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As scooped from Scoop:
Rod's Comment: I don't have a favorite in this race and don't know Tori Goddard. I would not vote against Tori Goddard just because of this, but this is low blow in political campaigning. It makes me less inclined to favor her, even if she had other favorables. If I deemed the two candidates otherwise equally qualified, this would push me to vote for her opponent, incumbent Council member Mary Carolyn Roberts.
Officer Anderson was killed when an unlicensed teen driver slammed into the officer's police car in an intersection. There is no indication the accident would have been prevented with more personnel and resources.
Ray Charles singing his version of "America the Beautiful."
This causes chills to run up and down my spin and a lump in my throat.
A group called, "The Working Families Party" has endorsed a candidate for Council at-large in the upcoming Metro election. This organization joins other ultra liberal groups like the LGBTQ Victory Fund and the Women for Tennessee's Future in attempting to influence Metro elections. This is relatively new. In the past local elections were mostly local affairs.
Working Families Party uses the usual rhetoric of the left focusing on stroking class envy and claiming, "the very wealthiest just get richer and richer." Their issues include affordable housing, climate change, debt-free higher education, LGBTQ issues, immigrant rights, paid family and medical leave and a $15 minimum wage.
In Nashville, the WFP has endorsed Gicola Lane for Metro Council at Large. This is the first time the organization has endorsed a candidate in Nashville and it looks like this is their first endorsement of a candidate in Tennessee. Lane led the successful Amendment 1 charter referendum campaign to create Nashville’s police Community Oversight Board. In April, Lane attended a Working Families Party candidate training program. It is not know how much money, WFP will funnel to Lane.
There are more progressive candidates running for Metro Council than ever before and they are being supported by outside forces. If most of them are elected, we will have the most liberal council we have ever had. While the state keeps Metro Nashville from going to far to the left by prohibiting sanctuary cities, prohibiting a city minimum wage, and protecting some property rights, a far left Council could still wreck havoc and change the culture of the city. It appears to me, that their is a national focus on Nashville to make it a beacon of progressive politics. I hope that citizens focus on this election and do not allow outside left-wing organization to pick our next Council.
While I wish local non-partisan elections could be decided by local people and focus on local issues, if the left is going to try to nationalize local elections, I wish there was a counterbalance from the right. I know of no national conservative organizations supporting council candidates.
District 7 is the Inglewood area and is currently represented by Anthony Davis who is term-limited. Eight candidates are seeking to succeed him. The Tennesseean published a piece today called, Meet the candidates in Nashville's District 7. Each candidate is profiled with a picture and biographical information and statements about policy positions. Some useful information can be gleamed from articles such as this. If the article does not give you enough information to make a selection, it helps narrow the field by telling you whom not to support.
I don't live in District 7, but if I did, two of the eight candidates would be eliminated immediately from consideration as a result of the Tennesseean article. Randy Reed, the article states, did not respond to multiple interview request. If someone won't be interviewed by the press for a story about their campaign, they are not a serious candidate. I would also eliminate from consideration Cole Rogers since he states he supported the 16% property tax hike increase proposed by councilman Mendes. My view is that we are not undertaxed.
Most of the candidates list sidewalks as priority need for their district and several mention more affordable housing and traffic concerns. Below is a list of the candidates and any quick takeaway gleamed from The Tennessean article or other sources. I have provided links to campaign web sites or other news about the candidates when I could find it.
Emily Benedict. She says she will personally work to bring thousands of tech jobs to Nashville. She has the endorsement of the LGBTQ Victory Fund and WTF (Women for Tennessee's Future.) Those two endorsements would be reasons I would not vote for her. (Webpage, Out an About)
Client Camp. I can't learn much about him but he has some good credentials and roots in the community. (Facebook, webpage)
Stephen Downs: He appears to mistakenly think that companies have to get permission before they move to Nashville and he proposes making companies commit to building a certain amount of sidewalks and other things before they are invited to move to Nashville. He proposes a plan for community policing and combating youth violence. (webpage)
Daniel Fitzpatrick: He says the city should work to recapture some of the excess funds held by the Music City Center. He is also critical of using one-time land sales of Metro property and depleting the rainy-day fund to balance the budget. I am impressed by this focus. (webpage)
Jacob Green: No additional information located. If a candidate does not have a webpage or campaign Facebook page, my view is that they are not trying very hard to reach the public and must not be very serious.
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| Fabian Bedne, voted to raise taxes, Running at-large |
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| Burkley Allen, voted to raise taxes, Running at-large |
Erica Gilmore, Council member at-large, (not seeking office)
Bob Mendes, Council member at-large seeking reelection.
Sharon Hurt, Council member at-large seeking reelection.
Brenda Haywood, District 3, not on the ballot.
Brett Withers, District 6, unopposed, seeking reelection.
Anthony Davis, District 7, not on the ballot.
Doug Pardue, District 10, not on the ballot.
Mike Freeman, District 16, not on the ballot
Colby Sledge, District 17, seeking reelection unopposed.
Burkley Allen, Currently District 18, seeking an at-large seat.
Freddie O'Connell, District 19, running for reelection unopposed.
Ed Kindall, District 21, seeking reelection, has opposition.
Kathleen Murphy, District 24, seeking reelection unopposed.
Tanaka Vercher, District 28, seeking reelection with an opponent.
Delisha Porterfield, District 29, seeking reelection with an opponent
Jason Potts, District 30, not on the ballot.
Dave Rosenberg, voted to
raise taxes, Running for relectiion
Fabian Bedne, Currently District 31 running for at-large. Jacobia Dowell, District 32,not on the ballot.
Antoinette Lee, District 33, running for reelection with opposition.
Dave Rosenberg, District 35, running for reelection with opposition.
The Nashville Neighborhood Defense Fund endorsed Metro Councilman John Cooper in the race for mayor. Apparently, this organization only endorsed in the mayor's race and not in council races. There are a couple or maybe more organizations claiming to be the voice of neighborhoods but I think this is the most legitimate of them. The Tennessean says, "The Nashville Neighborhood Defense Fund is an advocacy group that
registers as a political action committee, but doesn't raise funds to
give to candidates. The organization is comprised of activists from more
than 65 neighborhood groups."
I am glad to see Cooper got this endorsement. It is better to get it than not get it, but I take all of the endorsements from neighbor groups or neighborhood associations or an organization representing neighborhood organizations with a grain of salt. Often neighborhood groups are mostly inactive and maybe once a year a half dozen people will get together to chose officers. Sometimes groups are dormant for years at a time. Sometimes there are more than one organization claiming to represent a neighborhood. A neighborhood organization may represent no one except the two or three activist who claim to represent the organization.
Neighborhood groups are most active when they have something to be mad about such as someone going to take their park or build a commercial development or some affordable housing in their neighborhood. When the issue that motivated them goes away, often the neighborhood group becomes inactive. There is another group called, Coalition For Nashville Neighborhoods headed by former Council member John Summers (at least I think it is another group). I don't know much about that group either but I don't think it is much more than John Summers.
Don't make the mistake of thinking that being pro-business and conservative is the same thing. Often big business's biggest concern is that no one rock the boat and wreck their gravy train. Prudent financial management, cutting waste, and improving government efficiency are seldom priorities with big business. They want to elect people they can work with.
A big business group, the Nashville Business Coalition, made their endorsements last week and endorsed for reelection Mayor David Briley. They also made three endorsements for Council at-large but none of them were Steve Glover. I like a few of their endorsements for distract Council such as Robert Swope and Tim Garret. In making their district endorsements, it looks like they were playing it safe and mostly betting on people with no opposition or minimal opposition. They endorse a lot of incumbents and skipped making endorsements in a lot of districts.
The Nashville Business Coalition's board of directors includes several business big wigs, such as Ralph Schulz, CEO of the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce; Lee Molette, owner, Molette Investment Services; Jim Schmitz, market leader of Elliot Davis; and James Weaver, a lobbyist with Waller Lansden Dortch & Davis LLP.
Besides Briley for mayor, here is who else the coalition endorsed:
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| John Cooper, at-large Council Member, Candidate for Mayor |
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| Robert Swope running for Reelection |
John Cooper, He is currently a Council member at-large seeking the office of mayor.
Steve Glover
Running at-large
Johnathan Hall, District 1
Robert Swope, District 4
Scott Davis, District 5
Nancy VanReece, District 8
Bill Pridemore, District 9
Larry Hagar, District 11
Steve Glover, Currently District 12, running at-large
Holly Huezo, District 13
Keven Rhoten, District 14
Jeff Syracuse, District 15
Mary Carolyn Roberts, District 20
Sheri Weiner, currently District 22, running at-large.
Mina Johnson, District 23
Russ Pulley, District 25
Angie Henderson
running for
Reelection
Jeremy Elrod, District 26
DavetteBlalock, District 27
Angie Henderson, District 34
Abstaining was Councilman DeCasta Hastings of District 2. The effect of abstaining is the same as casting a "no" vote.
Tennessee Star - Despite the fact that both Tennessee State law and the Metro Davidson County Charter require a balanced budget, current Metro Council district member and At-Large candidate Steve Glover believes that the budget submitted by Mayor David Briley and recently passed by the Metro Council violates those provisions. As a result, Glover has asked State Senator Farrell Haile (R-Gallatin) to request an opinion from Tennessee State Attorney General Herbert H. Slatery concerning the legality of that budget.
The 2019 – 2020 Davidson County budget was presented by Mayor Briley
to the Metro Nashville City Council and was adopted on 19 June, 2019.
Glover points out that the budget relies upon revenue sources that have
not yet been approved by the Metro Council.
“It is pretty obvious
that you can’t ‘balance’ a budget with a revenue stream that doesn’t
currently exist,” Councilman Glover said. “It’s like telling your bank
they shouldn’t bounce your checks this week because you plan to deposit
money into the account next week. That’s nonsense.” (link)
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