Why Would He Want To Do That?
Posted on September 18, 2008 at 11:18 amSeems like a rather low profile, high stress position for such a season political pro but check out this breaking news from Nate Rau:
Former Metro deputy mayor Bill Phillips is among the candidates to become the new city manager of Oak Hill, according to a list released by the city.
Joining Phillips as candidates are former Mt. Juliet City Manager Robert Shearer, government consultant Rick Sinclair and Lynn Fuson of Tomlyn Consulting.
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The Search For One Eyed Willy
Posted on September 15, 2008 at 8:02 amThe satellite city of Oak Hill is currently in search of a new City Manager despite the fact the old one still maintains he holds the job:
The candidates so far are Oak Hill residents Lynn Fuson, 56, and Rick Sinclair, 57, and Lebanon resident Robert Shearer, 53.
Vice Mayor Austin McMullen said no one will fill the position without a background check, something the Oak Hill never conducted on Kraus.
Kraus stepped down in June after soliciting votes for the most recent commissioner’s election. He tried rescinding his retirement, saying he shouldn’t have agreed to leave the position during a meeting with Mayor Tommy Alsup.
Kraus said he still plans to be reinstated in the position and has consulted an attorney.
The Oak Hill Slideshow
Posted on August 16, 2008 at 1:08 pmThe Oak Hill Gazette posts the full PowerPoint presentation by Oak Hill Mayor Tommy Alsup designed to refute accusations made by Commissioner Chip Throckmorton, former City Manager Bill Kraus and others at a forum for citizens at the Woodland Hills Church Of Christ.
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In The Name Of The Father: NewsChannel5’s Jennifer Kraus Speaks Out At Oak Hill Forum
Posted on August 13, 2008 at 7:36 pmOak Hill residents hoping for a reprise of the shouting matches at the last Board of Commissioners meeting at last night’s Mayoral Forum may have come away slightly disappointed.
The meeting, called by Mayor Tommy Alsup to address the concerns of Oak Hill residents in the wake of the disputed resignation of Bill Kraus and accusations of a “shadow government” by one of Oak Hill’s Commissioners, was a much needed political maneuver on the part of the embattled mayor.
In a methodical, bullet by bullet, PowerPoint presentation, Alsup addressed many of the allegations leveled against him. Alsup defended the infrequent, yet controversial practice of issuing checks from the City of Oak Hill bearing only one signature, his. Alsup projected onto two screens in the Woodland Hills Church Of Christ auditorium checks, also bearing only one signature, checks signed by Bill Kraus as well as some by former Mayor and current Commissioner Chip Throckmorton. Both are Alsup detractors.
Alsup also defended his hiring as a consultant, lobbyist Rob Ikard, to repair relationships with state officials outside of Oak Hill which had been damaged by Oak Hill’s prominent opposition to the so-called Bredesen Bunker.
However, the highlight of the evening’s festivities was the appearance of NewsChannel5 Anchor and Investigative Journalist Jennifer Kraus, daughter of former City Manager Bill Kraus. Kraus the Father was not at the forum on the advice of counsel, John Herbison, who has reportedly sent a letter requesting that Kraus be reinstated as City Manager.
Despite the absence of both him and his attorney, his side of the story was not without representation.
While Mayor Alsup repeatedly demurred from answering questions from the audience about the retirement of the City Manager citing the advice of counsel, Kraus the Daughter seemed less restrained.
Appearing at the forum as a “private citizen and resident of Oak Hill”, Kraus expressed “deep appreciation and gratitude” for the support of her father by many in the community and said that her father would “strongly disagree” with much of the defense Mayor Alsup had laid out.
Kraus took issue, in fact, with the very nature of the gathering. She told the assembled Oak Hill citizens, in a cautionary tone, that this forum was not a “public meeting” on the record like other Board of Commissioner meetings and as such nothing being said or done was either official or binding.
Kraus asserted that Mayor Alsup was in the wrong when, she says, he took unilateral action in a meeting with her father about his resignation leaving the other two commissioners out of loop. Kraus contended that the law is not in any way clear on whether a City Manager can endorse and contribute to a candidate for Commissioner.
Kraus the Father’s signature on a post card supporting incumbent Tommy Jacobs, as well as his financial donation, was the stick Alsup is allegedly to have held over his head when he resigned.
The law seems to be ambiguous as to whether Kraus’s action was or was not permissible. The oft-cited part of the state code T.C.A § 6-21-106 would seem to support the assumption that the Kraus was in the wrong in supporting Jacobs. A competing code, T.C.A § 7-51-1501 would seem to say the opposite. And the code on what to do when the codes contradict each other, um, I don’t even what to talk about.
Adding to the intrigue is the fact that, while the Oak Hill Charter reads exactly as T.C.A. § 6-21-106 does, the commission passed a ordinance in 1998 (similar in language to the wording at this link) which seems more in line with T.C.A. § 7-51-1501.
Regardless of the legality of the action, Kraus the Daughter argued that there was never a board vote either firing or officially accepting her father’s resignation so that, having rescinded his retirement, her father is still the City Manager of Oak Hill.
Alsup repeated what he has maintained all along, that Kraus was not forced to retire and that other Commissioners were kept apprised of his actions. However, Alsup stopped short of a full point-by-point rebuttal of Kraus, again, citing advice of counsel.
“I’ve already ventured too far,” Alsup explained to the crowd in his response to Ms. Kraus.
Former Oak Hill City Manager Under Investigation
Posted on July 24, 2008 at 7:57 amBill Kraus, the former City Manager of Oak Hill currently embroiled in a controversy over what he says was a forced retirement, is now under investigation by an organization overseeing Tennessee city managers. Paul Boyer, City Manager of Columbia, Tennessee, representing the Tennessee City Managers Association confirmed the investigation. Boyer could not confirm the nature of the investigation only that it was ongoing.
Ken Whitehouse reported last month that Kraus had retired as City Manager of Oak Hill. It was subsequently revealed that Kraus had lent both his name and his money to the reelection campaign of then Oak Hill Commissioner Tommy Jacobs. Both Tenn. Code Ann. 6-21-106 and the International City/County Management Association’s Code of Ethics would seem prohibit this type of activity.
Kraus disagrees saying that he had cleared his actions with more than one attorney. Kraus also asserts that the Oak Hill Mayor Tommy Alsup coerced his letter of resignation and that his retirement was forced, never acted upon by the board and thus, invalid.
During the battle over renovations at Tennessee’s Executive residence, which is in Oak Hill, it was revealed that Kraus had been convicted of felonies while serving as a City Manager in California. Kraus was also found to have attempted to conceal that fact on his Davidson County voter registration form. Temporarily relieved of his right to vote, Kraus is now, again, a registered voter in Tennessee.
SEE ALSO:
Kraus fights his retirement at raucous Oak Hill town meeting
Signs Of GOP Support
Posted on July 14, 2008 at 7:37 amThe Oak Hill Gazette reports that the Republican Mayor of Oak Hill seems to be supporting Democrat Mike Stewart for state House in the 52nd District.
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Oak Hill Mayor On City Manager’s Rescinded Retirement: “There Will Be No Vote.”
Posted on June 30, 2008 at 9:07 pmIt would appear that the rumors that William Kraus was attempting to rescind his retirement as Oak Hill City Manager were true. As reported in the Tennessean, William Kraus, who resigned his position as City Manager on June 18, will attempt to force a vote on his retirement at the next Oak Hill Commissioners meeting on July 17.
At issue, are political actions Kraus made in support of since defeated Commissioner Tommy Jacobs which would appear to be illegal based on Tenn. Code Ann. 6-21-106. Kraus asserts that he cleared his political action in support of Jacobs on two separate occasions with the City Attorney. Both the City Attorney and the Mayor of Oak Hill reject his account.
In a letter to Oak Hill residents dated June 21, Kraus recounts the circumstances that lead to his retirement:
[O]n June 16th, the Mayor ordered me to his house where he and the City Attorney told me that I had violated a little known state statute that forbids the City Manager from assisting a candidate for the Board of Commissioners. The Mayor then told me that I had to either resign or retire immediately. Keep in mind, that the Mayor was acting alone, and as I later learned, without the knowledge or consent of the other two commissioners - Commissioner Ray Throckmorton and former commissioner Tommy Jacobs.
I agreed to retire though, despite being advised by five well-known and renowned attorneys in town who all agreed that forcing me to leave my position for this sort of violation was totally unnecessary.
Mayor Alsup disputes the above accusation as well as the contents of the letter in their totality. Alsup explained to Post Politics that there was no forced retirement. Alsup asserts that Kraus was simply made aware of his violation of the code, and instead of facing the very vote he now seeks, Kraus elected to resign.
“Dr. Kraus was advised of the illegality of his actions and that the consequences for such actions could be dismissal by the board. He chose to resign,” explains Alsup.
Alsup also disputes Kraus’ allegation that a political operative was hired by the City at $60,000 dollars a year. The operative in question, Rob Ikard, the former Tennessee state director for the National Federation of Independent Business, is an independent contractor. He works on a per project basis for which he can be paid no more than $10,0000 per project according to City regulations. No more than that amount has been paid per project to Ikard according to Alsup.
The forcing of a vote of the Board Of Commissioners is an interesting route for Kraus. There are only three commissioners in Oak Hill, two of which have signed a statement addressed to the Citizens of Oak Hill that states, among other things, the following:
Kraus chose to resign effective June 18, 2008, and is no longer an employee of the City of Oak Hill.
Bill Kraus did a lot of great things for the City of Oak Hill. However, we could not ignore what we were advised was a violation of state law.
They say every battle is won before it is ever fought. In the case of Bill Kraus, this would seem most definitely to be case.
“Dr. Kraus resigned and we accepted that resignation. He no longer comes into the offices. He no longer serves as City Manager. An interim city manager has been appointed and we are actively seeking a permanent replacement,” explains Alsup, “There will be no vote.”
William Kraus dodged a bullet when the town of Oak Hill allowed him to stay on as City Manager after it was revealed that he had a felony conviction in his past. At this point, while the will to rescind exists no way to do so does. The clock has run out.
There will be no vote.
UPDATE: Dr. Bill Kraus responds:
I am now advised by an attorney that specializes in employment law that my initial “forced” retirement, dated June 18th was never legally acted upon by the Board of Commissioners at their monthly meeting on June 19th. Thus, in his opinion, I am still City Manager until the July 17th meeting which is the next legally constituted meeting.
In the meantime, the telephone and email response to my letter of June 21st has, to put it mildly, been overwhelming and I am truly grateful. I am in the process of preparing a letter to the Board of Commissioners requesting that they take the legal action that they have not, to date,taken and that the Board meeting be relocated to larger facilities to handle those who do want to attend.
You Can’t Fire Me, I Quit: Oak Hill Commisioner Throckmorton A Republican No More
Posted on June 16, 2008 at 8:11 am
Many speeches were made and many a candidates were recognized at Saturday’s Davidson County Picnic and Straw Poll but it was one man’s lack of recognition that stood out during the orations and gladhanding of the assembled Republicans in Sevier Park.
Tom Lawless, the Davidson County GOP chair, while recognizing executive committee member Austin McMullen’s victory over incumbent Tommy Jacobs in his race for Oak Hill City Commissioner, expressed pride in the fact that there were now two (the number was emphasized) Republicans on the Oak Hill Commission: Mayor Tommy Alsup and the the aforementioned McMullen.
Oak Hill’s third City Commissioner Raymond T. “Chip” Throckmorton, III was not included. A curious omission to state political watchers who remember Throckmorton as a Republican primary candidate in 2006 for the 23rd District state Senate seat currently held by Republican Jack Johnson, covering Williamson County and a small portion of southern Davidson. Throckmorton lost that contentious multi-candidate primary by less than 300 votes.
When asked why Throckmorton was not included in his tally of Republicans on the Oak Hill Commission, Lawless said, “I do not consider him the same type of Republican that Tommy Alsup and Austin McMullen are. I think they are radically different in their approaches to things.”
When pressed as to whether Throckmorton was, in his estimation, a Republican at all, Lawless gave voice to quiet rumors in Republican circles that Throckmorton may be planning to run against Senator Jack Johnson again in 2010 — this time as an independent.
“[Throckmorton] has made comments to me that he wasn’t sure he wanted to be a Republican. He may run as an independent the next time he runs,” Lawless said.
In light of that, Lawless submitted that saying that there are only two members of the Davidson County Republican Party on the Oak Hill City Commission, in his opinion, was “an accurate statement.”
“[Throckmorton] doesn’t have a very high opinion of the Davidson County Republican Party which is unfortunate because Chip is an old friend of mine,” Lawless said.
Chip Throckmorton, via telephone from a family vacation in Alabama, tells Post Politics that he was not surprised by the omission by Lawless nor his subsequent comments. Throckmorton says he has been ostracized both before, but especially after, his 2006 primary loss to now state Senator Jack Johnson.
“I have always been an unwanted stepchild in the local Republican Party,” he said. Throckmorton believes he has been slowly “excommunicated” from the Party because he was not the chosen candidate in 2006 and did not “ask permission to run.” Thockmorton says that despite his two year respite from party politics, Republicans continue to talk him down.
As for his thoughts on Davidson County GOP chair Lawless, Throckmorton was straightforward, “Tom Lawless is the epitome of what is wrong with the Davidson County Republican Party.”
When asked point blank whether he considers himself a Republican Throckmorton, pausing frequently, said, “Ya know, I guess, not anymore. I am quite frankly tired of hypocrisy in both parties.”
As to whether he is indeed considering challenging Jack Johnson as an independent in 2010, Throckmorton expressed ambivalence, “I haven’t given any more thought to do doing something like that as to not doing it. But, I can tell you one thing. There are a lot of people who would like to see me do it.”
In the end, Throckmorton seemed agnostic about the call to public service. He said that he really hasn’t been that politically active since losing to Johnson instead focusing on making money for his family.
But, Throckmorton cautioned, “If business goes well and I continue to get good cases and I find have some money to burn, who knows, I just might ask myself, ‘Do I go on down to Tunica to throw this money away or do I go on down and sign up for election?’”
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