TNGOP Announces First Featured Candidates for Red to the Roots Program

With One Month Until Early Voting, Republican Party Begins Highlighting Its Rising Stars

 

NASHVILLE, Tenn.—In many ways, 2014 has already been a banner year for the Tennessee Republican Party.

Chairman Chris Devaney developed a new staff model that put in place Regional Political Directors across the state to build up county parties and advise candidates, the TNGOP hired a statewide Engagement Director to build bridges for the Party in new and non-traditional Republican communities, and the Party has seen more candidates run for office as Republicans than ever before.

Today, with one month to go until early voting begins for the August election, the Party now takes the next step to make 2014 a historic year.

Chairman Devaney named State Representative Ryan Williams (R--Cookeville) as the Chair of Red to the Roots and, together, the two released the names of the first five Republicans to be "featured candidates" in the 2014 election cycle.

These candidates have all met criteria for mobilizing support, engaging voters, and helping to build the Republican Party in their communities. The TNGOP will announce additional featured candidates in the coming weeks.

The names of the candidates are:

Amy Weirich – the current incumbent and Republican nominee for Shelby County District Attorney.

Brent Cooper – the Republican nominee for District Attorney in the 22nd Judicial District (Giles, Lawrence, Maury, Wayne Counties).

Sheena Ramsey Tinsley - the Republican nominee for Register of Deeds in Sullivan County.

John Wang – the Republican nominee for State House in the 53rd District (Davidson).

Carma Dennis McGee – the incumbent and Republican nominee for Chancellor in the 24th Judicial District (Benton, Carroll, Decatur, Hardin, Henry Counties).

Devaney remarked, “Representative Williams has done an outstanding job as a legislator and as a dynamic leader for Putnam County. I'm proud he is leading our statewide effort to elect more Republicans. I believe these featured candidates will follow in his footsteps and I am proud to support such a talented and diverse group of leaders."

Williams added, "2014 presents a tremendous opportunity to build on the momentum the Party has seen under Chairman Devaney's leadership. We've highlighted these first four candidates because they are all committed to making a real difference in their communities--be it for jobs, safety, or equal protection of the law. They have each done a remarkable job listening to the concerns of voters and will do their part to build an opportunity society here in Tennessee where every individual has the chance to make their lives better.”

By being named featured candidates, the Tennessee Republican Party encourages supporters, donors, and activists to get behind these Republican nominees.

 

Background

Red to the Roots is a program designed to elect more Republicans at the county and judicial level, while bolstering support for GOP legislative candidates.

2014 has already witnessed more Republicans running for office than ever before in Tennessee.

District Attorney General Weirich’s website.

Brent Cooper’s website.

Sheena Ramsey Tinsley's website.

John Wang’s website.

Chancellor McGee’s website.

Link to TNGOP Release.

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Tell your Councilman to vote "no" on same-sex Metro benefits.

Tell your Councilman to vote "no" on same-sex Metro benefits.
In a recent Tennessean article one Councilman is quoted as saying he had not received a single call about the same-sex domestic partners benefit bill. The homosexual community has been vocal in support of this bill and unfortunately advocates of traditional values have been silent.

When this bill was on Second Reading two Republicans, Carter Todd and Charlie Tygard, actually voted for it and two others, Karen Bennett and Davette Blalock, abstained. To see how all members of the council voted follow this link: How the Council voted on same-sex Metro benefits & who simply did not vote.

To email your councilman, follow this link and you may email all councilmen or just your own councilman with the click of a button. If you do not know who your councilman is, there is a tool where you can enter your address and the website will tell you who is your council member.

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Davidson County Republican Party Straw Poll released: Alexander barely beats Carr

Following the Davidson County Republican Party picnic, I reported that a dispute involving the counting of ballots in the straw poll had led to the results of the straw poll not being released. I have not heard anything else about that dispute and now the result are made public.

• For U. S. Senator: Lamar Alexander 115, Joe Carr 108, Flinn 3, Undecided 7
• For 5th Congressional District: Bob Ries 128, John Smith 43, Carter 10, Undecided 39, other 1, Steve Dickerson 1
• For Nashville Mayor: Megan Barry 23, Bone 3, Kenneth Eaton 34, Fox 29, Freeman 6, Daron Hall 27, Other 10, undecided 3, Charlie Tygard 1, Kane 15

Those voting in the poll overwhelmingly oppose the AMP and they support all three proposed State constitutional amendments. To see the complete vote tally, follow this link.

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Election Commission to hear residency challenge to Bill Beck running in District 51.

Bill Beck

At a special called meeting of the Davidson County Election Commission tomorrow, the Commission will be considering a residency challenge to the candidacy of Bill Beck who is seeking the Democrat nomination for the 51st House District seat.

District 51 is the House District seat being held by Mike Turner who is not seeking reelection. Other Democrats seeking that nomination are Jennifer Buck Wallace, former executive director of the Tennessee Democratic Party, and Stephen Fotopulos, the former Tennessee Immigrant & Refugee Rights Coalition executive director. Wallace has the endorsement of Craig Fitzhugh, the State House Minority Leader.  Beck, a local attorney, has the support of former Nashville Mayor Bill Purcell, Sheriff Daron Hall, former Senator Joe Haynes and former Judge Barbara Haynes.

In the Republican primary, Brian L. Mason and Joshua Rawlings are competing for the nomination. I do not know who filed the challenge. The Election Commission meets Wednesday, June 18th at 3PM at the Davidson County Election Commission offices at 1417 Murfreesboro Pike.

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What's on the Council agenda for June 17th: The budget and benefits for same-sex couples.

To get your own copy of the Council agenda and the council staff analysis, follow these link: Metro Council agenda and staff analysis .

The big item on the agenda is the budget which does not raise taxes but is $79 million more than last year's budget. The other important item is benefits for same-sex couples.

Below are the Resolutions of interest. 

RESOLUTION NO. RS2014-1126   is the first step in the sale of up to $275 million in GSD General Obligation bonds to fund various projects in the 2014-2015 Capital Improvements Budget including $110 million of school projects and $17 million for sidewalks. To see more of what is included see the staff analysis and the attachment. I would not expect any "no" votes unless something comes up in Budget and Finance.

I wish someone in the Council was willing to take on the Mayor specifically over sidewalks. The public wants sidewalks. We spend a lot of money for sidewalks and get very little sidewalk expansion. I have witnessed perfectly good (well not "perfectly" good, but very good) sidewalks that only had small cracks ripped out and replaced. We are replacing good sidewalks rather than extending sidewalks. The only way the Council can exert any influence on the Mayor is by exercising the power of the purse.  I wish a Council member would move to take sidewalk funding out of this budget and I wish the Council would hold hearings on Metro's sidewalk priorities and policies and only fund sidewalk expansion after being assured that we would get sidewalk expansion out of the additional funding.

RESOLUTION NO. RS2014-1127 RESOLUTION NO. RS2014-1128, and

RESOLUTION NO. RS2014-1129  adopts new pay plans for most Metro employees, giving them a raise.

RESOLUTION NO. RS2014-1131 is a contract with a company regarding vehicle electric charging stations. Metro supplies the electricity and space for charging stations and a private company manages them and Metro gets a share of the fees the company charges or profit the company makes. I hope someone on B &F is looking closely at this. Anything "green" is so cool that often the details don't get a lot of scrutiny.  The former company that had this contract was funded by the Federal stimulus money and since has gone bankrupt.

There is nothing of much interest among the bills on Second Reading.

Below are bills on Third and Final reading. 

SUBSTITUTE BILL NO. BL2014-715  waives the fees for application and advertising of rezoning of property when the request is made by a councilmen under certain circumstances. Basically this would apply when a whole area is being rezoned, such as when a neighborhood is being zoned from residential which allows duplexes to single unit only residential, or when a conservation overlay is being proposed for a neighborhood. The fees associated with this type rezoning can come to several thousand dollars. This bill is strongly favored by organized neighborhood groups who often cannot raise that kind of money and who feel they should not have to do so to get a zoning change for their neighborhood. The planning commission voted against this. The Director of Finance has refused to certify it as to the availability of funds saying it could cost the city up to $150,000 a year.  This bill requires 27 votes to pass the Council since it was disapproved by the Planning Commission.

BILL NO. BL2014-769 allows a second dwelling to build on residential lots of over 15,000 square feet or lots with alley access. One of the units would have to be owner occupied.  The smaller unit could not be over 700 square feet in living area. Some neighborhood groups oppose this bill. I support it.

Nashville is expected to have significant growth over the next few years.  If we are going to avoid Atlanta-type urban sprawl we must have greater density. If we want successful mass transit we need greater density. Also we are seeing a lot of "affordable" housing units destroyed and replaced with much larger homes.  This replacing of small homes with larger homes is good for the tax base but it means people of modest income are being forced out of the city.  Many of the housing units that would be build under this bill would be affordable. Another reason I support this bill is that there is often a need for one's aging parents or underemployed children to have this type of housing.


BILL NO. BL2014-770 would allow two detached units on a single lot instead of the requirement that they share a common wall. The bill would also restrict how tall and skinny a building could be. I generally am in support of this, but hope that the Board of Zoning appeal would have lee way regarding the height restrictions.

BILL NO. BL2014-774  This is the mayor's operating budget for $1,891,647,000. Under this budget the tax rate will not increase but revenues are expected to increase substantially. This budget is $79 million greater than the current operating budget. This budget will be substituted with a Council version of the budget that makes minor tweaks to the mayor's budget.        
 BILL NO. BL2014-775 is the tax levy.   

BILL NO. BL2014-779   is the bill that would extend metro benefits to same-sex couples. To see who voted for it and against it when it was on second reading follow this link.  This bill will cost the city between $400,000 and $900,000 a year and it treats two homosexuals the same as a married couple. In my view we should not be normalizing what as always been considered a deviant lifestyle.  I am very disappointing that two Republican members of the Council abstained when it was on second reading and two voted for the bill. If Republicans vote exactly like Democrats, why do we bother trying to get Republicans elected to the Council?

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Mary Pierce vs Becky Sharpe in School Board District 8 race. Future of Charter Schools is dividing issue.

Green Hills school board race a battleground for charter school fight

by Joey Garrison, The Tennessean, July 17, 2014 -  Green Hills has become this summer’s battleground for a debate on charter schools that only seems to grow louder.

Its leading actors are two mothers in their 40s competing for the Metro Nashville Board of Education District 8, a largely affluent swath that lacks a single charter school but where some parents have sought one in the past.

And while one of the candidates, Becky Sharpe, believes she’s been miscast as a charter skeptic, stakeholders began drawing lines months ago between contenders who overlap in many other areas.
Her opponent, Mary Pierce, is a favorite of a pro-charter crowd that is......(read more)

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Domestic benefits, budget lead Metro Council agenda

by Michael Cass, The Tennessean, June 15, 2013 - Look for Metro Council members to do something they do every year and something they’ve never done before when they meet Tuesday.
The agenda for the 6:30 p.m. meeting includes the adoption of a budget for the year starting July 1 and a plan to extend health insurance and other benefits to domestic partners of Metro employees. (read more)

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Poetry Break: Dad's memories will always be there, by Ken Jakes

Dad's memories will always be there.
by Ken Jakes

I miss my Dad, I miss him more each day.
I miss my Dad, and the simple things he'd say.
When he met you, he'd ask you " how are you peculating " ?
He'd respond back to you without even waiting.
" I'm peculating pretty goooooooood. "
I knew that response was coming and understood.

My Dad greeted everyone with a smile upon his face.

And, I never even wondered, I knew he was saved by God's Grace.

He lived it in his life, and I knew God held him a special place.

I cherish those fond memories of that smile upon his face.

He was wounded many times in battle, he was American to the core.

And he would get upset when someone would disgrace the Flag, he adored.

Though money wasn't abundant, he supplied our family all its needs.

And he taught me though he may not have known, in all his good deeds
How lucky I am to have had him for my Father, and my love will never end.
He was much more than my Father, you could even call him friend.
In his later years he would tell Mom, " Its time for Ken to come in the door "
For he knew that I would be there, if just for a moment or more.

Dad, told me many times, how proud he was of me as a son.

But to have had a Father like Leonard Jakes, I was the lucky one. 

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Metro again sponsors twinks area at Gay Festival this weekend.

The Metro Human Relations Commission will again be sponsoring the Youth Pavilion this year at Nashville's Gay Pride Festival. Metro's Youth Pavilion is described as "a space for youth to hang out at the annual Pride Festival."


(For the naïve, this is a female impersonator performing at last years festival.)

If you think it is wrong for Metro Nashville to be using your tax dollars to sponsor a Youth Pavilion at the Gay Pride Festival and thus normalizing perversion among young people, then blame your Councilman. Metro Council members have had numerous opportunities to stop this promotion of decadence and perversion, but have not done so.  Instead of protecting young people who may be confused about their sexuality, we are throwing them to the wolves.

When members appointed by the Mayor to the Human Relations Commission came before the Council for confirmation, not a single Council Member questioned them as to whether or not they supported Metro's sponsorship of the Youth Pavilion.  All members appointed to the Human Relations Commission were approved without any dissenting  votes.

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School Board meeting of 6/10/14: Pinkston's fight against School choice stalls. Pinkston loses ground in other fights.

Here is the School board meeting video of 6/10/2014. It is almost four hours long and I have not watched it and don't believe I will have an opportunity to watch it and report on it. If I do, look for updates. If someone else watches it and finds anything interesting please leave a comment and a time stamp notation.

The School Board produces great agenda's with all the same handout that members of the Board get. To get your own copy of the 140-page agenda, follow this link.

Here are news reports of the meeting:

Pinkston’s No Good, Awful, Very Bad School Board Meeting  

 The Nashville Scene, byAndrea Zelinski on Wed, Jun 11, 2014 - After having long driven the agenda of the Metro Nashville School Board, Will Pinkston’s priorities hit turbulence at last night’s board meeting. 
 

Not only did his effort to delay approval of new zoning lines in the Hillsboro cluster fail, but the board picked apart his plan for public engagement and he found out the financial model he was counting on using to evaluate charter school applications would be useless this year.(link)

School board emails to Register vary wildly

The Tennessean, by Joey Garrison, June 11, 2014 - For every email JoAnn Brannon and Sharon Gentry sent Metro Director of Schools Jesse Register in recent months, their school board colleague Will Pinkston sent more than 100 to the superintendent.

Contact via email between members of the Metro Nashville Board of Education and Register varies wildly, according to a board breakdown provided to The Tennessean by the district upon request.
Register came to last week’s Governance Committee school board meeting prepared with this list in hand. After he received criticism from Pinkston about his administration’s response to constituent complaints and questions, the superintendent provided media with a count of Pinkston’s email tally. (link)

Nashville school board approves Hillsboro cluster rezoning

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Caffeinated Conservatives June Meeting - Common Core Edition

From Stephen Clements, the original Caffeinated Conservative:

Hi everybody,

Saturday June 21st from Noon - 2 PM at Bagelface Bakery (700 Main Street in East

Nashville), come talk with David Mansouri, Executive Vice President of SCORE (State Collaborative on Reforming Education), a non-profit education think tank founded by former Senator Bill Frist, and a member of the Board of Directors of Nashville Classical Charter School. I asked him to come tell us why Common Core is a great idea, so bring your questions about education and Common Core, a friend, and your appetite for great bagels and coffee!

Stephen Clements

Caffeinated Conservatives

Check out the SCORE website for more information on this advocacy group:
http://tnscore.org/about/
The Davidson County Republican Party Annual Picnic is June 14th, so get your tickets here!
http://gopnashville.org/
Our friends at the Nashville TEA Party have Senator Ted Cruz's dad, Rafael Cruz, coming to deliver a barn-burner of a speach! It's free to attend, but I plan on buying one of the VIP seats. See you there on July 19th!
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/we-the-people-rally-featuring-pastor-rafael-cruz-father-of-sen-ted-cruz-tickets-11790512741

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Southeast Nashville Conservative Breakfast, Saturday, June 21, 2014

Where: Shoney's (Antioch),  Bell Road @ Cane Ridge Road, I-24E Bell Road Exit

When: Saturday, June 21, 2014, Breakfast/Social (8:30 am - 9:00 am), Meeting (9:00 am - 10:00 am)

 

Guest Speaker(s): U.S. House Candidates: Chris Carter, Bob Ries, "Big" John Smith

 U.S. Senate Candidates:  Lamar Alexander*, Joe Carr* 

*Due to scheduling conflicts, both Senator Alexander and State Representative Joe Carr have advised they will be represented by key campaign members.

 

Remember:  Early Voting begins  July 18!

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