Out of three great choices, one emerges

Not the one I voted for, mind you, but one I can live with easily.

I am referring, of course, to last nights #SCDPSenate30SmackDown, in which Beverly Marrero, Carol Chumney and Sara Kyle were to face off for the SCDP nomination to replace former Senator and now Chancellor Jim Kyle.  And, yes, for you newbies who may have stumbled here, Jim Kyle is the husband of Sara Kyle.

After three solid speeches by the candidates, including a barnburner by Chumney, capped off by her withdrawal in favor of Marrero, the vote was taken.  This blog provided two proud votes for Beverly Marrero; however, Sara Kyle received the nomination on an 18-16 vote.

As Carol reminded us in her speech (which we will talk about a little later in the post), there were NO bad choices here: Jon and I just believed Beverly was the best choice, having had actual experience in the State Senate.

However, as we know, Sara Kyle is a 20 year veteran of state government with her years on the Public Service Commission and Tennessee Regulatory Authority until she was unceremoniously dumped by the Governor.  She is no slouch, and I can and WILL support her against Dr. George "Al Kapone Supports Me So I Can Carry North Memphis" Flinn in the November election.

It's easy to forget, as Sara has been out of the limelight, that she was raised in a campaigning family, with one uncle (Frank Clement) having served as Governor, one aunt serving in the State Senate (Anna Belle Clement O'Brien, during whose service Sara was introduced to Jim Kyle), as well as  campaigns on her own.  In fact, I would like to talk about that for a minute.

It is my hope that, upon her election (which I believe is not only possible but highly probable) to a Senate where she may have as few as four Democratic colleagues, that she does not become frustrated to the point where she leaves office in two years.  If that were to happen, then I believe last night's vote would be seen as a waste of time.

The truth is that Sara Kyle CAN and SHOULD be a dynamic force, not only here but statewide.  This is really needed at a time when the TNDP appears to be lost and not fully aware of its 'staggering lack of influence.  If she leaves office in two years, I hope that it will be for a bigger office, because she has the gravitas to lead a comeback for this party.  There's a REASON a groundswell took place last year for a possible Governor's run this year; while it didn't happen for various and sundry reasons, one hopes that something like this would be possible for her in the future.

Last night should be a new beginning for the Party, and for Sara Kyle.

Now, to Carol Chumney.   It is no secret that she wants to make another run for mayor of Memphis, and last night's speech about the power of women, despite the apparent refusal of Shelby Countians and Memphians to elect one to an executive office, highlighted that desire.

Whether it's AC Wharton or Jim Strickland carrying the water for the business community, no doubt Carol will be facing an uphill battle, unless she can unite the pro-labor and anti-corporate forces that want to see a change on North Main Street.   Considering that there could be SEVERAL candidates in that race, including Rev. Kenneth Whalum (always a bet to pull a sizable share of the vote), City Councilor Harold Collins (can he get votes outside his Whitehaven base?) and MPA leader Mike Williams (who is making a HUGE mistake if he runs, he will get no traction), it appears to me that all of the candidates who want to challenge the pro-business and pro-corporate forces need to meet and agree on a consensus candidate that may NOT be themselves.

I think of 1999, when all of Mayor Herenton's opponents could not unite, and 2007, when Herman Morris got in and split the anti-Herenton vote and kept Carol from being elected Mayor, and see that it could happen yet again if the anti-administration candidates are numerous.

In short, people, we need a backroom meeting.  (GASP!  QUEL HORREUR! MON DIEU! , Queue the fainting spells!)

I believe there should be a poll commissioned (preferably one done either by the CA or one by all the candidates together) to get an idea of who has the best chance to win.  The question that each candidate needs to ask themselves is this: IS THIS ABOUT ME OR IS IT ABOUT MEMPHIS AND ITS DIRECTION?  Are you willing to get out and support someone who has a better chance of winning, or are you going to stay in, split the vote and have four more years of Status Quo?

I hope that by January, things will be more settled in this regard.  Your thoughts, readers?

This Blog Supports Reginald Milton! Come to my house and let's raise some money for him!

I knew that when Reggie Milton decided to run for County Commission, District 10, that I would help him, especially when I realized that I was moving into the district.  He is an outstanding servant of the people now with his non-profit South Memphis Alliance, and I can't wait for him to bring leadership to a County Commission that needs it so desperately.

So, why don't you come to my house Thursday night, and bring a check to help him WIN on August 7?

My lovely co-hosts Susan Sutton Steffens and Jon Carroll (in his own way, I guess)  are joining me in inviting you.  If you are on Facebook, go here.  If not, here are the particulars:

WHEN: Thursday, July 17 from 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM  CDT

WHERE:  2766 Natchez Lane, 38111 (we're the ones with all the signs in the yard)

HOW MUCH?  Suggested donation is $50, but we will take all amounts from $10 up to the maximum of $1500!  We have to charge to get in because this IS a fundraiser!

SO, WHAT DO I GET FOR THAT?  Food, soft drinks, and wine, plus the immense satisfaction that your money is going to aid a great person in getting elected to the County Commission.

There will be comments from Reggie, as well as from me.

We look forward to seeing you there!

NEVER BE AFRAID TO DO THE RIGHT THING

(Editor's note - this post is written by one of my colleagues on the SCDP Executive Committee, Corey Strong of HD 91.  I have been impressed with his abilities for some time, and support his candidacy for State Executive Committee, District 33.  This is in reference to an attempt on Wednesday night to reopen and reconsider three of the judicial endorsements.  He voted to do so, I voted against.  I include this because I thought he made excellent points here.)

When I got to my first ship a decade ago, my Captain told me a story about an important lesson he learned as a junior officer. He was given a very large assignment that involved a great many sailors moving equipment onto a ship. He made a mistake that led to the equipment being loaded in the wrong way. That mistake would require a great deal more man hours and rework and some weekend working days just before a major deployment for the ship. When he discovered his error, he informed his Captain of his mistake and how he would correct it. His Captain was not happy about the error but appreciated that he discovered, owned, reported, and CORRECTED his error. Had he not done this, the ship would have deployed unprepared which is an unacceptable outcome. The lesson to me was that you will make mistakes but the pain of correcting is far worse than the pain of not.

I could not help but think of this at Wednesday’s monthly meeting of the County Party. We were presented with at least a few potential mistakes that were made during our judicial selection process. I am not here to absolve the candidates that did not receive the nominations because they certainly could have done more to ensure they received the nomination. Nor am I here to argue whether or not we should have endorsed candidates at all.  What I am here to say is that the SCDP has an obligation to correct mistakes if and when they are made regardless of how painful that correction may be.  We have promised to promote qualified and worthy DEMOCRATIC candidates. If we are unsure of the worthiness or qualification of a candidate, then we should avoid promoting them or remove an endorsement when one of those things comes into question.  When you correct a mistake, the short term pain will always be small compared to the long term injury that comes from not correcting it.

It was clear that there are many people on the Executive Committee who are too concerned with the short term consequences to do the right thing and correct a potential mistake. Many people commented that we would look like little kids if we did not stand by our decision. I argue that we look like little kids if we are unwilling to correct a mistake. If you broke something when you were a child, you hid it. If you something went missing, you lied about it. If you got in trouble at school, you blamed your classmates. But most of us got older, and left those habits behind because we understood that there was a greater duty in life than avoiding uncomfortable situations.  Some of us are still content looking at a mess or ignoring it because they don’t want to deal with the scolding.

Every day, major companies like GM ignore mistakes that cost people lives and cause them injuries. We are appalled when that mistake is allowed to persist. What if my Captain was afraid of a scolding by his superior and never corrected his mistake? He would have put lives in danger and he could not live with that. We are seeing in our city government what happens when you stick with a bad decision and it comes back to haunt you later. Here, members of the Executive Committee are afraid of a scolding by the media if we change our minds. (SIDE NOTE: This is the same media that is clearly owned by and generally catering to Republicans which makes all attempts at satisfying  it fools’ errands. They are in it to sell papers and air time. Therefore, we should NEVER make decisions to avoid bad press because the SCDP is ALWAYS going to get bad press. ) Meanwhile, we are ignoring the real possibility that we may support a candidate that is unqualified or unworthy. That decision would bring 8 YEARS of discredit to the bench, undermine the judicial process for our citizens, and dilute the value of our SCDP nominations in the future. I can deal with a few CA and Channel 3 stories this July of 2014 if it avoids many potential stories and injuries in the years to come.

I understand that this process has been long and tedious and realize that taking ownership of our mistakes is a hard lesson that most of us struggle with all the time. But as a county party, we cannot waiver from that responsibility. We have to do the right thing when that is called for as it is always our name that is at stake.  

I can no longer defend the indefensible

What the hell, Commissioner Brooks?   It's one thing to alienate potential supporters when trying to make an otherwise valid point about the awarding of county contracts, but THIS?  Really?

As I have noted before, you are due great praise for your efforts to force necessary change upon Shelby County Juvenile Court, which resulted in the intercession by the US Department of Justice.  I understand that you wish to continue this change with your election to the Juvenile Court Clerk position.

How, then, are we supposed to approach potential undecided voters when you, well, keep acting a fool in public?  Threatening someone over a PARKING SPOT??  Really? It's going to be hard enough to get Democrats to vote for you when this kind of thing happens, much less independents or Republicans.  This incident pretty much ends your chances of winning, and we NEEDED you to win.

This, frankly, hurts the whole ticket, but I doubt you thought of that.  Commissioner Brooks, you have been a dedicated public servant during your years in the General Assembly and on the County Commission, but events like this are going to prevent you from serving in the future.  Sure, there will be some folks voting for you simply because there's a D next to your name, but not enough of them to win this race.

This is the sort of thing that makes the Democrats in Shelby County look like laughingstocks, and it just can't be tolerated any more.  I really don't know what else to say here.

Why re-electing Lamar Alexander may well lead to GOVERNOR Ron Ramsey

I know what you're going to say after reading the headline; put the pipe down, Cracker.

You may say it's crazy (and of course, the GOP will deny this so fast it will make your head spin), but hear me out.  LAMAR! will turn 74 years old on July 3, which means that if he were to be A) re-elected and B) serve out a full term, he would be 80 years old at the end of that term.  Sure, he looks to be in good shape, but does anything he's done in the last few years make you think that he is ENJOYING what he's doing?

He left GOP Senate leadership because he was tired of dealing with the Tea Party wing of the GOP, watching them cost the GOP Senate seats around the country.  That's one reason he is running this year, to crush Joe Carr, who has gotten NO traction whatsoever.  Maybe if the Club For Growth thought Carr had a chance to knock off Alexander, they would have gotten behind Carr.  They haven't, and Alexander will cruise to victory in the GOP Primary on August 7.

Especially if the GOP can't capture the Senate in November, it's really hard to see why LAMAR! would want to stay in Washington if he can't get anything done.  So, why did he run?  To have a say in who replaces him, that's why.

Enter Bill Haslam.

Haslam, with his gazillions, is considered to be a prohibitive favorite for re-election in November simply based on money and the fact that most Democrats seem to be waiting for 2018 when the seat will be open again (coughKarlDeancough).  Haslam, too, is tired of dealing with the crazies in his party in Nashville, and would like to move up sooner rather than later.  It's true, he could wait until the end of a 2nd term, when many think he and Senator Bob Corker will attempt to swap seats; Corker has had his eyes on the Mansion for a while, I hear.

However, Corker has enough money to run in 2018 no matter what, and if Haslam really is beginning to hate his job, why SHOULDN'T Haslam cut a deal with Ron Ramsey?  (Don't think Speaker Harwell hasn't had nightmares about THIS possibility.  It's one thing to have Ramsey as an equal, it's quite another to have him as the BOSS.)

Um, what?

Let's follow this to its logical conclusion.  Alexander runs for and obtains re-election, and announces in the middle of 2015 that, for private and family reasons, he has decided to resign his seat.  A day or two later, Bill Haslam announces that he wants that seat, will resign as Governor and newly-ascendant GOVERNOR Ron Ramsey appoints his benefactor as the new US Senator.  So what if Haslam has to run in a 2016 Special Election?  Do you think Jim Cooper would challenge him?  Who on our side of the aisle could raise enough to do that?

And Tennessee is left with ole Bootsy himself to officially run the state he has been UN-officially running since he became Lt. Governor.   Rather a frightening thought, eh?  I think so too.

Which is why the Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate now takes on a more important light.  The three people in the race are Nashville's Larry Crim (who couldn't even fend off Mark Clayton two years ago), and two men from Knoxville, attorney Terry Adams and attorney Gordon Ball.

I have heard both speak, but like better what I am hearing from Terry Adams.  Adams is younger, more energetic, FAR more progressive, and seems to have a better plan for winning a ground game than does Ball.  Ball did well to hire Kemba Ford as a front person for his Shelby County campaign; she has been everywhere representing him. He also seems to have gotten a lot of the SCDP helping him, by promising to help Shelby Democrats in the fall.  That, of course, is not a bad thing at all, until you realize that there is only ONE legislative seat in Big Shelby that COULD change hands; that would be House 96, where my political godfather, Dwayne Thompson, is challenging Steve McManus.

Ball, while a nice guy, has given more money at the national level to Democrats, has also given more money at the STATE level to the GOP.  Six years ago, Ball endorsed the fellow he is challenging now, and was a DEMOCRAT FOR HASLAM in 2010. Ball has also stated that he supports a 15% FLAT TAX, which he has tried to back away from and dance around.

Since I always tend to back the Progressives, I am supporting Terry Adams for this race, you can find him online here, and on Facebook here.  When it's a Democratic primary, I support the person who speaks my language, and that's why I like Terry Adams.  It doesn't matter to me how much money Ball happens to have, it's about what they are likely to do when they get to DC.  Every thing that I have seen from both men leads me to support Terry Adams, and I hope that you will, as well.

As a Democrat, I would support Ball in the event he wins the primary.  As a private citizen, I intend to see that that doesn't happen and that Terry Adams is nominated and then ELECTED to the United States Senate.

Of course, if you LIKE the idea of Senator Bill Haslam and Governor Ron Ramsey, you can vote for Lamar Alexander's re-election, if you choose.  However, I suspect that, if you liked that idea, you probably wouldn't be reading this blog.

:)

How I Am Voting In The Primary, or I Get In Trouble Yet Again

MOVED TO THE TOP FOR ELECTION DAY


Well, this is the first time that I have A) been a blogger and B) served on the SCDP ExecCom.  Because of the latter fact, allow me to say that I will faithfully support all Democratic nominees, whether I voted for them or not, and let me swear on the souls of my grandchildren, that I will not break the peace we've made here today.

Oops, wrong film.  I digress.

County Mayor - Deidre Malone, for all the reasons, go here.

County Commission, District 10 - Reginald Milton, for all the reasons, go here.

Assessor - Cheyenne Johnson is an 8-year incumbent with an impeccable record of service to this county, and I see no reason to vote for anyone else.

Trustee - Derrick Bennett ran four years ago as an Independent for this office, he is running this year as a Democrat.  He gets the edge here over Latroy Williams.

Sheriff - Bennie Cobb is unopposed in the primary and will face the incumbent Bill Oldham in August.

Circuit Court Clerk - I have no idea who Rhonda Banks is.  I have known Del Gill for more years than I can count.  Del was the head of the civil division of the General Sessions Court Clerk under Otis Jackson.  Your call, people.

Criminal Court Clerk - Without question, the best set of candidates in any of these races, and it was VERY difficult for me to choose.  I have a very high regard for all of the candidates, who have well-thought out ideas for how the office, and the whole criminal court system, should be run.  At least two of the candidates, Wanda Halbert (at-large MCS Board before becoming District 4 Councilor) and Thomas Long (19-year incumbent City Court Clerk) understand how to win citywide, because they have done it.  Long's record of service has been exemplary.

However, the one person in the race who has been inside the system has the best chance, to me, of fixing it, and that's Michael R. McCusker.  I believe Long or Halbert could win countywide, but I think McCusker gives us the best chance to win, so I am voting for him.

Juvenile Court Clerk - There is no question that without the relentless efforts of County Commissioner Henri Brooks, the problems of Juvenile Court would never have been brought to light and JC would never have been forced to address its' internal problems.  We all owe her a deep gratitude for her efforts.

That said, it's one thing to bring attention to problems; it's quite another to implement solutions.  That requires, in my mind, a different skill-set, one of consensus-building and coordination with all the parties involved.  Commissioner Brooks has always been a lightning rod whether on the Commission or in the State House, not always justifiably, but enough that it gives pause as to whether she is the person who can effect the necessary changes.

For that reason, I am voting for Ken Moody, a veteran of city government who can work with all the necessary parties to help move Juvenile Court in the direction it needs to serve ALL segments of the community.

Probate Court Clerk - Of all the candidates in this race, only ONE is an attorney, which I find to be odd.  Regina Beale is making her first race at the age of 25, let's hope it's not the last, as we need more young people involved.  However, at the end of the day, there are only two candidates who have a real chance of unseating incumbent Paul Boyd.

Heidi Kuhn is a 15-year veteran of County Government and knows her way around it, and presents a good campaign.  Aaron Hall, however, is a probate attorney and understands the office backwards and forwards.  He can run this office because, after hearing him speak, you know that he knows what to do and presents an air of confidence that he can hit the ground running and make the changes necessary to run it better.  I am voting for Aaron Hall.

County Clerk - John H. Freeman has been my friend for over 30 years.  He is a veteran of County government and has worked closely with both Mayor Wharton and Mayor Luttrell and knows how to get things done.  John has ideas for expanding the Clerk's office to bringing it closer to the public it serves, making government work for YOU.  He has the experience, the knowhow, and the ability to make the County Clerk's office run more effectively than ever before and he will be outstanding, and I urge you to vote for John H. Freeman.

Register of Deeds  - Stephen Christian is a nice young man who is earnest and sincere, and I hope that he continues to be involved in Democratic politics,  That said, I see no reason to deny Coleman Thompson a third nomination to attempt to unseat the veteran Tom Leatherwood.  I have worked with Coleman on Democratic races for years and know that he has the experience to make this run.

Now, here are a few recommendations for other County Commission races:

District 6 - Willie Brooks

District 7 - incumbent Melvin Burgess

District 8 - Walter Bailey's last race may well be his toughest, against former City Councilor Berlin Boyd and David Vinciarelli.  Boyd is going hammer-and-tong after the veteran Bailey, who has said that if he is re-elected, he will not run in 2018.  In what promises to be a Commission with a lot of new faces, Bailey's institutional memory will be necessary for the Democrats on the Commission, so my choice is Walter Bailey.

District 9 -  Commissioner Justin Ford, the most inconsistent of the incumbent Democrats, faces the fight of his life after having South Memphis taken from him in redistricting.  While you can never count out anyone named Ford in a Democratic primary, he is fighting former MCS Board member Patrice Robinson and Memphis Education Association President Keith Williams on their home turf in Whitehaven.  Ford has attacked Robinson for her vote to surrender the MCS Charter, one that I personally believe was necessary to prevent its defunding.

Ford's voting record on Democratic issues has been unreliable, and he is too ambitious by half, floating a possible run for Congress in two years.  I think his days on the Commission should end, and I support Patrice Robinson for this seat.

District 11 - No recommendation.

District 12 -  I eagerly endorse attorney and former SCDP Chair Van Turner for this office.  I know him and support him and believe he will be a tireless worker for the people of this district.

As always, your mileage may vary, so do your research as I did and see what you think.  Early voting is going on downtown now, with the satellites opening on Friday and running through 7 PM on May 1.

Some thoughts on where we are and WHO we are and WHAT we are as Democrats.

A couple of weeks ago, I was having a discussion with a friend who is also an elected official.  My friend suggested, with good reason, that next year, when there are NO partisan elections, that we have a retreat or gathering with as many of us who consider ourselves to be Democrats gather to discuss just what we mean when we say we are Democrats.

Part of our problem, at least on a statewide basis, is that so many Democrats wanted to run from what it meant to be a NATIONAL Democrat, since that involved discussions of race and what we were as Democrats prior to 1964.  We had Democrats in the rural areas that wanted no part of the Democrats of the urban areas that brought them statewide victories.  Many of them retired or got beat in response to the election of Barack Obama as President.

Also as much as no one wanted to admit it, there were (and ARE) urban Democrats who wanted no part of the rural Democrats that enabled us to control the General Assembly for 140 years, along with the machinery of state government.

The true fact, as far as I am concerned, Democrats are not all ANYTHING.  We are a polyglot, with white, black, brown, straight, gay, transgender, Christian, Jewish, Muslim, with the occasional Buddhist thrown in for good measure.  The Republicans have spent the last 40 years attacking any position left of far right, much less left of center.  In the process, they have done their best to destroy harmony in this country, marginalizing centrist Republicans and forcing moderates like Lamar Alexander to kowtow to the further of the right.

However, due to this situation, as many of us struggle with how to move the country's true center back TO the center, we face a struggle within our own ranks.  These pop up especially in the primaries.

Those of us that sit on the Executive Committee must understand (and I include myself) that we are not the Party, but merely represent it.  Those who vote in primaries are the ones who truly can call themselves Democrats, and we have to figure out A) why so many Democrats refuse to take part in the primary process and B) just what it is that they want for their candidates.

And, C) why it appears that white candidates feel that they can't win primaries, and D) why African-Americans feel that white Democrats won't vote for African-Americans in county general elections.

Both of these are, in my opinion, overreactions.  Both of the men named Harold Ford could not have been elected without white support, and Steve Cohen could not have been elected without African-American support.  Indeed, I find that when it comes to elections involving actual issues and policy, such as executive races (Mayor, Sheriff) or legislative, all Democrats vote together.

That, above all else, is why ALL Democrats need to gather next year.  I intend to work behind the scenes for this as we move through the year.

Here's something to consider:  Regarding clerkship races, white Democrats often see no difference in policy, and many of them believe that court clerkships should be appointed by the judges of those jurisdictions rather than be elected.  I have said this before, and will keep saying it.  Clerkship races tend to be more about the number of jobs that can be hired than any policies that need to be reviewed. This is why we lose white Democrats at that point in the ballot.  That, and the face that we lose all types of Democrats that far down the ballot.

One of the problems that African-American candidates face is that, while activists like myself know these candidates, the average voters do not.  I can help to a certain extent, but if you plan to run countywide, you had better be able to raise at least $50,000 or you aren't going to have a chance to beat an incumbent.   Why?  Because you need to be able to do direct mail to Democrats, especially white Democrats.  If you have sent mail pieces to white Democrats, that makes it far more likely that they will greet you warmly when you do targeted door-to-door.   (I had a candidate once ask me this very thing several years ago).  We are, in fact seeing this more often, as I am starting to get mail pieces from all Democratic candidates.

As familiarity increases, so will the number of victorious Democratic candidates.  This leads me to my next topic.

As Democrats, we need to stop beating each other up in public.  (Waits for the tomatoes to be thrown).  I understand my own role in this, and work to do better.  To those who are candidates in the primary, I want to know not only why you are the best Democrat, but to know how you will beat the Republican you will face in the general.

And once we have completed this process, we have to work together and elect Democrats.  You may not like whom the Democratic electorate has selected as the candidate, but we have to respect that choice, regardless, because, to paraphrase Hyman Roth, this is the Party we have chosen.

This, too, is why I hope that we, as a Party Executive Committee, do NOT choose to endorse in the non-partisan judicial races.  If we wish to identify those who have voted more in the Democratic primaries, that's one thing.  Choosing between Democrats is not OUR job, it's the electorate's job, and we had better respect that.  It also takes focus away from our primary function: to assist the NOMINEES of the Party with their elections.  Also, as I know (and have DONE in the past), the ExecCom members will help whomever they please, as it's a NON-PARTISAN election.  ENDORSEES are NOT NOMINEES, now or ever.

With regard to Party Discipline, we have to be judicious and select the proper time for such matters, which is NOT the same thing as suggesting that we have NO discipline.   We can move forward from here.

I also have to say that Bryan Carson is doing an amazing job of juggling all the various groups within the party, and those of us who have been around for a while need to be there for him more than we have been.  He's doing a fine job right now, and he continues to bust his butt to elect Democrats.

It's time to work for the primary candidate of your choice, and then support whichever nominee is chosen by the Democratic electorate.

And let's think always about how to INCREASE that Democratic electorate.

Give me some RED MEAT, y'all!

As Kyle Veazey noted in his coverage of last night's Democratic County Mayoral debate, (sorry, behind a paywall) there was not much disagreement among the candidates, other than Rev. Kenneth Whalum calling, as he has throughout, that NO SCHOOLS should be closed in the city.  It got to a point where my co-blogger Jon and I figured that if we had taken a shot of whiskey every time he suggested this, our livers would have fallen out of our bodies before the first hour had ended.

I believe he is sincere, and I agree that we have to focus on the inner city in order to turn the city around, I just don't know how you fund that, since it will take a hell of a lot more than the $57 million that the courts say the city owes Shelby County Schools.  To be blunt, if a school is closing in a neighborhood, that is a real sign that the neighborhood is dead anyway, with anyone who could leave having done so.

Enough on that.  Even with all of that, all three of the candidates, including outgoing Commissioner Steve Mulroy and my favorite candidate, former Commission Chair Deidre Malone, would be a dramatic improvement over the incumbent, Mark Luttrell, who runs the County like it was a jail, something that I wish all three candidates would point out.

Y'all, PLEASE give us some red meat, will you??  All three of you need to beat up Mark Luttrell and point out his failures, because you are asking the electorate to reverse a decision they made four years ago, and that's not easy.  This means you A) have to point out why continuing his employment would be a costly mistake for Shelby Countians, and B) you then have to prove why YOU are the proper replacement.

AND YOU NEED TO STOP BEING SO DAMNED NICE ABOUT IT.  HIT HIM, WILL YOU?

Not physically, of course, that would be assault!   But ALL three of you need to attack him and attack him HARD and stop worrying about whether you are offending anyone.  If you are doing your jobs properly, SOMEONE will be offended, you just have to make sure it's the people who deserve to be offended!  I can't imagine that there are that many people who are voting in our primary that worry about Mark Luttrell's feelings.

Once this primary is over, you have to go HARD every day whacking the incumbent about the head and shoulders, and it's not like there's not a litany of reasons to do so: Title X, the anti-blight plan, Head Start, screwing over the city of Memphis, and on and on and on.

And when the Mayor shows up at Sidney Chism's picnic in June, whomever the winner is needs to be all up in Luttrell's grill about this stuff.  If you can't go after the REPUBLICAN County Mayor in Southwest Memphis, where the hell ARE you going to do it?  We need to be sure that any GOP candidate who shows up down there (and they ALL do) is confronted about their performance in office (or lack thereof).

Oh, and Early Voting starts downtown on April 16, and in the satellites on Friday, April 25.  Be ready, and go vote.

In the interim, Mayoral candidates, GO KICK LUTTRELL'S BUTT. REPEATEDLY.  LEAVE BOOTPRINTS!

You can thank me later.

One last note:  Since my last post, this blog has not one, BUT TWO, writers that are now members of the Shelby County Democratic Party Executive Committee.  I replaced the legendary Steve Ross in House 90, and Jon Carroll is now representing House 93, along with our friend John Marek.  Thanks to all who voted for us to be there; we promise to raise hell, take names, and elect Democrats.

I see what you did there, Commissioner Ford

Commissioner Justin Ford is in a tough re-nomination fight for his re-drawn County Commission seat.  During the redistricting, the parts of South Memphis surrounding the family funeral home at Florida and South Parkway were taken from him and given to Commissioner Walter Bailey.  Now, Ford's seat is primarily composed of Whitehaven and Westwood; while he is certainly known there, his strength is not as solid there as it was in South Memphis.

Add to that two fierce primary opponents in former MCS Board Commissioner Patrice Robinson and Memphis Education Association President Keith Williams, and the Commissioner faces the toughest campaign that he has had to face as a candidate.

All of that puts today's interesting development into context.

My phone blew up this morning with news that the Commissioner was planning to challenge Congressman Steve Cohen - as an INDEPENDENT.  This would have enabled him to avoid a primary; however, it would not have looked good if he were a sitting Democratic elected official who was undermining another Democratic nominee, regardless if it were the incumbent, Steve Cohen, or one of his challengers..

Then, it turns out that the petition was pulled but never filed, and by what Ford described as a "community group" that was not happy with the list of Democratic candidates for TN-09 and wanted him to run.  Ford was later quoted as saying that he may consider a Congressional run in two years.

UPDATE:  This is being edited to reflect new information, stop here and go read Jackson Baker, who, as always, has the full details.

Deidre Malone for County Mayor

I know, a lot of you probably thought I would jump on the Steve Mulroy bandwagon.  Why?

I supported Deidre 4 years ago, because I thought she was the best candidate running then, and I still do.  She is as solid a Democrat as there is, I served with her on the SCDP Executive Committee, and I was impressed then with her abilities to manage and coordinate while standing up for those issues that we as Democrats support.

She has been involved with large businesses, having served as a Vice President while at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, and small businesses, working with them for her public relations firm the Carter Malone Group.  She has served two terms on the Shelby County Commission, chairing the Budget Committee and the Commission itself.

It is one thing to be a good advocate, as Commissioner Mulroy has been, for the most part, and as Reverend Kenneth T. Whalum Jr. was on the School Board.  That is what good legislators do, and Deidre did that as well.

It is quite another to build consensus, to manage large projects, and coordinate diverse efforts, and that is why Deidre, in my opinion, stands head and shoulders about the other candidates in the Democratic field.  Deidre is the only candidate in the Democratic field that can show her abilities in this skill set, the ADMINISTRATIVE skill set, and she will prove why she can defeat Warden, er, Mayor Mark Luttrell in the August County General Election.

Look, I like Steve Mulroy, he stands up for a lot of the things I believe in, and he 's a great advocate.  I appreciate the Kellogg's campout, it's something that all Democrats need to be involved with, supporting our workers.

However, I have a question for him:  Do you remember back in October 2011, when Luttrell pulled the Title X funding from Planned Parenthood Greater Memphis Region and got the Commission to approve a contract for Christ Community Health Center, which was about the least-friendly option for reproductive rights for indigent women?  Remember how you wound up voting for that, which led to an angry call from me and we talked about it?  You even posted your reasoning on Facebook, which appeased a lot of people because you said that you would be able to get oversight for the CCHC operations to ensure that indigent women would get the reproductive services that had been provided by PPGMR.

My question is twofold, Commissioner.  First, where's the oversight?  I don't remember seeing ANYTHING in the CA, the Flyer, the Daily News, the MBJ or the TV stations about any oversight being done.  Has there been any oversight?  If so, what happened?

The second part of the question is this:  If you were to be elected Mayor, and the contract came up for renewal, would you support giving the contract back to PPGMR?  I think a lot of your potential supporters would love to know the answer to that question.

While we are waiting, let's talk about the Reverend Kenneth Whalum, Jr, whom I like and respect as well.  He knows how to advocate against something, as his pointed attacks on the poor campaign done by the Memphis Pre-K Initiative sank it.  His use of free media overcame the huge sums of money spent by the Pre-K folks, and he was smart about it.

One of the reasons that he is in this race, I believe, is that he is upset with Deidre for her support of the pre-K Initiative and for her support of the MCS-SCS merger, which I also supported and proudly so.  Yes, the Reverend has screamed about the $57 million supposedly owed by the City of Memphis to MCS/SCS (Shea Flinn can prove that the schools actually owe the city, but I digress), and he was on the Board when that was going on, so what happened?

It is also important to remember WHY MCS surrendered its charter.  The GOP-dominated legislature was going to allow the then-suburban based SCS to draw a hard boundary and create a Special School District, which would have forced MCS to rely on just the tax money from within the city, which would have starved it to death.  (yes, I agree that MCS was overly layered with bureacracy, but that's an argument for another day).  SCS would have gotten richer, MCS would have gotten poorer, and the downward spiral would have escalated quickly.

Now, since the merger took place, all the schools in MCS receive money from the ENTIRE county as the unified district, while all the folks living in the burbs with their own MSDs have to pay for TWO systems, like Memphis used to do.  The problems in SCS now have far more to do with the GOP agenda to force excessive testing on the system in their never-ending attempt to destroy public education.  You know that to be true, Reverend, why don't you mention that?

You say you want to retire and replace ineffective politicians; I can appreciate that.  So why are you opposing someone who has actually been EFFECTIVE?   You have to be more specific in your advocacy and you need to tell us how you're going to do this.

And all of you need to tell us why Luttrell needs to go, because the media, especially TV, seems be in the tank for him.  It's one thing for me to tell people why he runs the county like a jail, but you ALL need to do it.

Since I believe Deidre Malone is not only the best candidate for doing just that, by governing this county and working with the Commission to achieve a higher standard, I am supporting her for Mayor, and I hope you will as well.

Pete Seeger. American, dead at 94

One of the greatest American folk singers and songwriters, Pete Seeger, passed away last night after a short hospital stay.  We remember his greatness here:

Why Democrats Have Problems Winning CountyWide Elections, Part the Infinity

Yes,  I partially stole that title from Charlie Pierce, but it seems to work.

For almost twenty years, there has been a myth that has plagued our Party here; namely, that there are enough African-Americans here to ensure victory in any race.

Are African-Americans the majority in this county?  Certainly.  So, why does it seem like our Democratic candidates only win in Presidential election years in November?  Because our African-American base only shows up then.  Go ahead, look it up, but it's true.

If such a monolithic vote were true, we would have every County office. The truth is that the Republicans have more money (and they ALWAYS will, despite our efforts); even more importantly, they are far better ORGANIZED than we are.  Bryan Carson is doing his damnedest to try and change this with the SCDP, and I appreciate all that they are doing.

Democrats, of course, are famous for NOT marching in lockstep, but the lack of organization hurts us in off-year elections, and not just here in Shelby County, but nationally as well.  We need, if anything, to be MORE organized than the GOP, not less.

So, we can't afford to make mistakes.  For Countywide races, we need people who can raise at least $50,000 because you need to send mailings and have phone-banking operations; door-to-door just does not work Countywide.  If you have lost more than once before, you don't need to run because the electorate has already told you more than once that they would prefer someone else and you are not likely to win Countywide, even if you won a Democratic Primary because of name recognition.

If you are running to unseat an incumbent, you must do TWO things.  First, you must make the case that the incumbent is doing a such poor job that they must be removed.  Second, you then have to convince the electorate that YOU are the person to take the job and turn it around.  Complicating this task is the knowledge that you are asking the electorate to admit that they made a mistake in the prior election, something few people want to do.  That is the major reason it is so hard to dislodge an incumbent, unless they have done such an obviously poor job that the electorate is enraged at that incumbent.

Note: that is why I continue to be amazed that people continue to primary Steve Cohen, as his re-election numbers continue to reflect a growing satisfaction with his representation of the 9th District.  But I digress.

Another problem that Shelby County Democrats have is that there are people who make money off these quadrennial elections even though there has never been ANY indication that they have provided one iota of value to any of our candidates: the ballot creators.  They charge candidates to be on their ballot and pass it out at the polls and claim to be the difference on those rare occasions when one of our candidates wins an election.  These people are leeches upon our party and we need to find a legal way to be rid of them, because they cause more confusion than clarity and hurt our candidates more than they help.

We need candidates who can make a case that the person whose office they seek is causing injury to the taxpayers in Shelby County and can afford to get that case out to the public.  We still have no candidate to oppose Amy Weirich, who has continued the failed policies of Bill Gibbons; frankly, it's almost too late as she has amassed a war chest. To be honest, of all the county offices the Republicans hold, I believe it's more important to hold the AG's office than even that of the Mayor, even though I certainly support a Democratic County mayor.

Yet, we never seem to find a candidate until it is too late and they are inevitably underfunded, and we lose, time after time.  This must stop.

We seem to have good candidates at the County Commission level, but we need solid Countywide candidates with good name recognition (like, say, Deidre Malone) who know how to fight against the GOP. If you have lost Countywide more than once, do the Party a favor and get out unless you have the time AND money AND organization to win the race.

Rant over.

It's time to think about a Democratic Senate candidate.

As Sara Kyle decides whether to challenge Governor Haslam and his billions in the 2014 Governor's Race (and here's hoping that she DOES), there is more to think about for 2014.

With the announcement that State Rep. Joe Carr of Lascassas has decided to challenge Senator LAMAR! Alexander in the Senate GOP Primary, it raises some questions that Democrats need to think about.  As we have seen in other states, when a moderate Senator such as Alexander is challenged in a GOP Primary and then defeated, it has enabled Democrats to elect a Senator, such as Joe Donnelly in Indiana, and has opened up possibilities for Michelle Nunn (yes, that's Sam's daughter) in Georgia.

Does Joe Carr have a real chance to knock off LAMAR! in the primary? Well, once we start seeing his disclosures and can determine if the Club For Growth and ALEC will put serious funding into Carr's campaign, then that could cause Democrats to rethink whether to field a candidate that can raise money into the race.

If no one else gets in, I will probably vote for Jacob Maurer; he seems to have the right stands on the issues for me, but I harbor no illusions about his ability to beat LAMAR!.  However, what if Carr really gets the wackos out to beat LAMAR! in the Primary?  The Old Guard GOP truly hates the Tea Partiers with a purple passion, and if the last member of the Holy Trinity that built the TNGOP (Baker, Thompson and Alexander) is upended, does anyone else think that their money might go to a Democrat worth voting for?

I think we may know the answer to this question before Christmas.  And, if it looks like Carr will make enough headway to beat LAMAR!, then we need to get someone ready to run.

Given that the type of person that OGGOPs might be willing to support in the event of a Carr upset, there's really only one Democrat who could get the support and funding from those folks:

Jim Cooper.

I know, I know.  No, I am NOT high or drunk or otherwise altered.  Under normal circumstances, I would be calling for him to be primaried from the left.  However, as you may have noticed, these are NOT normal circumstances, and if Joe Carr were to somehow snatch the GOP nomination from LAMAR!, there are a lot of GOP donors who would be pissed off enough to help Cooper.  This may be his best shot.

All of this, of course, comes down to whether the wackos in the TNGOP can knock off the ultimate OGGOP; no one thinks Cooper could take LAMAR! mano-a-mano.  However, if Carr proves to be a more formidable force than anyone believed, Cooper would be ready to send him back to Rutherford County.  It would also mean that a Democrat would win a Senate race for the first time in this state since Al Gore was re-elected in 1990.

All of which means Jim Cooper needs to think about this seriously.  As much as I have been at odds with him, he clearly would be our best choice in the event of a GOP upset.   I would absolutely hold my tongue and keyboard and try not to criticize him, knowing what the alternative could be.

And if we had Kyle and Cooper at the top of our ticket, it sure as hell might encourage Democrats to run for State House and State Senate positions, and that is needed.

Jim Cooper, take this under consideration, if you have not done so already.  If Carr can beat LAMAR!, you could move up and take another Senate seat from the GOP, which would be indeed a good thing.

So where are the YOUNG Democrats coming from?

First, y'all need to go and read JR Lind's Weekly Obsession from the soon-to-be-defunct Nashville City Paper.  Go ahead, I can wait.  Ok, got it?  Good.

He makes a helluva point that the TNDP and its enablers are living in a past where 1994 never happened and we are in perpetual 1992 and people WANT to vote for Blue Dogs and EVERYTHING WILL BE FINE IF YOU JUST LISTEN TO US!!!!

Well, no.  The part that froze me but did not surprise me was this quote about the departure of Lowe Finney from the State Senate:

Not to disparage the Senate Democratic Caucus, many of whom have given years — and in some cases, nearly a century — of service to the state of Tennessee. But that’s just the problem. 

With Finney, the average age of a Senate Democrat is 64. 

Without him, it’s 69.

Whoa.  Now, I remember that Ross had noted something similar at VIBINC, but I can't find it right now.

Where is our future coming from, people?  I am not disparaging the state YDs; Sean Braisted is busting his butt to build that organization.  Where, though, are our Young Democrats?  We need more people like Braisted, Spencer Bowers (UT-Martin), Charles Uffelman (U Memphis) and more young WOMEN to be involved and to RUN for office.

Speaking of that, what happened to George Monger?  Remember the young tech whiz that Democrats named to the County Election Commission but inexplicably refused to re-appoint him, naming Anthony Tate in his stead?  (By the way, I hear good things about Tate's work so far.)  I have heard disturbing reports that there were other legislators afraid of this rising star and wanted to short-circuit his career.  PEOPLE, THIS IS THE TYPE OF YOUNG DEMOCRAT WE NEED!!!  HERE AND THROUGHOUT THE STATE.

So, I will tell you what I think should happen.  With the passing of Lois DeBerry, we now have an open seat in the General Assembly.  George Monger is the type of young, aggressive leader that we need in Nashville who will not be afraid to call shenanigans on the GOP.  We need to encourage him to run for District 91, and if the County Commission appoints someone to fill that position in the interim before the necessary special election, we need to encourage them to appoint George to that seat.

We don't need to stop with George; we need younger, stronger voices representing Democratic policies in our General Assembly, our County Commission , our City Council and our Unified School Board whenever and wherever possible.  We need to build a BENCH, which is what the state GOP is doing, and they are smart to do so.  We need these younger people because without them, the Democratic Party has no future here.

We need to make sure that they have good jobs, we need to encourage College Democrats clubs at ALL of our local colleges, not just U of M (I know CBU will be a tough nut to crack, but still....).  We need to encourage the building of Young Democrats clubs in every county here.  Terry Spicer was doing a terrific job, then he moved, but now he's back, so maybe he could get involved!

And Shelby County elected Bryan Carson as County Chair, who got elected for far more than his mother's good name, he got it because he WORKED for it.  We need younger people involved because old farts like me won't be around forever.  We need to ENCOURAGE our Young Democrats, not run them off.

So, what should we do about this?  I want to hear from you in the comments.  And, George Monger, PLEASE run for District 91!

Let's talk about what we can do to help take control away from the GOP

A lot of people look at the Tennessee Democratic Party and ask, why aren't they doing more to turn the electoral tide back in our direction.  First, of all, they really don't know how, because they have been the party of power for so long that they have no clue how to raise money other than to stick out their hands at lobbyists.

When the GOP is in control and the lobbyists don't need you anymore, and you really don't know how to do grassroots organizing, because you really haven't had to do so, you get kind of lost.  Chip Forrester tried, but never really got anything going, though he had a good staff.  Roy Herron has dedicated staff, but isn't really raising money these days, other than to sell tickets for Jackson Day.

So, what do we do?  Well, start by getting involved in your County Party, if possible.  If you look up your county and see there is no real party apparatus there, contact the County Chairs Association to see how you can get involved in your county.

In Shelby County, we have a good young chair in Bryan Carson, and he is building an organization and if you live here, he could use your help.  Come out on August 27 to Spaghetti Warehouse from 7-9 PM and meet the Executive Committee.  Yes, there will be a $20 donation, because they are going to need big bucks to run their August and November GET OUT THE VOTE drives in 2014.

I am going to have more later about the countywide races.  I hope to see you on August 27.

Sara Kyle is seriously considering a race for Governor!

This is nothing short of spectacular news, giving the state's Democrats a rallying figure at the top of the ticket.

Joey Garrison broke the story at the Tennnessean, referencing the Facebook page I mentioned earlier this morning. While she has much to discuss and think about, we need to be prepared to support her in this run as much as possible.  We need to be there with time, money and whatever needs to be done in order to make this a successful campaign.

With a strong candidate like Sara at the top of the ticket, more candidates will be encouraged to attempt campaigns for the General Assembly and the State Senate, which are desperately needed.  It will be an uphill battle, as Haslam has all the money he will need, with the Koch Brothers and ALEC standing by to give even more.  This is why we have to be prepared with time, money, and organization.

More on this later, but this is terrific news!

Run, Sara, Run!!!!

Well, it seems as though my friends Matt Kuhn and Michael Lipe have started a page on Facebook to encourage the last Democratic statewide-elected official NOT named Bredesen to run for Governor in 2014.  After thinking about this, I LIKE the idea, for more than just the reasons they state.

What, you don't know who they mean?  Let me let them tell you:

Aside from Phil Bredesen, who was the last Tennessee Democrat elected to a statewide office in Tennessee?

Sara Kyle

In 1994, one of the worst years for Democrats in Tennessee, who was the only democrat to win a statewide office?

Sara Kyle

Who was the last woman elected state wide in Tennessee?

Sara Kyle.

Who could start tomorrow with an organization spanning from the tri-cities where she was born, Nashville where she served in state government to Memphis where she is a wife, mother and church member?

Sara Kyle

Who could start raising money next week through national women's groups for public service?

Sara Kyle

Who was perceived as the best campaigner in the last democratic primary for Governor?

Sara Kyle (I'll give you that comes from her husband, Sen Jim Kyle)

Who cares about the people of Tennessee and the consumers she looked out for as the Director of TRA than our current Governor, who seems more interested in giving kickbacks to cronies than working for Tennesseans.

Sara Kyle

Who does Tennessee need to protect working Tennesseans?

Sara Kyle

Please forward this to interested Tennesseans who want Sara Kyle to run for Governor - who stands for all Tennesseans.

Run, Sara, Run

The news gets worse: Lowe Finney is not running for re-election to the Senate

Senator Lowe Finney (D-Jackson, District 27) sent out an announcement that he is not seeking re-election to his seat, which used to represent Madison, Gibson and Carroll Counties, but now represents Madison, Crockett, Dyer, Lake and Lauderdale Counties.  If this is for a run for higher office, then this may be a good thing.  However, from the tone of this letter to his constituents, it appears as though he is leaving politics, and that is NOT of the good:

Share this:

Dear Friend, Today I am making an important announcement, one that I wanted to share with you - one of my friends and strongest supporters - before it’s out in the news media. After much prayer and thoughtful consideration, I have decided not to seek a third term to the state Senate. I have had no higher honor than representing West Tennessee families in the state legislature. I am proud to have worked to improve health care for senior citizens, cut the sales tax on food and provide great opportunities for young students and veterans to attend college. I thank my wife, Tiffany, for her support all these years. Although I am leaving the Senate at the end of next year, I will remain your Senator for Dyer, Crockett, Lake, Lauderdale and Madison counties until the November election. I will work even harder in my last session, and I will be available to serve you in any way I can. I remain,   Respectfully yours, Paid for by Friends of Lowe Finney | Teresa Luna, Treasurer PO Box 1432 | Jackson, TN 38302

Two things of note today!

One, if you are in the Memphis area, go to the Germantown Democratic Club meeting tonight at Coletta's Restaurant, 2850 Appling Road; Dinner will begin at 6 P.M. and the speaker starts at 6:45.  Who's the speaker, you ask?  None other than our own VIBINC, Steve Ross, who will discuss the new County Commission districts.  Nobody is more prepared than he is, so it will be informative and fun.. I gotta work late tonight, so I can't be there, but you should go!

Next, stop what you are doing and go read NEWSCOMA right now.  Go ahead, I'll wait.

Again, she asks the right questions, but will the TNDP have the right answers?  I like this part right here:

A lot of folks I talk to discuss the wealth of Haslam and it is a fair discussion. He has a great deal of money and how much is something that no one truly knows. It’s hard to fathom what kind of money would be needed to set up a serious gubernatorial challenger. And it’s not just democrats raising eyebrows but moderate republicans as well.
And then I think about Wendy Davis from Texas. I think that what it really takes is someone opposing what is happening in this state right now just as she did. She stood up for something she believed in.

Bingo.  It's time for the TNDP to wake up and realize that GOP-lite will not work any more.  Until we find candidates that EXCITE and INSPIRE people, we are screwed.

Ok, that's all for the moment, I will try to get back here more often.

Senator Joe Brown??

Nope, I am not making this up.  I am serious, Jackson put a piece up on Sunday night about THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER's suggestion that the Judge, having recently been canceled by CBS, was headed back to town to take on LAMAR! Alexander in 2014.

I sent the article out to my list, and within minutes, activists started replying that this was a great idea.  After having made rather decent money for the last decade or so judging on TV, Judge Joe might want to think about it.  He's got enough money to run a poll to determine how serious his chances would be against the veteran Senator and former two-term-Governor.

Hell, I kind of like the idea; if the Tea Partiers aren't allowed to primary LAMAR!, they might just decide either to vote for their favorite judge, or just sit home.  Either way, it's a chance for us to win a statewide race, which hasn't happened in a while.  Your thoughts?