Al Gore Leaves The Light On For Ya
Posted on March 29, 2009 at 12:00 pm
Even during Earth Hour. President of the Tennessee Center For Policy Research Drew Johnson takes a Saturday drive by Al Gore’s during the time most environmentalists went dark:
I pulled up to Al’s house, located in the posh Belle Meade section of Nashville, at 8:48pm – right in the middle of Earth Hour. I found that the main spotlights that usually illuminate his 9,000 square foot mansion were dark, but several of the lights inside the house were on.
In fact, most of the windows were lit by the familiar blue-ish hue indicating that floor lamps and ceiling fixtures were off, but TV screens and computer monitors were hard at work. (In other words, his house looked the way most houses look about 1:45am when their inhabitants are distractedly watching “Cheaters” or “Chelsea Lately” reruns.)
The kicker, though, were the dozen or so floodlights grandly highlighting several trees and illuminating the driveway entrance of Gore’s mansion.
I [kid] you not, my friends, the savior of the environment couldn’t be bothered to turn off the gaudy lights that show off his goofy trees.
This, of course, would be the same Drew Johnson who exposed Gore’s excessive energy use at his home back in 2007.
UPDATE: Gore responds to accusations.
UPDATE II: Drew Johnson stands by his story.
(Fist Tap: Matthew Hurtt)
Well, And The Mom And Pop Liquor Stores, Let’s Not Forget Them
Posted on March 2, 2009 at 12:57 pmIlissa Gold asserts that keeping wine out of grocery stores benefits the few at the expense of inconveniencing the many:
But please don’t confuse the issue with teen drinking. That’s just a way to deflect the true intent of those who oppose wine in grocery stores, which is to keep Tennessee stuck with an antiquated system that inconveniences consumers for the benefit of a few wholesalers.
House Ethics Committee To Take Up Kelsey Complaint Wednesday
Posted on January 26, 2009 at 8:25 amChairman Ulysses Jones announced the intent of the committee to take up Rep. Brian Kelsey’s ethics complaint against new house speaker Kent Williams in a memorandum to Ethics committee members dated Friday. The meeting will take place Wednesday, January 28, 2009, at 10:00 a.m. in 16LP.
The complaint will force the committee to directly confront the now nearly two year-old allegation of sexual harassment against then Rep. Kent Williams made by Rep. Susan Lynn.
At issue will be not only the sexual harassment allegation but Williams’ denial that the sexual harassment took place. In the complaint, Kelsey argues that this action was just as bad as the original alleged incident.
“Speaker Williams’s actions of sexual harassment were bad enough to begin with. Denying that the events ever occurred, in effect calling Rep. Lynn a liar, is like spitting in the face of his victim,” stated Kelsey in a press release.
Speaker Williams since the issue made news last week has issued a general denial that he has ever sexually harassed anyone and has cited house rules demanding confidentiality in matters of sexual harassment in refusing to address the specific allegations made by Lynn.
Lynn to date has not filed a formal complaint against Williams in connection to the incident. Lynn has said that her decision to go to her leadership to handle the issue instead of swearing out a complaint was an attempt to avoid the very publicity the incident now enjoys.
The ethics committee will have wide discretion on how to act on the matter. While not specifically binding on the 106th General Assembly, the ethics code passed during the 104th General Assembly, would likely be looked upon as precedent.
Under those rules, if the committee agrees with Kelsey that there has been a violation of the Ethics Code or a statute governing the conduct of a member, the committee can set a hearing where both sides can make arguments and call witnesses.
The code also offers the committee the option of recommending disciplinary action to the full house or turning over its findings to the District Attorney.
RNC Chairman Candidate Gets Involved In The Kent Williams Situation
Posted on January 16, 2009 at 11:07 amA political action committee led by former Maryland Lt. Governor and RNC chairman candidate Michael Steele wants Speaker Kent Williams proverbial head on a plate for accepting the Democratic nomination for Tennessee house speaker — and the committee is putting its money where its mouth is. A press release from the TNGOP:
The installation by Democrats of Kent Williams as Speaker of the Tennessee House of Representatives this week despite losing the majority in the 2008 elections has galvanized Republicans not only across Tennessee but also across the country into action.
Today, GOPAC, the national Republican organization dedicated exclusively to electing Republicans to state and local offices, presented a financial contribution to the Tennessee Republican Party as a down payment on the effort to replace Mr. Williams with a representative who represents the people of Carter County honestly and who will not use deception and lies in order to advance his own personal political ambitions.
“GOPAC was honored to assist with the election of a Republican majority in the Tennessee House of Representative and looked forward to working with the Republican Caucus nominee for Speaker of the House,” said GOPAC Chairman Michael Steele. “The actions of Mr.. Williams in conspiring with Democrats to make him the Speaker and to elect a Democrat as Speaker Pro Tempore means our work continues for a governing Republican majority in the Tennessee House.
“To kick-off this effort, GOPAC is pleased to be the first contributor to the Tennessee Republican Party’s new project to elect a larger Republican majority and, in turn, the Republican Caucus nominee for Speaker of the House,” Steele said. “We urge citizens across the Volunteer State who want a conservative, common sense majority governing the State House to join us in contributing to the Tennessee Republican Party’s new project.”
“Kent Williams’ betrayal of his party through massive deception and conspiring with the leaders of the opposition, Jimmy Naifeh and Gary Odom, has energized and galvanized countless Tennesseans and Republicans across the nation who have pledged their commitment to electing a principled Republican to the Speaker’s post,” said Bill Hobbs, Communications Director for the Tennessee Republican Party. “The Tennessee Republican Party expresses its appreciation to GOPAC today for the first contribution from a national organization to that effort.
“GOPAC knows the way to defeat the corrupt politics that the Williams-Naifeh-Odom club epitomizes in Tennessee is to defeat Democrats who made this secret deal with Williams, and replace them with Republicans who deal honestly with each other and with the people of our great state,” Hobbs said.
In 2008, thanks to the support of the countless Tennesseans, Republicans won 14 non-incumbent legislative races en route to winning the first Republican majority in the legislature for the first time since the Civil War.
Rather than honor the will of the people in their historic decision to elect him and 49 other Republican candidates to the majority, Williams allowed himself to be installed by Democrats as Speaker of the Tennessee House of Representatives – despite making numerous promises and public statements of his intention to vote for the Republican Caucus nominee.
Tennesseans have been vocal and active in demonstrating their overwhelming disgust with Rep. Williams’ betrayal.
“It is an honor to stand with great folks and organizations committed to more than political position and power,” commented Tennessee Republican Party Chairman Robin Smith. “We have already begun to recruit and support candidates committed first to principles that serve this great state. We express sincerest thanks to GOPAC and others who are investing in our efforts.”
Fred To The Air: The Official Release
Posted on December 22, 2008 at 9:40 amWestwood One confirms what the New York Times reported last night:
NEW YORK, Dec. 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Westwood One is pleased to announce the debut of The Fred Thompson Show on March 2, 2009. The show will replace The Radio Factor with Bill O’Reilly when the program ends its successful six-year run on February 27, 2009. Former U.S. senator and 2008 presidential candidate, Fred Thompson will share his views on politics, topical issues, pop culture and water cooler stories, as well as welcome guest interviews and take listener calls. The Fred Thompson Show will be a two-hour daily talk show and will air live Noon-2pm, Monday - Friday from the Westwood One studios in Washington DC.
“There is no prerequisite for a great talk show host, but if I were going to make one up, senator, presidential candidate, federal prosecutor, radio commentator, film and TV star would be a pretty good start,” said Bart Tessler, EVP Westwood One News & Talk Programming.
“When folks listen to a radio show, they make an appointment with it. It is the ideal way for me to continue my dialog with America about the issues we all face each day,” said Thompson.
“Senator Thompson is a perfect fit for radio,” said Gary Schonfeld, President of Westwood One Networks. “His unique set of qualifications will make him a huge hit with both listeners and advertisers.”
Nashville Blagojevich Lawyers Up
Posted on December 19, 2008 at 11:37 amThe Illinois Governor’s brother may not be untouched by his brother’s problems with the law:
The governor’s brother became chairman of the Friends of Blagojevich campaign fund in August, state records show. Since that time, he had been pressing people who had raised money for Blagojevich to raise more campaign cash before the end of the year, a source familiar with the governor’s fund-raising operation said. “Rob was the point guy hounding people to raise money,” the source said.
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More Ballots, More Saltsman
Posted on December 18, 2008 at 6:43 amAlexander Burns, in breaking down the race for RNC chairman, suggests the road to victory for Tennessee’s Chip Saltsman may be the one paved with the most blood:
A former chairman of the Tennessee Republican Party and campaign manager to Mike Huckabee, Saltsman has more to gain than any other candidate from a protracted, multi-ballot knife fight for the chairmanship. The 40-year-old has been running a vigorous race against more established candidates, though he’s had to distance himself from the Huckabee campaign in a race where no one wants to support a stalking horse for 2012.
Saltsman knows he’s an underdog, but as a student of GOP politics he also knows that once an RNC race gets past the first or second ballot, all bets are off. If Saltsman can become a second- or third-choice candidate for a significant number of RNC members, and survive the first ballot, he could try and follow the Jim Nicholson path to victory. Yet even if he is unsuccessful, he’s established himself as a name to be taken very seriously in years to come.
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The End Of West Tennessee Political Dominance
Posted on December 10, 2008 at 5:31 pmFrank Cagle talks it out:
The Democrats ignored the pleas of their governor and (until January) their speaker, and elected Odom over Fitzhugh. Given the growing conservative Republicanism of rural West Tennessee, it probably marked the end of West Tennessee dominance of state government. Any Democratic coalition in a Restoration, of course, will need the Black Caucus and they may again be back in power. But it seems that the sun has set on the West—unless they produce another political genius like McWherter.
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