived debauchery than I’ve ever heard. He is the governor. Leaders just lead.

I would love to see our legislators go out and meet the millions of kind Tennesseans who are just trying to do a hard day’s work and get home to their families. This legislative body appears to think the worst of us at all times. That we are all just a bad lot of people.

We aren’t.

Legacies are important and what I’m seeing is that the legacy of this particular session of the General Assembly will be about treating average Tennesseans with a lack of respect.

Haslam, you do have choices. Quit blaming and start leading because that’s what the people in this state deserve. It’s not hard."

I've called on him to muster some even small amount of courage and lead, rather than use the Blamethrower as his Policy of Non-Leadership.

It's all on you, sir. What will you do?

Gov. Haslam and the Goldilocks Complex

I'm calling it the Goldilocks Complex - governors are doing too little or too much but precious few are doing their jobs jes' right.
 
I've been trying to be optimistic in puzzling out the nature of Gov. Haslam's politics, glad that he isn't making headlines like, say, Jan Brewer or Rod Blajojevich or Bob McDonnell or Scott Walker or ... well, the list is like a list of Huey Long wannabes. More and more it seems governors are using their office to advance themselves more than advance their individual states.

Sadly, Gov. Haslam seems to be missing-in-action on so many critical issues - like knowing what bills are in the Tennessee legislature as I mentioned yesterday.

Besty Phillips at the Nashville Scene sums it up pretty well:

"It's the end of March. The state legislature is planning to wrap up in April. And the governor hasn't seen or doesn't know how he feels about the bills winding their way through the process? The bills he either has to sign into law or veto?

Either Haslam is incompetent, or someone on his staff is. Say what you want about our legislature, every single bill in all its iterations is available to read and track for free on the General Assembly website. There is simply no excuse for Haslam not to be up to date on what legislation is in the pipeline. "I don't know" and "I haven't seen the bill" at this late stage in the game is just a flabbergasting thing for Tennessee's governor to admit. Why isn't he following these bills?

The man whose set himself the task of completely overhauling how the state works seems not to know how it works to begin with. I find that frightening".

Gov. Haslam Confused About How Laws Are Made

Seems Gov. Bill Haslam does not know how government works.

I sent him a letter encouraging him to not sign the anti-science bill which is on his desk right now. He sent back an email today saying:

"After careful review of your letter, I have determined that the Tennessee Department of Education is the appropriate agency to address this type of inquiry, and therefore have forwarded your letter to Commissioner Kevin Huffman's office for consideration."

No, see, the new law before you, right now, is your responsibility since the legislature stripped away the ideas of debating policy from the state's Dept. of Education.

Now if this response means that Gov. Haslam will not sign Senate Bill 0893 and instead veto it and say "this is a decision best left to the Dept. of Education" then I would be stunned. And will write an apology.

Gov. Haslam does seem to comprehend and understand political games though - check out how he handles the anti-science bill as reported by Tom Humphrey:

"Haslam was asked his views on the bill last week after announcing plans to use federal funds to build three new Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) schools in the state.

"I don't know that I have any great insight there for you on that one," Haslam said, adding that he had heard of the bill but knew little about what was involved. The governor said he plans to ask state Board of Education officials about it.

"I think it is a fair question as to what the General Assembly's role is, I think that's why we have a State Board of Education," he said. "I think the General Assembly, though, does represent people and their votes and thoughts matter there."

Way to say nothing at all, Gov. Haslam.

Rest assured, you will be saying plenty - and none of it good - if you sign the bill and make it a new law. 

UPDATE: The Goldilocks Complex


See Also:

" ... these attempts to rewrite our curriculum by some legislators are not about helping our children become independent, rational thinkers capable of understanding and evaluating alternative theories of life; witting or not, these legislators are stooges for an agenda that would shackle our children to a life of ignorance."

Legislation for Hillbillies

Occupy Nashville Not Really Protesting, Say State Leaders

The state legislature is swiftly acting to pass a new law aimed at removing, fining and jailing the Occupy Nashville protesters. Legislators actually have to see this group, hear complaints about them being there, and as Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey says - these folks aren't really protesting, so there are no "free speech" concerns to worry with. 

"Average protesters, usually on some defined day centered around a specific issue, march or congregate en mass to demand redress of a specific grievance. Normal protests can get loud and they can get rowdy. Frequently, they can last long into the night. On rare occasions, they can last a few days.

Occupy Nashville is quite a different animal. This protest is not really a protest at all. It is, as the name implies, an occupation. I value our constitutional rights -- the freedom of speech most of all. Without the freedom to directly confront our leaders, our constitution isn't worth the parchment on which it's printed.

However, to continue to ignore the reality of Occupy Nashville would be to shirk my duties as a public servant. I have to tell the truth and the truth is this: your War Memorial Plaza - a place dedicated to Tennesseans who paid the ultimate price in service to their nation and fellow citizens - is no longer a place for visitors. It is unsightly, it is unclean and, depending on the time of day, it is downright dangerous."

There are anecdotal stories about the protesters acting badly - and don't we have laws already which could be brought to bear to arrest folks behaving badly? This new proposed law would make a crime of long-term protests.

Occupy Nashville does have does have specific grievances.

And they do actively express their views in ways which must truly annoy the legislature - removing, arresting and fining those who take part seems more to be for the comfort level of elected officials than anything else

Senator Campfield's Follies Heading to Court

If the voters in Knoxville are paying attention, maybe the upcoming libel trial against state senator Stacey Campfield will be Reason 10,354 to replace him. Or is he indeed the Loose Cannon Which Serves A Purpose?

"It’s not too late to correct your mistake, but you better hurry. January was bad, but it’s going to get way worse when Campfield has to trek up to Campbell County to defend himself in a $750,000 libel suit filed by former state House candidate Roger Byrge. Byrge is a Democrat who lost a 2008 race by 391 votes to Union County Republican Chad Faulker, a Knox County deputy sheriff.

 

At issue is this Campfield blog post from September 2008: “Word is a ... mail piece has gone out exposing Byrges (sic) multiple drug arrests. Including arrests for possession and drug dealing. (I hear the mug shots are gold.)”

Unfortunately for Campfield, “word” was false, and falsely accusing someone of a crime is libel, so he’s been sued. Byrge’s lawyer, David Dunaway, accuses the senator of using his state-owned computer to make a false allegation with the intention of influencing an election.

And it wasn’t just any election. It was the election that changed the balance of power in the Tennessee House of Representatives from Democratic to Republican – by one skinny vote."

More from Betty Bean on Stacey Campfield

Local Referendum Vote May Be Overturned By State Legislature

Morristown's city council has been stalled since last summer trying to appoint a new person the the board of the Morristown Utility Commission. The council deadlocked when the mayor tried to appoint someone to replace a MUC member, whose term was up and who has been on the board for over 3 decades. In desperation, the fractured council has now pushed a measure forward which would have two legislators, Sen. Steve Southerland and Rep. Don Miller, create a "private act" to change the nominating process to the board - a process set in place when local voters made the change by a referendum vote in 2001. 

Sen. Southerland has said this will be resolved by the end of February, no problem.

That has set off a firestorm of debate, with many seeing the act as an "end-run around voters" and one which will be achieved with very little attention by media or awareness of city voters. So, members of the local citizens group, Citizens for Accountability, have sent a letter to Morristown voters and to the legislature's local government committee which says any change should go before voters via a referendum.

Here's the letter:

"Five City Councilmembers---Paul LeBel, Bob Garrett, Kay Senter, Chris Bivens, and Claude Jinks---have voted to cancel out the votes of the 3,202 people (72%) who voted “FOR” changes to the Morristown Utilities Commission in a 2001 REFERENDUM.  MUC already controls three major funds of the City: the Power System, the Water System, and the Broadband/ FiberNet System. These five want to change the 2001 voter-approved process for appointing members to the MUC Board, and they want to give themselves authority to transfer the City sewer system to MUC ---all without a REFERENDUM.

In 2001, MUC supported and 72% of voters approved changes to MUC, including setting up a new appointment process for MUC Commissioners. The voter-approved appointment process provided that MUC would screen all candidates for the MUC Board, and then MUC would recommend three qualified people to the Mayor. The Mayor would select and present one of the MUC-provided names to council for approval or disapproval.

Over the next ten years, no council-member tried to change the selection process that the PEOPLE had overwhelmingly (72% approval) voted “FOR” in the 2001 REFERENDUM.  

                        

 Now five councilmembers have decided that the 2001 voter-approved MUC selection process is not working and they want to change the appointment process-- without sending the proposed change back to the people in a  REFERENDUM.   

 The five councilmembers think that one person should serve on MUC even beyond the 34 years that he has already served. And that person, George McGuffin, adamantly refuses to pull his name in order to clear the way for a new person to be appointed to MUC. 

Instead of compromising and approving at least one of the ELEVEN different people nominated so far by the Mayor from the MUC list, these councilmembers have rejected all ELEVEN over the past seven months.  Since they haven’t gotten their way, these five have voted to change the law and replace the current voter-approved law for appointing MUC Board members with a process that will allow the five to have total control. Plus, they are giving themselves authority to give the City sewer to MUC without a REFERENDUM.

Mayor Danny Thomas and Council-member Gene Brooks support putting the changes to a vote of the people in a REFERENDUM, but the other five refuse to allow the people to vote.

Sen. Steve Southerland and Rep. Don Miller are sponsoring the MUC appointment and sewer changes in the state legislature. Sen. Southerland and Rep. Miller have refused to amend the bill to let the people vote on these changes in a REFERENDUM.

 When a major change to a Private Act is proposed—such as setting up a future sewer transfer—it should go before the people in a REFERENDUM.

When the people have already voted on something in a REFERENDUM—such as the MUC appointment process---any proposed change should go back to the people in a REFERENDUM.

                       

Remember these elected officials who put issues on the ballot and ask you to get out and vote (REFERENDUM-2001) and who then turn around, ignore you, and decide that they will overturn your vote in 2012.

----Citizens for Accountability

      www.morristownhamblencfa.com

With local utility revenues expected to hit the $100 million mark in 2012, whopping utility rate price increases ahead in 2012 for city residents due to critical repairs needed in the sewer system, decisions about who is charge of the city sewer system -- well, there's just heaps and heaps of questions about what's really going on and few answers.

 

A Gift of Purity from Knoxville's Li'l Christmas Elf

Knoxville's Li'l Christmas Elf, Senator Stacey Campy, has A Very Special Christmas Wish for the Poor and the Sick.

"Sen. Stacey Campfield, R-Knoxville, said he plans to push three bills calling for drug testing in the 2012 legislative session - one dealing with persons on welfare, one for those drawing unemployment compensation and one for those receiving workers' compensation benefits.

As Southern Beale says:

"I find it very strange that Republicans don’t believe government can do anything right … except decide who can marry, who can raise children, what you can watch on TV, what books you can read, which religion is the right one, when life begins, how much compensation is enough if you are injured by corporate negligence, and if your pee is pure enough to collect your unemployment which, by the way, is a benefit you paid for. Government is great at all of that stuff.

---

"So who stands to gain in Tennessee? Look no further than Tennessee Republican Congress Critter Diane Black, whose husband is CEO of Aegis Sciences, a company which does drug testing. Former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist is on Aegis’ board of directors — presumably advising the company on how to screen for drugs via videotape. /snark"

Too bad Elf Campy and Santa Ramsey, I mean, Senator Ramsey, did not check the pee of government employee and judge Richard Baumgartner, who was gacked out of his brain on drugs while running Knoxville's drug court that even the guilty verdicts in the Christian-Newsom murder case he handled were overturned. That would have saved the state tons of money, prevented all the re-trials headed Knoxville way, and spared the pain and suffering of many, many people. And remember, Baumgartner will still get his full pension and have his record of drug offenses wiped clean in just 2 years time.

Merry Christmas from Elf Campy!!

The Politicians Who Hate Themselves

Once again, the oddest of political animals - politicians who campaign by calling the government a monstrous creation - returns, as Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey hosts what he calls a "red tape tour". Claims are made that government regulations are so huge and vile, the regulations are what hurts our economy most.

Wrong. Even the National Federation of Independent Business, which sponsor's Ramsey's campaign tour, does not believe regulations are harming economic growth.

"... surveys from the National Federation of Independent Business, and Brookings Institution scholarship ... all said the same thing: government regulations are not responsible for holding back the economy.

The New York Times, the AP, the Economic Policy Institute, the Wall Street Journal, and McClatchy newspapers all did their own research and reporting on this in recent weeks, and all came to the exact same conclusion. At this point, it’s safe to say anyone insisting that regulations are the driving factor behind the weak economy is a fool or a hack."

Will Gov. Haslam Be Haunted by Halloween Arrests?

A Tennessee judge says there was no cause to arrest protesters at the Occupy Nashville protests, releasing all those that Gov. Bill Haslam ordered arrested. This Halloween weekend's pointless repression of free speech should haunt the governor.

Are we just supposed to be grateful that - so far - no one has been injured in Nashville? Are we supposed to be grateful the right to free speech is only being discarded for just a few people? 

A roundup of the events from Mike Silence at the KNS.

Excerpts:

R. Neal: After declaring a curfew at Legislative Plaza last night, Gov. Haslam has sent THP state troopers with a SWAT team to clear the area. An Occupy Nashville livestream report from the scene says approx. 100 officers began arresting a small group of peaceful demonstrators at around 4AM (3AM Nashville time). 

Betsy Phillips: Setting time limits and monetary requirements on when people are allowed to gather on taxpayer-funded state property to exercise their first amendment right to peaceably assemble and petition the government for a redress of grievances is unconstitutional.

Also from Betsy:
But please, notice that the Governor is afraid of fifty people. Other Occupies have hundreds, sometimes thousands, of people. And our governor has to sneak up on fifty people in the dead of night.
But what’s worse than sneaking up on fifty people in the middle of the night is stripping everyone in the state of their constitutional right to peaceably assemble.
That hurts everyone.

Rating Obama: Don't Get Fooled

Only a Democrat would face re-election doubts after successfully tracking down and killing Osama bin Laden.

President Obama, it seems, was viewed by some as possessing a magic wand to correct all the massive mistakes from the previous 10 years of Republican-led governing. It is good to see the public at large knows where the trouble lies - in Congress, which gets a 12% approval rating. Still, some rail against Obama, who rates at least 43% approval. Guess which story gets more attention?

Some say he's done little to nothing to change Washington or its policies. Here's a brief look at some accomplishments.

* American job creation is better now than when Bush left office.

* American economic growth is better now than when Bush left office.

* Al Qaeda is dramatically weaker now than when Bush left office.

* The American automotive industry is vastly stronger now than when Bush left office.

* The struggle for equality of the LGBT community is vastly better now than when Bush left office.

* The U.S. health care system is better and more accessible than when Bush left office.

* The federal budget deficit is better now than when Bush left office.

* The major Wall Street indexes and corporate profits are better now than when Bush left office.

* International respect for the United States is better now than when Bush left office.

In truth, I want more things changed - close that Guantanamo prison, end the wars, enhance the much-needed restructuring overseas and at home for roads and schools and business. So much needs repairing in the US - from roads to the economy to basic civil liberties - that indeed just negativity is swaying voters.

Negativity gorges itself in hard times.

Mostly, it seems closed minds, petty revenge tactics and election dreams from Republicans and Tea Party folk, all continue to hold America in a static and losing position.

And as always, Americans most often forget that the decisions made at the state and local level are the ones which determine much of the way we run our education and economic systems. Blaming all ills on one single elected official is juvenile, whether the blame is aimed at a Democrat or Republican. Our job forever remains holding the highest standards of performance and accountability for all our elected officials.

Lately, state leaders in Tennessee and across the country have followed to designs of a single lobbying group, which has the seemingly innocent name of ALEC, to change how Americans vote and where voting districts are. Those changes rise far more from the hopes of getting elected and not serving the citizens:

More on the changes on how you vote here.

On Politicians Who Create Economic Turmoil

Tom Humphrey's Sunday column in the KNS on how much Tennessee (and every other state) depends on Federal funding, despite political claims that Federal funding is a critical problem weighing down the local, state and national economies, is a great read. And the article certainly is generating reader reactions that run from A to Z on the role of government, deficits, and debates which are dominant on the political scene.

"About 40 percent of this year's total $30 billion state budget is federal money — and that's down from the last year, when the stimulus money was flowing in. If you count tax dollars only — not $5 billion in license fees, college student tuition and the like that still counts as state money in the overview — the federal total is much closer to half, about $12 billion federal versus the state's $13 billion."

As I've mentioned before, my congressman, Rep. Phil Roe derides President Obama's spending plans while still celebrating them when they arrive.

It's clear the economic debate has multiple layers - what role should government play, what relationships between business and government work and which do not, and as always, how does the public engage with their representatives to establish the type of governance we want.

So much of the debate is stalled totally by politicians like Rep. Roe, who vowed to seek the failure of an Obama presidency at all costs, a vow made with no consideration for the effects it might have. It's a campaign strategy and not an economic policy - and it's deeply destructive.

As Humphrey writes:

"What we have here is a mixed message. Our politicians, particularly the Republicans now running the state show, roundly denounce federal deficit spending while happily handing out federal checks to hometown folks.

As a political service, this practice seems to have pretty high ratings right now. But, it is submitted, the outlook for the longer term is negative."

It is more than a mixed message - it's patently deceptive.