The One Who Brung Ya
Posted on November 6, 2008 at 8:41 amGail Kerr on the bubbling battle betwix state Rep. Jason Mumpower and Rep. Beth Harwell for Republican leader in the state House:
Minority Leader Jason Mumpower, from Bristol, leans toward the far right on the conservative meter. He can be dogmatic and in-your-face. Former state GOP Chairwoman BethHarwell, a veteran Nashville lawmaker who was co-chair of John McCain’s campaign in Tennessee, is a moderate with deep relationships with Davidson County Democratic lawmakers.
Tennessee may be a red state, but it is also a moderate state. There is already talk that the GOP’s marquee players will step in and push for Harwell, out of concern that Mumpower is just too out there. She also is considering a run for governor, and being speaker would be an excellent trampoline.
But Mumpower is the highest-ranking Republican in the House, and it will be hard for them to turn him down. The state’s Grand Old Party looks a lot like the dog that finally caught the car it was chasing. It was a lot of fun getting there. But now what will they do with it?
Is this a fair representation of Leader Jason Mumpower? Remember, in 2007, it was Mumpower who unseated the ideological stalwart Rep. Bill Dunn for leadership in the caucus.
It was the conservatives who lined up behind Dunn, not Mumpower, in that fight. Few questioned that Mumpower was fundamentally conservative but was clear who the firebrand candidate was.
Mumpower was chosen because it was determined by a majority of members that a more energetic leader was needed to lead the Republicans to a majority, one who was capable of both leading the ideologically faithful and working with the other side.
By all accounts, Mumpower has achieved this balance during his short time as leader. Now that the majority has been achieved Republicans are going to cast aside the man who brought them to a majority?
Leading a majority is different that leading a minority, to be sure. A different skill set is required to govern than is needed to stand up in exile as the loyal opposition. But what skills does Harwell possess that Mumpower lacks? Do they not share the crucial ability to balance pragmatism and principle?
Is one really that more conservative than the other? Is one more able to work with Democrats than the other?
Mumpower it would seem has done a more than adequate job leading the Repbulicans in the House. His election over Dunn, just two years ago, was made with the eventual achievement of the majority in mind.
What has changed? Is Harwell better qualified to lead or is she merely an ambitious Republican with designs on bigger things who sees the Speaker’s chair as a chance be a true statewide leader without facing the statewide electorate?
