October 31, 2006
AlphaPatriot's Nov. 2006 Endorsements
Enough people have asked me for my voting guide that I have finally created and posted it. Thanks to everyone for the interest.
I know, there are only two more days of early voting left. And I know (courtesy of John Harvey) that there has been a record turnout of early voters in Shelby County. Hopefully no one came looking and went to the polls empty handed and made a horrible mistake [poor attempt at wry humor in written form].
But I feel compelled to explain why I picked who and what I did.
"Marriage Protection" Amendment: Most of my friends and acquaintances, conservative and liberal alike, will no doubt be surprised at my voting "no" on amendment 1.
But I do so not because I think homosexuals should be allowed to marry, but because I don't think marriage is any business of the governments. It is a religious issue. If a church wants to allow gays to marry and you don't like it, then I suggest you don't go to that church.
I believe the debate has been framed incorrectly. The issue is whether same sex partners should be legally entitled to benefits and what to do with the children. And frankly, I think they should be entitled to benefits (which is why I will never be elected to public office as a Republican) and that children will end up in same sex households no matter what the laws are, so we must deal with the issue.
Besides, I am opposed to enshrining a restriction on anything except the government in a constitution. I won't say more on this aspect because Say Uncle has eloquently covered the topic.
Tax Relief for Seniors Amendment: I don't like the wording but I like the concept. Give those seniors who need it a break. Hopefully, this won't get abused.
Governor: Bredesen has been wrapped up in more scandal than any governor in a long, long time, not that you would know it from the media coverage. I pick Bryson because Bredesen and his cronies don't deserve a second chance.
US Senate: Ford is so liberal that he has a score of 21 from the American Conservative Union. For comparison's sake, Arlen Spector has a 63 and Robert Byrd has a 20. I don't love Corker, but this one is a no brainer.
US House: I have defended Marsha and posted as to why I love Marsha. Nothing has changed. I'm joyfully voting Marsha Blackburn.
State Races: I have personally met and spoken with every candidate that has a red checkmark next to their name. Every one is a good man. I believe that I know most of them well enough that I would personally vouch for them in just about any situation.
Angelo Cobrasci: Henri "No Pledge" Brooks is running for reelection in District 92. This woman is a blight on Tennessee politics, so I recommend writing in Angelo Cobrasci. Not because he will win (even if he did, he doesn't live in the district), but because it is well known that he is the most fearsome wingnut in the county. Send a signal: we want true conservatives!
In fact, I recommend writing "Angelo Cobrasci" in for any race that doesn't have a true conservative in the race.
Bartlett Mayor: I do not endorse reelecting Mayor McDonald because I am still trying to determine if he deserves it. But he is popular and running unopposed -- there is no doubt that he will win in a landslide of massive proportions. I may just write in Angelo Cobrasci.
Bartlett Alderman 1: Do you like the direction Bartlett is headed? Then vote for Morris. I don't know of anything that he has done that makes me want to pull the lever for him.
Meanwhile, Bubba Pleasant will bring important political contacts (having served in the TN House) and a know-how that is hard to beat. On the other hand, I wasn't a huge Bubba fan.
Judging from the number of yard signs, I'd say Bubba is cruising to victory. He can probably do that on name recognition alone.
Another Angelo Cobrasci write-in? I don't know. I'll decide tomorrow at the poll.
Update: The night before the election, I found out that Morris is a realtor. I don't like the way they are throwing up houses on quarter-acre lots across the street from $400K houses on 4 acre lots, and I don't like a realtor being in charge of such decisions. I'd rather have a retired fireman with contacts in Nashville in charge. I enthusiastically endorse Bubba Pleasant for Alderman Position 1.
Bartlett Alderman 2: I've met and like Emily. She makes an effort to meet the citizens and hear them out. She's running unopposed, which I'm not displeased about. She gets my vote.
Bartlett Alderman 3: Bridges is a college kid whose political experience seems to consist of working on campaigns for the Ford family. I'll be voting for Parsons.
BTW, click here if you want the official Shelby County ballot.
AlphaPatriot's November 2006 Picks
These candidates have been researched and approved by AlphaPatriot.
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| Constitutional Amendments | ||
| Amendment 1 | ||
 Yes | Vote YES if you believe marriage should be defined in the Tennessee constitution as being between a man and a woman. | |
 NO | Vote NO if you believe in homosexual marriages or if you don't think this is an issue for the constitution. | |
| Amendment 2 | ||
| Yes | Vote YES if you want to freeze property taxes for people 65 and older. | |
| NO | Vote NO if don't believe senior citizens should be given tax relief. | |
| State and Federal Offices | |
| Governor | Jim Bryson |
| US Senate | Bob Corker |
| US House Dist. 7 | Marsha Blackburn |
| US House Dist. 8 | John Farmer |
| US House Dist. 9 | Mark White |
| TN Senate Dist. 29 | Terry Allen Roland |
| TN Senate Dist. 31 | Paul Stanley |
| TN Senate Dist 33 | |
| TN House Dist. 83 | Brian Kelsey |
| TN House Dist. 84 | |
| TN House Dist. 85 | |
| TN House Dist. 86 | |
| TN House Dist. 87 | |
| TN House Dist. 88 | |
| TN House Dist. 89 | John Farmer |
| TN House Dist. 90 | |
| TN House Dist. 91 | |
| TN House Dist. 92 | (Write-in) Angelo Cobrasci |
| TN House Dist. 93 | Tim Cook |
| TN House Dist. 95 | Curry Todd |
| TN House Dist. 96 | Steve McManus |
| TN House Dist. 97 | Jim Coley |
| TN House Dist. 98 | |
| TN House Dist. 99 | Ron Lollar |
| Bartlett Municipal | |
| Mayor | A. Keith McDonald |
| Write-in | |
| Alderman, Position 1 | Mike Morris (Incumbent) |
| W.C. "Bubba" Pleasant | |
| Write-in | |
| Alderman, Position 2 | Emily Elliot (Incumbent) |
| Write-in | |
| Alderman, Position 3 | Burton B. Bridges |
| David Parsons (Incumbent) | |
| Write-in | |
| Collierville Municipal | |
| Alderman, Position 1 | Maureen J. Fraser (Incumbent) |
| Write-in | |
| Alderman, Position 2 | Stan Joyner (Incumbent) |
| Write-in | |
| Alderman, Position 4 | Tom Allen |
| Justin G. Mitchell (Incumbent) | |
| Write-in | |
| Germantown Municipal | |
| Mayor | Sharon Goldsworthy (Incumbent) |
| Write-in | |
| Alderman, Position 1 | Carole Hinely (Incumbent) |
| Write-in | |
| Alderman, Position 2 | John Drinnen (Incumbent) |
| Write-in | |
| Memphis Municipal | |
| Board of Education At-Large, Pos. 1 | David Page |
| Juanita Clark Stevenson | |
| Ed Vaughn | |
| Kenneth T. Whalum, Jr. | |
| Write-in | |
| Board of Education, District 2 | Deni C. Hirsh |
| Betty Mallott | |
| Arnold Weiner | |
| Write-in | |
| Board of Education, District 4 | Martavius D. Jones |
| Write-in | |
| Board of Education, District 6 | Darrick D. Harris |
| Carl Johnson | |
| Sharon A. Webb | |
| Write-in | |
October 2, 2006
The Race to Watch
The year was 2004, the place was Pennsylvania and conservative Pat Toomey was within a hair's breadth of unseating incumbent RINO Arlen Specter from the Senate. Widely viewed as "the race to watch", Toomey (backed by $2 million of advertising from the Club for Growth) lost by a mere 1.7 percent margin.
Why did Toomey lose? Perhaps it was because Bush, Rick Santorum and the NRA backed a backstabber, taking the safe bet of a liberal that occasionally votes with the caucus rather than create strife in the ranks. Had they stayed out of it, there is little doubt that Toomey would have won.
All they had to do was keep their mouth shut. Just say something like "we'll let the voters decide". But no, they protected the incumbent because that is what politicians from political parties do.
The year is 2006, the place is Tennessee and the Republican party is splintered during a contentious primary. Conservatives are splitting the vote between two candidates, Ed Bryant and Van Hilleary, while moderates support Bob Corker. You don't need a crystal ball to see what will happen: with all his millions, Corker can take advantage of the infighting and buy the election.
Where is Bush? Where is First? Where is Alexander? In Washington, studiously avoiding the entire affair. This time it's "we'll let the voters decide".
In the end, the conservatives lose and we are stuck with a difficult to win race against a polished Democrat that convincingly denies that he is the most liberal congressman from Tennessee (eight out of nine years).
Had they backed a real conservative in the first place, we wouldn't be seeing headlines like Democrats pin their hopes on man who is no liberal and Former Virginia governor touts Ford as “independent”. Or maybe we would; the press has come out full force behind Ford.
But at least Bush and company are here now. Bush came to Memphis and raised $1.5 million at a fundraiser held in a house. This was his second time Bush has raised money for Corker in less than a month and it seems that Laura Bush will be in Knoxville for a Corker fundraiser on 11 October. With the fact that Bush's approval ratings are slightly higher in Tennessee than the rest of the country, his support won't hurt.
Last week's Zogby/Wall Street Journal poll shows Republican Bob Corker leading Democrat Harold Ford Jr. by 5 points:
HT to TeamGOP newsletter
So why is Corker shaking up his campaign office just four weeks before the election? Perhaps because it will take a campaign manager like Tom Ingram, who managed all of Lamar Alexander's gubernatorial campaigns, to stave off the Ford attacks. The most recent Mason-Dixon poll indicates that the race is a dead heat.
For now, the battle remains dirty. A Ford television ad accuses Corker of taking three pay raises as mayor of Chattanooga while "freezing the pay of Chattanooga’s police and firefighters", a charge hotly denied by both the fire chief and the president of the Chattanooga FOP. Further, review of the city budget clearly shows that the ad is false.
The same ad claims Corker is worth more than $200 million, a figure Corker denies although he has not released actual figures. Yet:
Financial disclosures filed by Corker, which do not require specifics, state that he has assets somewhere in a range of between $63.7 million to $234.5 million and liabilities between $24.7 million and $126.5 million.
The combination means a net worth could be as high as $209.8 million, a figure that Michael Powell, senior adviser to the Ford campaign, says was used in choosing a figure for the ad. The figures also mean Corker could actually have a negative net worth.
Typical that a campaign would take the high estimate and market it as fact when the available information is so inexact.
Not that Corker's ads are equally misleading. For instance, WREG reports that Corker's claim of a 50% drop in crime while mayor of Chattanooga may be overstated. According to FBI stats, the crime drop was "only" 28.7%:
Chattanooga police spokesman Tetzell Tillery said the discrepancy may stem from differences in how the local police and the F-B-I classified certain kinds of crime.
If anyone could get a 28% drop in Memphis crime, I'd nominate them for king.
As for me, on election day I'll just remember that Harold Ford earned a failing score of 21 from the American Conservative Union, that Ford has earned an "F" from the Gun Owners of America (the only no-compromise gun rights organization) and that the NRA has officially endorsed Bob Corker.
And after all, even an Arlen Specter is better than a Robert Byrd.
September 27, 2006
Terry Roland, Senator for District 29
Terry Roland is running for the Tennessee Senate in District 29. You may remember Terry as being the winner of the special election before Ophelia Ford found some miracle votes and when I say "miracle" I mean miracle as some of the voters in that election were dead when they cast their vote.
Roland spoke to the Shelby County chapter of the Tennessee Firearms Association last Thursday.
According to Roland, district 29 is not only the poorest district in Tennessee, it also contains the largest concentration of senior citizens in the state. (This after three decades of Ford "leadership".)
What makes Terry Roland think that he can win this race? Because there are 60,000 registered Democrats in the district but 128,000 registered voters. And because a lot of those voters are tired of Ford leadership -- even a lot of the Democrats. He remarked that Keith Oberman has said that Shelby County has taken over from Cook County as the most corrupt county in the nation.
Roland talked about some of the main topics from his platform:
Healthcare: There are a half million people living in Tennessee that don't have any medical insurance. He gave the example of his mother, who at age 64 is spending $1,2OO every month to pay for health insurance -- and that's with a $3,000 deductible!
The Department of Transportation has 1.7 billion dollar surplus, the majority of which comes from an oppressive 32 cents per gallon gas tax (a lot of politicians claim that this surplus comes from federal money, but that's not true).
Roland proposes using part of the DOT budget surplus and putting it into TennCare, reversing the Governor's removal of thousands of people from the TennCare rolls.
Also, we must put an end to baseless and frivolous lawsuits that drive up the costs of medical care, which leads us to the next topic.
Tort Reform: Basically, the loser pays whenever fraud is discovered. That is, if you bring a false lawsuit in an attempt to use the judicial system to extort money you will pay your court costs as well as the person you are suing.
Education: Only ten percent of lottery money is used for the kids: 8% is used for scholarships and 2% for pre-K and after school child care. The rest is used for operating expenses like bonuses for Rebecca Paul and her staff.
And even though some kids are benefiting from the scholarships that come out of lottery money, the real tragedy is the millions of kids that never get a chance to learn enough to ever qualify for college -- much less a scholarship.
Roland proposes taking another IO per cent of the money generated by the lottery and using it to improve education for K through 12. He recognizes that we can't fix all our schools all at once so he says we should concentrate on first grade the first year. Next year we'll take on second grade, and so on. It will take 12 12 years but in the end the schools will be fixed.
Additionally, Roland said that what is wrong with education can be traced back to when they took the 3 Ps out of the schools: the Pledge, Prayer and the Paddle!
Seniors: Roland proposes an immediate rollback of property taxes for every senior to the rate that they paid when they were 63. It should be frozen at that point and then completely phased out over time.
Second Amendment: Although the right of self defense is not an official issue on his platform, Roland is a strong supporter of the right to carry. He is a carry permit holder, a lifetime member of the NRA and (as soon as the paperwork goes through in Nashville) a member of the Tennessee Firearms Association. He supports the restaurant carry bill that Naifeh has repeatedly killed in recent years.
Voting Reform: In conversation, Roland also said that he supports using picture IDs for voting. This is unsurprising given that he would be a Senator today had that rule been in place.
Comments: Overall, I found Terry Roland to be straight forward and reasonable. He's just a guy that has become concerned, saw an opportunity to improve things when John Ford was arrested in the FBI Tennessee Waltz sting and decided to do something.
I am continually stunned by the arrogance displayed by Ophelia Ford. Her campaign slogan says to "re-elect" her, even though her "win" was tossed out by the courts and nullified by the Tennessee Senate. She refuses to engage in any debates with Roland. In a recent community meeting set up by the NAACP in a church, I saw that Terry Roland, Mark White and Harold Ford Jr. attended while Ophelia was nowhere to be seen.
Hopefully, enough of the constituents of district 29 have had enough of that kind of behavior.
While Roland and I don't agree on all the issues, we at least agree on what the issues are and agree on how to handle enough of them that I can give him my support.
AlphaPatriot officially endorses Terry Roland for Senate District 29. My check went out in yesterday's mail.
As Roland said at the meeting:
It's not about sending Terry Roland to Nashville - it's about sending all of us.
Technorati tags: Terry Roland, Ophelia Ford, Tennessee Politics, Shelby County Tennessee Politics, Tennessee Political Issues, Tennessee Senate District 29.
September 8, 2006
Fall's Most Interesting Race: TN District 9
The most interesting race 'round these parts has got to be the one for the 9th Congressional District. With a voting population that is 70 per cent black, to say that the 9th has been a Democrat stronghold for quite some time would be a massive understatement. This is the seat left open by Harold Ford, Jr., who is leaving the small-time House behind in a bold grab for the Senate.
You'd think the Democrat primary would have decided this race, but the party was fragmented and had 15 candidates vying to take Harold's spot (one actually withdrew but his name was still on the ballot and he garnered almost 700 votes).
According to Thadeous Mathews, Ford's chosen successor was Nikki Tinker, a pretty Georgia lawyer -- but even with backing from Junior she only came in second with a mere 25% of the vote (even though she was the best fundraiser, putting together an incredible half million dollar warchest). Another Ford, Joe Ford Jr. (who didn't even live in the district), was a distant third -- proving once again that the Ford name will get votes for even the most unqualified of candidates.
When the votes where counted the black community was shocked and outraged when a white man, Steve Cohen, received over 23 thousand votes (31%) to coast to victory. And with Republican Mark White, a white businessman, easily winning the Republican primary, some 100 thousand blacks will have to choose between two white men in November.
Imagine that, a white man representing the voters of the district first taken by white-hating Harold Ford Sr. and which has been controlled by one Harold Ford or another for 36 years. [And here I am with egg on my face because I backed Derrick Bennet in the Republican primary, thinking that a white man couldn't win in that district. How wrong was I?]
But a Commercial Appeal analysis shows that while Cohen easily won in the few predominantly white districts, he didn't fair so well among the black population:
| Steve Cohen | Nikki Tinker | Joe Ford Jr. | Ed Stanton | Julian Bolton | |
| Predominantly white precincts | 81.58% | 5.53% | 1.26% | 5.29% | 2.07% |
| Predominantly black precincts | 17.56% | 28.11% | 18.81% | 8.72% | 12.87% |
Worse yet, Cohen is Jewish. And in spite of the fact that the Jewish community has been one of the strongest supporters of black civil rights from the very beginning, blacks just don't seem to like Jews -- much less vote for them.
But the real issue is even more fundamental: Cohen simply does not represent the beliefs of religious black community. He was one of the forces behind the lottery. He is fervently pro-choice. He has said that the civil rights movement of the 21st century is gay rights. He wrote a bill to legalize drugs in Tennessee.
And if the black ministers get together and oppose you in a district like the 9th, your campaign is in trouble. Believe it.
So the question becomes, if a single black alternative candidate steps up (instead of 14) and mounts an intensive campaign, can he (or she) be successful and keep the district in the hands of the black/Christian community?
That is a question that has attracted the interest of more than one wanna-be politician. Take Jake Ford, one of Harold Ford Sr.'s son. Even though the Fords have been in some highly-visible scandals recently (John Ford was one of the original arrestees caught up in Tennessee Waltz, and Ophelia Ford's last-minute miracle win was overturned by the Tennessee Senate because dead people voted), scandal is nothing new to the Ford family and the Ford name still carries a lot of clout in this town.
Jake shrewdly sat out of the crowded primary in order to mount a campaign for the November ballot as "a lifelong Democrat running as an Independent" -- and he is 
certain to be well financed. The rather large yard sign pictured at right was spotted on the 29th of August, one of the first to go up for the final fall campaign season. (The others were just signs that never came down after the primary, a crime with no punishment in Tennessee.)
Furthermore, the 9th contains the area that turned out for white Republican business man Terry Rolland in his upset victory (if you don't count the cemetery and penitentiary votes) over Ophelia Ford for the Tennessee Senate. Many of those that were willing to cross party lines once may very well be willing to do so again.
Suddenly, a win by a Republican in District 9 seems achievable. Will the two Democrats split enough of the vote to allow Republican Mark White to win? Just how much will White have to improve on his 17% of the black vote in order to win? The next few weeks promise to be interesting.
Then there's the possible return of Nikki Tinker, who is rumored to be considering a write-in campaign. If true, she will further splinter the black vote. There are many, many citizens of the 9th that are sick and tired of the Ford family, and Tinker will offer an alternative to the white Jewish Democrat and the white Republican businessman. If she has retained ties to the purse strings that financed her primary, she could be a real contender.
As I said, the race for District 9 will be interesting.
Technorati tags: Mark White, Steve Cohen, Jake Ford, Nikki Tinker, Tennessee Politics, Tennessee District 9, Congressional Races of 2006, The Politics of Race.
August 21, 2006
A Tale of Two Judges
The Commercial Appeal profiles two judges that unseated incumbents in the last election in Two Karens ready for black robes.
The first
is Karen Massey, an assistant public defender and former military intelligence officer. The endorsements for Massey were split along party lines, yet she was able to beat General Sessions Criminal Court Judge Mischelle Alexander-Best by 10,000 votes (a margin of 5.7 points).
She attributed her win to campaigning long hours in the hot sun and to the hard work of her parents, siblings and extended family.
"We put in a lot of hard work, and my parents can't even vote for me," Massey said with a laugh. "They live in Fayette County."
Next is Karen Webster, who had virtually no endorsements. Her opponent, longtime Probate Court Judge Donn Southern, was endorsed by both the Democrat and Republican parties.
Yet Webster was able to take him down, albeit by the slimest of margins -- a mere 588 votes out of 114,000 cast (a margin of 0.6 points).
In his endorsement letter, Attorney Richard Fields noted:
Probate Court deals with estates from a shotgun house to businesses worth millions of dollars. It requires knowledge of tax laws, constant updates of legislative changes, and sensitivity to people who have lost their loved ones.
Fields said that Judge Southern was experienced, knowledgeable and fair, and had this to say about Webster:
His opponent, Karen D. Webster, has absolutely no qualifications to be a Probate Judge. She has had few cases in Probate Court and none of a complex nature. Her previous experience as a city prosecutor and county contract attorney did not involve probate matters. She simply is not qualified for such a specialized court as Probate Court.
Two candidates. The one with only conservative endorsements (in a county of overwhelming Democrat population and trending more so) wins easily. The one whose opponent received every endorsement eeks out a win.
Interesting.
August 4, 2006
Election Night Closing Observations
In a rematch of the 2002 Juvenile Court Clerk race, Steve Stamson eeked out a win over Shep Wilbun by 313 votes, a mere 0.2 percent margin of victory (although a winner in this race has yet to be officially declared and it's nearing 3 a.m.). This is in spite of the fact that Stamson unseated Wilbun in 2002 as allegations of sexual misconduct swirled around Wilbun's administration. And in spite of the fact that Stamson stepped into a mess of a court and got things running smoothly.
Debbie Stamson (yes, she's Steve Stamson's wife) took Shelby County Clerk by 303 votes, also 0.2 percent of the vote (a winner has not been officially declared in this race either). I'm wondering why 3,648 fewer people would vote for Shelby County Clerk — a position that affects every taxpayer — than Juvenile Court Clerk? I can't imagine. I'm just pleased Stamson beat out opponent Otis Jackson (pending recount, no doubt).
Another sqeaker is Steve McManus' win over Brad Jobe for TN House District 96 by 67 votes — a 1 percent margin of victory. McManus has been active in the party for some time, so young Jobe ran a heck of a race.
The big news in this county is that Steve Cohen won the Democrat primary for U.S. House District 9, the seat held by Senate candidate Harold Ford, Jr. A Ford has held that seat for over 30 years. But the reason that Cohen's win is big news is because Cohen is white, and the air waves are crackling with rhetoric saying the black population of District 9 needs an African-American representing them. While there were 15 names on the ballot in this race, if the black population wanted a black representative then over 23 thousand of them (31%) shouldn't have picked Cohen! And can you imagine the outrage if someone said a black politician couldn't represent a virtually all-white district? Double standards and hypocrisy abound.
Mark White sailed to an easy win in TN House District 9 Republican primary. Now comes the hard part — he'll be facing Cohen in November. At one time I would have said "not a chance in hell", but I won't in the post-Terry Rolland world.
I am gratified to find that Sherrif candidate Reginald French only garnered only 37% of the vote. He's shady but has close ties to the Democrat machine in this town. I thought this race would be a squeaker but Mark Luttrell won with 63 percent of the vote.
Today's stunner in this neck of the woods is how badly John Farmer trounced Rory Bricco for TN House District 8: 78 percent to 22. I picked Bricco but am certainly not displeased by Farmer's win. I've met Farmer several times — hell, he has even commented on my blog and I on his — and liked what I heard. I just didn't get the sense that he was a force to be reckoned with. I was obviously incredibly, astoundingly wrong. Congratulations John! District 8 will be well represented.
I'll not comment on the Bob Corker win as it would come across as more than a little bitter. Is it small of me that I take some solace in the fact that I spent about ten minutes verbally abusing Josh (who works in Lamar Alexander's Memphis office) about how Bush came to Alexander's aid in 2002, yet all of Washington abandoned Tennessee conservatives in 2006? (Josh is a great guy and Alexander is lucky to have him — he handled the scolding with grace and patience.) Can you say "Senator Ford"? You'd better learn 'cause Corker can't stand up to Ford, no matter how much money he raises.
On a final Ed Bryant note, I urge you to read this heartfelt post from Volunteer Voters.
Half-Bakered has some closing thoughts that are well worth reading. For instance, Mike notices that the Tennessee Waltz hasn't made much of an impact on Shelby County races (not surprising in the town of Herenton and Ricky Peete) and that the County Commission is finally going Democratic (I hadn't yet picked up on that).
A well, it's 3 a.m. and I must get up at 6:30 to go to work. One of these year's I'll learn to take vacation days around election time. [Mental note: this happens again in November]
Two Judicial Races
Judge Ward won Criminal Court Judge (Div. 9) by a mere 8 points. Ward was voted "Judge of the Year" by his peers in 2005 and endorsed by both the Democrat and Republican parties. Yet his opponent, Alicia Howard, garnered over 55 thousand votes in spite of the fact that she has "virtually no criminal experience" and filed for bankruptcy in 2000.
Jim Lammey trounced his opponent for Criminal Court Judge (Div. 5) by 30 points. Yet he had a weak endorsement from the Commercial Appeal and his opponent, Dewun Settle, was endorsed by the Democrat Party. I doubt that the voters knew or cared that Settle has been censured, found in willful contempt of court and pleaded guilty to charges of legal malpractice.
Technorati Tags: Tennessee Politics, Tennessee Shelby County Judicial Races of 2006, Mark Ward, Alicia Howard, Avoiding Unqualified Judges, Jim Lammey, Dewun Settle.
August 3, 2006
Looking for a Party?
I'll be at the Republican Victory Celebration at the Field HQ (5026 Park Ave. in the Eastgate Shopping Center) tonight, but there's lots more going on:
- District Attorney Bill Gibbons
Fox and Hound on Sanderlin - Sheriff Mark Luttrell
Luttrell HQ at Park Place Mall (1245 Ridgeway at Park) - Steve and Debbie Stamson, Senator Curtis Person for Juvenile Court Judge, Judge Fred Axley, Bill Key
Variety Club at 1648 Sycamore View Road - Willingham for Mayor
Willingham HQ near Quince and Kirby - Jane Pierotti for County Commission
Pierotti HQ on S. Mendenhall - Tom Leatherwood and Chris Thomas
Wolfchase Commons, between S&K Mens store and LA Weight Loss across Home Depot - Jim Lammey
Coach's Sports Bar at 4210 Alturia (near Egypt Central)
Here's hoping there's lots and lots of celebrating going on!
Short Lines at Some Polls
The Commercial Appeal reports "smooth sailing" at the polls, in spite of County Republican Party chairman Bill Giannini's comments to the contrary:
A contractor for the voting machine vendor, Diebold Elections Systems, said at the 10 precincts he’d visited the machines were operating smoothly. Election Commission Chairman Greg Duckett said he found smooth operations — and short lines — on a morning tour through South Memphis.
County Republican Party chairman Bill Giannini, however, said he waited an hour and a half to vote in Lakeland. Lines were growing even larger at 10 a.m., he said.
"Even in a presidential election I haven’t seen turnout like that,’’ Giannini said.
I drove past two polling places (right at 5:00) in heavy Democrat areas and saw about a dozen cars in those two places combined. The next polling place was, I think, in a mixed area bordering Bartlett, with maybe ten cars outside. By 5:10 I was at the Singleton Community Center in Bartlett (heavy Republican) where there were so many cars that parking had spilled around to the rear of the building. But there wasn't a line out the door.
Tennessee Politics Blog reports light voting across the state:
With approximately four hours of voting left, turnout reports are light throughout the state. Nathan Moore is reporting turnout around Nashville is light. Likewise, in Knoxville Volunteer TV reports "short lines" this morning in Knoxville, with the average voter taking approximately 5 minutes to vote.
Meanwhile, the Tennessean reports low numbers in a variety of districts: 27 people had voted at a location in Green Hills, only 30 people had voted by 9:45 a.m. at a south Nashville location, slow going at the 15th Street Baptist Church, "somewhat light but steady" at a precinct in Hendersonville, people leaving because of a late opening at Una Baptist Church, and voting finally turning heavy by lunch at Immanuel Baptist Church in Belle Meade. The Davidson County Administrator of Elections said that only two precincts had reported heavy traffic, but that everything was going smoothly with the new voting machines.
Technorati Tags: Tennessee Politics, Shelby County Politics, Races of 2006.
Blogger Endorsements
Voluntarily Conservative has reposted his complete list of endorsements, a must-read for all Knox County voters.
Say Uncle is has endorsed Bryant and noted the GOA endorsement of Bryant.
And Half-Bakered finally sticks his head up long enough to make a few endorsements as well (including Bryant). Ah well, better today than tomorrow.
Mine, of course, are here.
Lefties need to check out Left Wing Cracker's endorsements. [Hint: we actually agree on a few.]
Ballot Box (Not) Stolen (Yes They Were!)
And so it begins: apparently someone using forged credentials made off with election materials from the election operations center:
In an astounding development, the Flyer has learned, ballot materials, including a ballot box to be used for "off-machine" purposes (certain write-in ballots and provisional ballots) and other election-day supplies, were checked out of the Shelby County Election Commission's operations center office at Shelby Farms Wednesday by an unauthorized individual. ...
The ballot box and other electon-day supplies, including the preinct roster, belonged to Precinct 49-1, a South Memhis box located at Alton Elementary School at 2020 Alton. Prince 49-1 is a majority black precinct with 843 voters.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has been called in and is conducting an "emergency investigation". Election Commission members and personnel were instructed to appear at the operations center.
[HT to The Pesky Fly]
Update: It turns out that the election materials were not stolen after all, but merely a mixup. It turns out that our Election Commission (appointed, not elected) gave two women letters of appointment that put them in charge of the precinct headquartered at Alton Elementary School.
But wait! Just when we thought the integrity of the election was safe:
Meantime, the officer in charge of Precinct 36-2 in North Memphis reported that his car was stolen with his poll supplies inside. The TBI is investigating that matter, too, and Duckett said there was little he could say. Election officials went to the polling place at 1542 Jackson this morning with backup supplies to open the poll, he said.
Come on! How hard is it to get supplies delivered to a few sites scattered out in one county?
Technorati Tags: Election Shenanigans, Stealing Elections, Election Reform.
Vote Carefully
Political sage Frank Cagle thinks that Bryant is going to surge ahead of Hilleary today. Moreover:
Today we will get an accurate count on the people voting in the Republican primary, and the results could be surprising. That’s because Corker’s juggernaut has stalled. Corker, for all his money, has evidently hired the worst opposition researcher working in politics. His negative ads against Bryant and Hilleary are stupid, wrong, and more importantly in politics, they do not pass the smell test. ...
But the real meat of Cagle's analysis lies in looking ahead to the race against Ford:
However, if Corker should win the primary, how much credibility will he have running ads about Congressman Harold Ford Jr.’s voting record? ...
Corker will no longer be running against conservative Republicans. He will be running against a well-funded, confident and poised candidate: the hottest thing in Tennessee as well as the national media. Congressman Harold Ford Jr. is the political story of the year, in-state and nationally: Will he be the first black Southern senator since Reconstruction? A young man from a scandal-ridden family overcoming adversity and winning over Southern rednecks is an irresistible story line. Junior will be earning “free media” on network and cable television, and you can expect glowing profiles in national magazines and newspapers.
Junior will also have the money to answer Corker on television. Those niggling little accusations and stories about Corker will suddenly get legs with a push from the Democrats and a sympathetic candidate. Those tax returns no one seemed to care about in the primary may become sought-after items. Those illegal aliens hired by a Mud Island subcontractor will have their life stories told.
I have had conservatives tell me recently they don’t see any difference between Corker and Ford and they may vote for Ford to “pay back” the Republican establishment for “buying” the nomination. Tennessee Right to Life leaders have already said they will not endorse Corker in the general.
Vote for Ed Bryant today.
[HT to Blogging for Bryant]
Camouflage and Diversion
Blogging for Bryant uses his urban combat driving skills for dual purposes. Reading it almost made Mountain Dew spray out my nose.
Early Poll Report
I stopped by the poll in my area (a heavy Republican precinct) about 7:45 this morning and talked to one of the workers and a precinct captain.
Both felt that turnout was about the same as in previous elections. Both expressed disappointment, saying they had expected the line to be out the door.
There was, as usual, a fairly long line early and, as usual, some people stood in line a while before leaving leave for work, abandoning their opportunity. Three or four even made it all the way through the process and were only waiting for a booth, but it got to the point where they just had to leave (which will be confusing for everyone should they return later and attempt to vote).
I drove by another polling place in a heavy Democrat area and didn't see much activity from the outside (about the same as the other) but didn't go inside.
August 2, 2006
Tomorrow, Why Ed?
Tomorrow is election day here in Tennessee. For conservative voters, there is one important choice yet to make: Ed Bryant or Van Hilleary for TN Senate?
My friends, it is time to toss Van:
- Going into early voting, Ed was ahead of Van in the polls.
- Shelby County is Ed's back yard and the number of voters that turned out for early voting set a new record.
- On the average, there was light voting across the rest of the state, which is bad news for Van. He cannot win.
- The light voting across the rest of the state is also bad for Corker. The unique combination of voting patterns gives me hope for the first time that Ed can beat Corker in spite of the money Corker is throwing at the election.
At this point, Van is out. A vote for Van is a vote for Corker who, incidentally polls the worst against Ford.
And really, in the end, there's just not that much difference between Corker and Ford.
The decision is clear. Vote Ed Bryant, the true conservative in the race. Don't believe me? Read Enduring Faith, Personal Integrity, Conservative Values by one who worked closely with Ed for almost three years.
And if anyone is looking for guidance as to how to vote for the forty county judicial races or 27 state judical confirmations take a look at my recommendations. Hours of research so you don't have to!
Download and print the Complete AlphaPatriot's Shelby County Voter's Guide. Take it with you to the polls. Pass it out to your friends!
<⁄end shameless self-promotion>
Technorati Tags: Ed Bryant, Van Hilleary, Bob Corker, Tennessee Politics, Tennessee Senate Race, Shelby County Politics.
August 1, 2006
The Complete AlphaPatriot's Shelby County Voter's Guide
Quicklink: The complete AlphaPatriot Shelby County Voter's Guide.Explanation: The ballot on Thursday is the longest in Shelby County history, with every voter having 96 races on which to make a decision and Memphis voters having 103. Sixty six of these are for county judges, about which most voters have no idea.
I performed extensive research for the judicial races and am darn glad I did. There are some very respected jurists in the race and there are some who are astonishingly unqualified. For instance:
- Candidates for Criminal Court Judge with no criminal trial experience.
- A candidate that has been publicly censured, found in "willful contempt of court" and found guilty of legal malpractice.
- Candidates in bankruptcy, that have had their law license suspended, and pled guilty to mishandling client affairs.
You may want to view just the county judicial races as I have included endorsements from all my sources so you can compare them.
But if you want to just print something off and go vote, I highly recommend my complete list of endorsements. It includes links to my research so you can make your own decision, but few of my choices are controversial.
I've done hours of research so you don't have to! As always, comments welcome. And on this topic, comments from practicing attorneys are especially appreciated.
July 26, 2006
Complete Endorsements for Judges in Shelby County
Over the last few days I have come to learn a lot about the judicial races this year and the candidates that are running. The result has been seven posts on the most controversial races. It has been a fascinating and illuminating experience.I have used six primary sources of information, and use the initials after the name in the reference table below:
- The Commercial Appeal [CA]
- The Shelby County Republican Party [Rep]
- The Shelby County Democrat Party [Dem]
- The Shelby County Conservative Republican Club [CRC]
- David Caywood (a right-leaning attorney) [DC]
- Richard Fields (a left-leaning attorney) [RF]
Here is the full list of positions and candidates. I have a check mark in front of the candidates that I endorse, include a link to a post in which I perform my analysis (if available), and indicate the endorsements by the six sources cited above to help you decide for yourself (assuming you don't like my picks).
AP
| CA | Rep | Dem | CRC | RF | DC | |
| Circuit Court Judge, Div. 1 | |||||||
| John R. McCarroll |
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| Circuit Court Judge, Div. 2 | |||||||
| Curtis Johnson |
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| James F. Russell (analysis) |
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| Circuit Court Judge, Div. 3 | |||||||
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| Karen R. Williams |
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| Circuit Court Judge, Div. 4 | |||||||
| Ritta L. Stotts |
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| Circuit Court Judge, Div. 5 | |||||||
| Kay Robilio |
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| Circuit Court Judge, Div. 6 | |||||||
| Lawrence Pivnick | |||||||
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| Jerry Stokes |
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| Circuit Court Judge, Div. 7 | |||||||
| Donna M. Fields |
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| Circuit Court Judge, Div. 8 | |||||||
| D'Army Bailey |
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| Larry E. Parrish (analysis) |
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| Circuit Court Judge, Div. 9 | |||||||
| Robert (Butch) Childers |
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| Chancery Court Judge, Part 1 | |||||||
| Walter Evans |
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| Chancery Court Judge, Part 2 | |||||||
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| Arnold Goldin (analysis) |
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| Carlee McCullough |
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| Chancery Court Judge, Part 3 | |||||||
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| Kenny Armstrong |
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| Karen Tyler | |||||||
| Criminal Court Judge, Div. 1 | |||||||
| Tonya C. Saafir |
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| Paula Skahan (analysis) |
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| Criminal Court Judge, Div. 2 | |||||||
| W. Otis Higgs, Jr. |
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| Criminal Court Judge, Div. 3 | |||||||
| John P. Colton |
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| Criminal Court Judge, Div. 4 | |||||||
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| Carolyn Wade Blackett |
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| Richard Parks | |||||||
| Criminal Court Judge, Div. 5 | |||||||
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| Jim Lammey (analysis) | ||||||