Metro Pulse asks Tenn. Pundits to Review 2009 Session

Photo by Tyler Garrison

Last week, as the Tennessee General Assembly was preparing to adjourn from its marathon 23-week session, news broke that Sherri Goforth, an aide to Senate Republican Caucus Chair Diane Black, had sent out an e-mail featuring a collage of United States presidents ending with Barack Obama, pictured only as a pair of eyes in a black background. The State Democratic party called the e-mail racist and “an embarrassment” to Republicans and the state of Tennessee.

At this point Republicans in the Legislature must be used to being labeled as such. Republicans, for the first time in 140 years, controlled both houses of the state Legislature: 49-49 and one, Speaker Kent Williams, a “Carter County Republican” but a member of the GOP caucus, in the state House and 19-14 in the state Senate. Seizing on its new control, the GOP presented a slew of controversial bills seeking to expand gun-carry rights, limit abortion and non-traditional adoption rights, remove the cap on charter schools, and rid the state of appeals judges selection. In response, “I’m embarrassed to be a Tennessean” or some variation thereof was a sentiment that went viral among liberal bloggers almost immediately after the session began in January.

So Metro Pulse was surprised when, in reaching out to a number of political pundits locally and throughout the state for comment on the end of this legislative session, we received thorough responses from three generally associated with the right wing—University of Tennessee law professor Glenn Reynolds, the man behind Instapundit; Drew Johnson, president of the (fiscally) conservative Nashville think tank the Tennessee Center for Policy Research; and Ken Marrero, who runs the Blue Collar Muse blog and is the founder of the ConserVOLiance, an alliance of right-wing Tennessee bloggers—but only one associated with the left. Luckily, it was Randy Neal from KnoxViews.

What follows is an edited transcript of interviews conducted with Reynolds, Johnson, Marrero, and Neal. The interviews were conducted via phone or e-mail. Since they were conducted independently of one another, each question was answered by each interviewee. Portions have been removed for clarity and brevity. Some interviewees’ answers were removed when similar to one another.

THE REPUBLICAN REVOLUTION OF 2009

The fact that Republicans took control of the state legislature this year seems interesting because it seems such a stark contradiction from recent national-level elections which have shown a distinct leftward shift since the Congressional mid-term elections of 2006. Additionally, John McCain had a decisive 15-point victory over Barack Obama in Tennessee despite the fact that Obama led McCain by an eight-point margin in the national popular vote.

Why do you suppose Tennessee voters went this way this year?

Neal: One, Democrats did not seem to have a good strategy or message in races where they could have been competitive. It’s also possible they could have recruited some stronger candidates, especially for some of the open seats formerly held by Democrats. Republicans, on the other hand, pulled out all the stops in the races they targeted. Republicans got out the vote and it had an effect down the ticket. The fear-mongering tactics likely had some effect with independents, too.

Reynolds: Despite the theme of unity behind the Obama campaign, he was in fact a fairly polarizing figure, and though he drew a majority into his camp, he definitely pushed some people (Hillary fans, Appalachian folks, previously Democratic gun owners, etc.) into the Republican camp. In Tennessee—an already closely balanced state that was trending Republican long-term—that was probably enough to put it over the top.

Of course, the Republican victory in the Legislature was limited somewhat by House Speaker Rep. Kent Williams’ so-called “deal with the devil,” wherein he agreed to vote for himself, rather than presumed House Speaker Jason Mumpower for that position, along with all 49 Democrats in the House. Williams divided committee assignments equally between Republican and Democrats, giving Democrats six chair assignments and Republicans seven. This move set off a sort of scandal echo effect. First, Williams was cited with an ethics complaint by Germantown Republican Rep. Brian Kelsey for allegedly sexually harassing Mt. Juliet Republican Rep. Susan Lynn. Then it came out in the press that Kelsey had offered to cease his criticism of Williams if Williams gave him a committee chairmanship. Later, Williams was kicked out of the state party but allowed to participate in the House Republican Caucus.

How did this affect the tone of the party this year and do you believe the party’s reaction was appropriate?

Johnson:The biggest impact of Kent Williams’ deal to become Speaker was the suffocating effect of his committee assignments on several pieces of legislation that Republicans should have otherwise been able to pass fairly easily in the House. Having someone who appeared to lack all but the most basic understanding of the legislative process as House Speaker also changed the tone of the legislative session. The House moved along at a snail’s pace, there was no rhythm to the session, and Williams’ incompetence seemed a large factor in the late adjournment date.

Neal: That’s an interesting question as to whether it changed the tone of the Republican caucus. They were certainly in total disarray at the beginning, but seemed to pull it together. And in the end, Williams delivered for them. He promised to get SJR127 [the resolution declaring that a woman is not entitled to an abortion under the state constitution] to the floor for a vote, and he did. And all these gun bills finally got out of committee, and most of them passed. But yeah, there was probably lots of other crazy that never saw the light of day, and we should all be thankful for that.

GUNS

Some media outlets have called 2009 “the year of the gun” because of the number of gun bills in the Legislature this year: the restaurant carry bill (passed), guns in state parks (passed), a bill that would exempt any gun with a “Made in Tennessee” stamp from federal gun laws (passed), a bill to prohibit the press from publishing any information about permit holders (nearly passed), guns on college campuses (failed), and on and on.

Why did gun rights expansion seem to be such a big issue this year? What did you think of these bills?

Marrero: I think the prominence of Second Amendment legislation is in large measure a media construct. If you actually look at the amount of time that was spent on those issues on the floor, as Lt. Gov. Ramsey challenged some reporters covering the issue to do, it would be a hugely small percentage. They may have spent five minutes debating a gun bill and five hours debating charter schools. And the headline the next day was all about the gun bill. Now, there were a large amount of gun bills, to be sure, but I think it was just that people understood that it was their first opportunity to get these bills on the floor, to get them out of committee.

I agree with those bills 100 percent. I think if you are a licensed gun holder in Tennessee, there should be very, very few places you’re not allowed to carry them. The arguments against, while I understand them, are completely against reality. With very few exceptions, people are not being murdered by legal carriers.

Neal: Guns rights were a big deal because Republicans were feeling their oats and saw a chance to finally get some of these bills out of committee and up for a vote. And truth be told, most Democrats in the Tennessee Legislature support them, too. Rep. Harry Tindell, a Knoxville Democrat, sponsored the guns in parks bill. Very few politicians in Tennessee want to go on the record as being “anti-Second Amendment.”

It’s mostly just pandering to the NRA and the 200,000 or so handgun-carry permit holders. What you have to wonder about is why such a tiny minority has such political pull in the state legislature. Especially when there are so many law enforcement [officials], business owners, and local governments opposed to these measures. Who lobbies for people without health insurance or who have lost their jobs or whose kids are stuck in failing schools? Why don’t state lawmakers pander to them?

CULTURE WARS

In addition to the gun bills, there were a number of social issues-type bills proposed dealing with the usual suspects—abortion, gay rights, etc.—many of which were criticized by politicians and members of the media as being either overly radical or meaningless culture wars-posturing and vote pandering. On the other hand, some legislators claimed that a lot of these issues were gaining traction this session simply because, under Jimmy Naifeh’s leadership in the House, they were never allowed to get anywhere.

Do you agree/disagree with any of these hypotheses? What did you think of some of the more controversial pieces of social-issues legislation?

Marrero: For most of those issues, though I’m not familiar with a lot of the specific legislation, it seems like they were dealt with properly, through the proper channels. They went to committee, which did not recommend them for a floor vote. The process worked. The process also worked for SJR127. I’m glad to see that finally made it out of committee in the House. I couldn’t understand what the objection was to SJR127. It did not mandate abortion. It did not prevent abortion. It did not do anything other than say that the elected representatives of the people would have the ability to decide what is law in our state.

Reynolds: I agree that they were pandering—though that’s probably because I disagree with them—but it’s certainly true that a lot of this was a response to the removal of Jimmy Naifeh’s heavy hand. The fact is, with Democrats—and, pretty much, the very same Democrats—in charge for decades, there was a lot of bottled-up pressure that got released this session. I imagine things will be a bit quieter in the future.

Was the media’s treatment of these (as well as a number of GOP scandals: Sherri Goforth, Brian Kelsey’s remarks comparing public schools to slavery, et al.) fair? Did all of this get in the way of, say, a more substantive discussion of Tennessee’s budget problems, the economy and unemployment?

Johnson: The media’s treatment of the legislative session in general was often irresponsible, one-sided, and flimsy. Major issues, including the bond proposals, the tax increases hidden in the governor’s “Technical Corrections” bill, the judicial selection debate, the governor’s push to spend hundreds of millions to lure new businesses when existing Tennessee businesses would’ve benefitted from using that money to reduce tax burdens, and the approval of flawed budget that sets Tennessee up for disaster in future years are major issues that impact the lives of Tennessee residents. The media failed to provide Tennesseans with valuable coverage and scrutiny of these and many other stories.

Neal: When the circus is the only show in town, I guess you cover the circus.

IMPORTANT MISCELLANY

We came very close this year to having state appeals judges run in popular elections. This did not happen. Instead, the Legislature reached a compromise: a judicial nomination committee with fewer special interest appointees that meets openly. The governor will choose from nominees.

Did you agree with the compromise?

Marrero: Ideally, I am in favor of elections for judges. That is what the state constitution calls for. But I think this was a smart compromise. Lt. Gov. Ramsey did a tremendous job of pushing this compromise, making incremental change in the right direction.

Neal: I think it was a good compromise given the circumstances, especially when the alternative would be doing away with the Tennessee Plan. In my opinion, judges shouldn’t be elected at all. Going forward, it would be a good idea to remove any ambiguity by way of a constitutional amendment to eliminate judicial elections at all levels. Which is basically the opposite of what Republicans want to do.

Please give your thoughts on the legislature deciding to opt out of extending the State Ethics Commission, choosing instead to merge it with the Tennessee Registry of Election Finance.

Johnson: It won’t matter one bit. And that’s coming from the person who, to my knowledge, has filed more ethics complaints with the Ethics Commission than anyone else.

Neal: Regarding the Ethics Commission, it’s interesting to note that it came about with the help of Democrats in the wake of the Tennessee Waltz scandal that snared mostly Democrats, so it’s curious why Republicans would want to do away with it. Or perhaps not so curious, now that Republicans are nominally in charge. And when you look at it alongside Republican efforts to roll back election reforms, voters and taxpayers should be really curious. At any rate, ethics reforms at the state and local level have proved to be ineffective and virtually meaningless. So I guess it’s all just politics, where ethics don’t seem particularly relevant.

What was your opinion of the passage of charter school expansion?

Johnson: The charter school expansion was the single most important thing the state legislature did this year. The fact that this bill was dead in the water until the Obama Administration read Tennessee’s House Democrats the riot act and forced them to pass the bill is an embarrassment and proves that the House Democrats’ alliance with the Tennessee Education Association is harming the Democrats almost as much as it’s harming students. With its opposition to the bill, the TEA proved once and for all that it cares more about protecting the status quo than it cares about delivering Tennessee’s children a first-rate education system.

Neal: I’m generally opposed to anything that weakens public schools. Some argue that charter schools are the first step, followed by vouchers, to dismantle and outsource public education. On the other hand, something ain’t working so it’s probably worthwhile to give charter schools, which are run by the public school system, a fair chance to prove whether they work. So overall I’m agnostic on charter schools until there is more evidence they work and don’t weaken other public schools.

BUDGET

The budget that finally passed looked a lot like the budget Gov. Phil Bredesen presented to the Legislature, despite a number of proposed cuts from Senate Republicans. Pre-K was moved into the general fund and the budget keeps a number of major bond issues for large projects (though it spread $350 million in bridge and road repair over four years instead of doing them all this year).

Was it a successful budget?

Johnson: The budget showed a real lack of prioritization. There are places the state could’ve cut, and needed to cut, that would’ve resulted in less carnage. Cutting mental-health employees while state-subsidized golf courses are still up and running, for example, strikes me as poor governance.

This entire Senate session seemed like nothing but a political tactic for Lt. Gov. Ramsey’s gubernatorial bid, from the focus on guns (seemingly a dig at Haslam) to SJR 127 (a big wet kiss to the Christian conservative base). As a result, Tennesseans are worse off and Ramsey, who may be the best qualified gubernatorial candidate, came off looking both incompetent and untrustworthy.

Marrero: I know it’s not a huge amount of money, but I think the pre-K thing, in particular, was a bad move. Now that’s $25 million we have to come up with every year whether or not the program seems to be successful.

As for the bonds, it seems like the state isn’t taking the right attitude about its long-term debt. We didn’t meet our revenue goals last year. We’re spending more than we’re making. There are families out there that have the same situation. They’re choosing to cut back, to go without. The state is instead choosing to issue these massive bonds that it’s going to have to pay back whether or not things get better.

Neal: I’m not sure what else could be done given what the state has to work with. As long as we have a “low taxes, less government” mentality, widespread poverty, high rates of rural unemployment, and problems with our education and health-care systems we will struggle to have a vibrant state economy. I think Gov. Bredesen best summed up the proposed Republican budget cuts when he said they were “stupid.” And pundits are having a field day with Lt. Gov. Ramsey’s claims of “victory” after retreating on his party’s proposals and giving Gov. Bredesen sole discretion on future cuts.

Name one legislator that was a stand-out for you this year.

Johnson: Rep. Stacey Campfield (R-Knoxville) and John Mark Windle (D-Livingston). Both men are willing to vote against their parties, putting them at odds with leaders and costing them choice committee assignments and other legislative perks.

They are very different personalities. Windle is a veteran of Iraq who stays away from the press and has always struck me as very quiet and introspective. Campfield, as everyone in Knoxville knows, thrives off of publicity, isn’t afraid to ruffle feathers and uses his blog to expose the seedy underbelly of state politics. But they are alike in their refreshing independence and dedication to their constituents.

Neal: As much as I’d like to name a Democrat, the hero award should probably go to Knoxville Republican Sen. Tim Burchett, who was the lone Republican to vote against rolling back the Voter Confidence Act thus saving it by one vote.

Name one you wished had stayed home.

Johnson: if I have to pick one person who was the worst, let’s go with Sen. Doug Overbey, the unprincipled Maryville Republican who fought tooth and nail to preserve the unconstitutional Tennessee Plan for selecting judges.

Neal: The winner is probably Rep. Tony Shipley (R-Kingsport), who said God would punish us if we allow gay adoption, and that “secular progressives are pushing the country too far,” suggesting that similar “stressors on our culture” happened in 1860 leading to secession and the Civil War.

Marrero: I’ll give you an answer for the best and the worst. The two speakers. Lt. Gov. Ramsey was the stand-out, and House Speaker Kent Williams shouldn’t have been there at all.

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