Saturday, September 10, 2005

Well, it's like this...

Like many of you, I wasn't thrilled that Ophelia Ford won the Senate 29 Democratic Primary; I was hoping for Steve Haley or John Deberry or Barbara Cooper. I am not of the view that these seats are heirlooms to be passed on from generation to generation (or from brother to sister, in this instance).

However, here's the deal: we need to help her win this race. WHY?

Let me tell you this: if Terry Roland wins on September 15, it will go from 17-16 GOP to 18-15. If that happens, they can call for a new speaker election, and there's no way in hell that Wilder will be able to hold off Ron Ramsey then; the pressure on Mike Williams and Randy McNally will be too much to bear.

If Ramsey wins, there goes our chairmanships in the Senate. Not only that, if Wilder loses his speakership, then I suspect he will resign his Senate seat, and I am not confident that we would keep it.

THAT would make it 19-14 GOP.

If you think BREDESEN screwed up TennCare (as I do), wait until a Republican Senate gets a hold of it. They will be able to block anything our Democratic House could pass, and we would have virtual gridlock that brings the state to a standstill.

That's what at stake, and that's why we need to help Ophelia, it's a lot bigger than her.

So, here's the latest:

Saturday, September 10, 2005, 10:30 a.m. - ALL HANDS ON DECK! Press Conference and Breakfast at the Ophelia Ford for State Senate campaign headquarters, Southgate Shopping Center, 1897 South Third Street. Come and volunteer for a door-to-door Get-Out-The-Vote on election day, Thursday, September 15. We want as many party and community leaders as possible at this event to promote the last day of early voting and discuss plans for the final week of this important election. Deputy Tennessee Democratic Party Chair Jerry Maynard from Nashville will be our special guest along with other elected officials and party members. For more information call 774-8400 or 323-3290.

7 comments:

Michael Roy Hollihan said...

Steve, with all the poisonous rhetoric of late it will be hard to take me seriously here, but what I understand you to be saying is that its preferable to put an incompetent into a high state political office if it protects partisan advantage? Is that really what you want to say?

Why not mount a write-in or independent camdidate who expresses your views and *is* competent?

Steve Steffens said...

Mike, you are perfectly aware that partisan advantage is used by BOTH sides. an independent would only work if they agreed to to support Wilder.

Do you think Mongo would do that?

Chris Davis said...

Mike is a negative utopian idealist: a political mind stripped from the pages of Erewhon.

Chris Davis said...

Rocks and hard places---

Why is it ever so?

Michael Roy Hollihan said...

Steve, I agree with you that *all* sides do this, but you didn't answer my question. Which I guess is your embarrassed way of answering it "yes." Ophelia will do some harm to this state and to the people of north Shelby County, all to prop up her family's dying legacy and some partisan need for power?

Please don't complain when it all goes horribly wrong.

Chris Davis said...

When between a rock and a hard place "do the least harm" is usually the rubric.

Steve Steffens said...

Well, A) I'm not supporting jr., but horribly wrong? How?

think she's going to put up a signa t her desk saying "votes for sale"? think she'll vote by accident to have Shelby county kicked out of the state?

I suspect everyone is going to watch over her, especially Wilder (don't go there) to keep any disasters from occuring...