Why The English Only Amendment Failed According To Eric Crafton
Posted on February 10, 2009 at 10:30 amThe councilman’s self-described “inside the beltway”(!?) opinion:
[T]he opposition’s apparent ignoring of campaign finance law by advocating for the defeat of both charter amendments, while organized as a single-issue committee instead of as a political-action committee, as required by law, was the final nail in the coffin. Why was this harmful? As a single-issue committee, they could accept unlimited corporate campaign contributions, which they did. As a PAC, which is the required entity to advocate for two or more issues, they couldn’t have accepted any money from corporations. It appears more than half of the $300,000 raised by the opponents of the English amendment came from corporations. Oops! That means they would have had only around $125,000 to spend on the election vs. our $51,000. I guess those pesky PAC rules would have been inconvenient, wouldn’t they? In my opinion, taken together, these three strategies ensured the official English amendment’s failure.
UPDATE: Intrepid Metro City Paper reporter Nate Rau informs me that The opposition did go to the trouble of filing two separate single issue committees to oppose each charter amendment on the ballot..
See reports for the committee opposing the first charter amendment here and the second here.
Now, clearly, one committee was used more prominently than the other but there were no flagrant campaign shenanigans at play here such as, for instance, deliberately failing to file financial disclosures at all until after the election.
The Era Of Crafton Is Over?
Posted on February 7, 2009 at 1:20 pmThat’s what the political experts say. But buried in between the comments of the political elite is this little nugget:
In the end, 32,149 people voted for the Metro Charter amendment that Crafton proposed. That vote total would have been enough to propel him into a runoff if he had sought one of the five at-large council seats 18 months ago.
SEE ALSO: Enclave
Just Short Of Two Grand
Posted on January 27, 2009 at 8:45 amThat was all the money that Nashville English First raised that wasn’t from a national activist group:
Nashville English First raised $84,467.76 for its campaign, according to a disclosure being released today.
Of that, ProEnglish of Arlington, Va., contributed $82,500, Davidson County Election Administrator Ray Barrett told The Tennessean this morning after Metro Law Director Sue Cain authorized him to release the disclosure.
SEE ALSO:
Enclave demands and explanation.
Pajamas Media
Belcher
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New York Times Issues Correction On Crafton Claim
Posted on January 18, 2009 at 3:26 pmThe Nashville Scene tells us that the Gray Lady has redacted the assertion made by Councilman Eric Crafton in its pages that California legislators have relied on translators to conduct business.
Of course, we already knew that the assertion was false because Braisted told us almost a week ago.
Nashville English First May Dodge Financial Disclosure Filing Deadline
Posted on January 15, 2009 at 8:50 amNate Rau reports:
In fact, according to Davidson County Election Commission employees, a representative from Nashville English First inquired about what the penalty would be if the committee missed the filing deadline.
Although Bellevue Councilman Eric Crafton and other leaders of Nashville English First have been extremely accessible to local media throughout the English Only process, multiple phone calls were left unreturned on the issue of meeting today’s disclosure deadline. Crafton told The City Paper he was merely the spokesman for Nashville English First and not responsible for issues like disclosing campaign contributions and expenditures.
Jon Crisp, former chairman of the Davidson County Republican Party and fellow leader of the English Only movement, failed to return multiple phone calls for this story.
The group filed a committee formation document with the Election Commission last year. The filing listed Lewis Lampley as the group’s treasurer. When reached by The City Paper Wednesday, Lampley said he had no comment on the “rumor” that Nashville English First intended not to file.
Last year, Crafton acknowledged Nashville English First had been supported by the advocacy group Pro English. The group was founded by Dr. John Tanton, who is allegedly tied to hate groups according to the Southern Poverty Law Center.
SEE ALSO:
Moore Thoughts
The Scene
Enclave
Why Does A Turkey Fear Thanksgiving?
Posted on January 14, 2009 at 1:54 pmCouncilman Mike Jameson on why Councilman Eric Crafton is ducking a debate on English Only:
“When you sit down in front of a well-informed moderator and a capable opponent that are clearly going to discuss the minutiae of your argument, it’s only natural for your blood pressure to spike,” he says. “I mean, why does meat fear the meatgrinder?”
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Eric Crafton On Lou Dobbs
Posted on at 8:57 amA review by Caleb Hannan:
I have to say: all in all, a little disappointing. Yeah, sure, there were some high(low)lights. But somehow, the combination of America’s favorite Nativist Creamsicle and Nashville’s Somnambulant Xenophobe seemed to promise so much more.
SEE ALSO: Crafton on Fox
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Taking English Only Downtown
Posted on January 6, 2009 at 4:56 pmNate Rau reports from the debate amongst fellow conservatives on English Only:
Crafton argued that the state law didn’t explicitly state local governments must do their business in English. He also said the charter amendment proposal should be boiled down to whether a voter believes all government business should be done in English.
“Obviously, I consider what Nashville English First has done, through lawsuits and multiple petitions, that we’ve won a victory making sure people can go out and vote so the community can have this dialogue.”
Davis asked the first question during the open forum, and wondered if Metro wouldn’t be on a slippery slope where future government communications could be done in other languages were the proposal not to pass.
SEE ALSO:
Nathan Moore
Sarah Moore
Video
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David Briley Uses Mayoral Race Mailing List To Rally Progressives Against English Only
Posted on December 17, 2008 at 9:41 amFormer councilman and mayoral candidate David Briley has just sent a letter to his 2007 Mayoral run mailing list urging opposition to Eric Crafton’s English Only Metro Charter amendment. From the missive:
I have not written you since the 2007 election but I am writing now to ask you to get involved in an issue that is important to me and our City. I am asking you to Vote Against the English Only ballot referendum that will be held on January 22. Personally, I oppose English Only for many reasons but here are the main three.
Read the full message here.
UPDATE: I’m told that the entire 2007 list was not used, only parts of it.
We The People Want The Rest Of We To Speak English
Posted on September 23, 2008 at 12:10 pm
Eric Crafton turns in his sigs for the next round of English First:
“It took about two days to get back the required number [of 2,475 signatures],” Crafton said, calling the petition drive a “victory for ‘We the People.’”
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Three Amigos Fiesta
Posted on September 22, 2008 at 1:12 pmA protest by English-Only supporters will take place in on Wednesday in Nashville:
It’s labeled a “surprise,” but there’s a web site up, and fliers were being passed out at the Titans game yesterday, disturbing some critics of the English-only effort.
Second Verse Same As The First — In English
Posted on September 16, 2008 at 7:23 amNate Rau on the regrouping effort by Eric Crafton’s English First to force a special election:
Nashville English First, the local group pushing the effort, has started a fund-raising drive in support of its second attempt at amending Metro’s charter to make English the official language.
The new proposed charter amendment allows for health and public safety exceptions, which the first proposal did not.
“We expect it to take a couple of weeks,” Crafton said of the latest petition drive, which began last week. “We’re already getting some signatures back in.”
The first English Only effort was ruled ineligible for the Nov. 4 ballot by the Davidson County Election Commission following a recommendation from Metro Director of Law Sue Cain
UPDATE: Southcomm Hive Mind!!
Conservatives “Liberal” On Immigrant Tax
Posted on August 20, 2008 at 10:00 amMike Byrd notes that several Metro Councilmen of a conservative bent eschewed their proclivity to vote against the raising of fees in one curious instance:
What needs to be underscored is the fact that many of the members on this list, Craddock, Gotto, Tygard, Hodge, Duvall claim to be conservatives on budget issues and they have railed and will rail against raising revenues through taxes or fees. This vote should come back to haunt them in the future whenever they grandstand and posture “for the taxpayers” against raising other fees.
And on the subject of opposing raising government fees, how come the Tennessee Tax Revolt didn’t aggressively oppose Eric Crafton’s attempt to raise interpreter’s fees? Is the Revolt more anti-immigrant than anti-fee?
Too Crafty By Half?
Posted on August 18, 2008 at 11:36 amNate Rau reports that some downtown lawyers are trying to hang up Eric Crafton’s English First charter amendment on legal technicality:
According to the charter, a petition-driven amendment proposal, like English Only, may only be submitted once every two years.
“The council shall not adopt a resolution proposing amendments to this charter more often than twice during the term of office of members of said council,” the charter reads, “nor shall any such amendment or amendments be submitted by petition more often than once in each two years.”
In 2006, Davidson County passed a petition-driven charter amendment, giving voters the power to approve property tax increases. The amendment passed on Nov. 7, 2006.
The English Only charter amendment proposal would be up for approval at the federal election on Nov. 4.
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The Enlightened Stay Home?
Posted on at 5:58 amS-Town Mike seems to believe that most reliable voters are nativist:
Once this appears on the ballot, Crafton doesn’t have to mobilize a majority of Davidson County voters to win. He only has to mobilize a majority of the 20-30% of eligible voters who turn out for general elections. English Only is probably going to win with the votes of only a small fraction of the County’s total adult population and with the help of mostly tainted outsider money, which Eric Crafton couldn’t raise at home. It’s going to be a minority exercising mob rule over everyone else.
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All About Some Immigrant Tax
Posted on August 14, 2008 at 7:45 amKay Brooks has no beef with Eric Crafton’s proposal to charge those who require the use of an interpreter to use city services a fee:
Generally, I like user fees. If I’m not using the service I don’t like having to pay for it. I do expect howls of objection from ‘immigrant advocates’ saying they won’t be able to afford these fees. Seems to me this is a fairly good compromise in the debate. If you want to save yourself some money, learn English or bring our own trusted interpreter with you. I don’t think taxpayers should foot the bill for having to provide services in who knows how many languages and take on the liability of a misinterpretation–which has been my concern all through this debate.
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Talking On Your Cell Phone Is Not Mobilization
Posted on August 6, 2008 at 12:47 pmMike Byrd doesn’t think local Democrats have what its gonna take to insure Eric Crafton’s English First does not become law in Metro Nashville:
Unless the Democrats are making themselves useful by organizing block-by-block to GOTV or finding money to throw into the fight, their paper opposition won’t amount to much, and it may serve as fodder to mobilize the opposition.
You have got to come with more than words if you want to win this. You’ve got to come with mobilized numbers and money. That’s what Crafton’s got. That’s why he’s going to win. And the Democratic Party will have let us down once again.
One Nashville, One People, One Destiny
Posted on August 5, 2008 at 12:01 pmMetro Human Relations Commission voted yesterday to oppose Eric Crafton’s English First:
“ The effort to amend the Metro Charter to designate English as the official language of Metropolitan Government is a wedge issue which has the ability to jeopardize Nashville’s place as one of the country’s most desirable communities in which to live, work and play. This effort is divisive, creating an “us” and a “them” and creates a mean and intolerant image which is not reflective of the great city Nashville truly is; we are much better than this,” said Kelvin Jones, Executive Director of the Commission.
“The commissioners and staff of the Metro Human Relations Commission Commission are committed to working with community leaders and stakeholders who are likewise invested in creating “One City for All People”
MORE: Nate Rau
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