THE TC DEMOCRAT

Former House Majority Leader & Bredesen Adviser Kim McMillan is an official candidate for the Democratic nomination for Governor in 2010.

"I'm no longer exploring a run for governor. I am now officially in the race. I'm in it to win it," McMillan said.

For more info and the official announcement, visit her website.



Above: Me with McMillan in 2005.

Labels: Governor 2010, Kim McMillan

Tusculum College, my alma mater, has found a new president. The College named Dr. Nancy Moody, current president of Lincoln Memorial University, as the 27th President on Saturday, February 28.

Moody expects to leave LMU on April, and will be on the job at Tusculum by June 1.

Having been a member of the Presidential Search Committee during my tenure as a student at TC, I am extremely pleased and excited that the College has chosen such an esteemed and qualified leader to take the helms. I must also take the time to praise the excellent work and leadership of Dr. Russell Nichols, who has been serving as Interim President since June 2007. I was proud to serve on the committee that brought Dr. Nichols to Tusculum, and am even prouder now that he has succeeded in the job.

So, to my former committee members, I say, a job well done!

Labels: Dr. Nancy Moody, Dr. Russell Nichols, Lincoln Memorial University, Tusculum College

I know, I know.....I have neglected this thing for quite a while. Many things have happened in the interim, which I don't really feel like going back and posting about. So, we'll just start back from here on... I promise I'll do better this time around....maybe.

Here we go...

The April Meeting of the Greene County Democratic Women's Club will meet on Thursday, April 17 at 6PM at the Andrew Johnson Clubhouse. Everyone is invited!

Menu: Fancy Mixed Garden Salad with Dressing, Rolls and Butter, Chicken Mushroom Penne Pasta with Broccoli and dessert will be Lemon Cake. Coffee and iced tea will also be served. Dinner is $12.50 with reservations, $15 at the door.

The program will be an environmental discussion about the waters of the Nolichuckey River. Panelists will be Paul Hayden (Greene County Soil Conservation District) and Frances Lamberts (Legislative Chairman of the TN League of Women Voters.) The moderator will be Wilhelmina C. Williams, President of the Middle Nolichuckey Watershed Alliance.

Make your reservations by calling Randi Nott @ 639-6431 no later than Monday, April 14.

We will be accepting 2008 club dues at the next meeting. Dues are $20. If you'd rather mail them, please send your dues to: GCDWC, P.O. Box 1043, Greeneville, TN 37744. For more information, call Blanche Johnson (639-0284) or Billie Ann Pace (638-4052.)

Labels: Greene County Democratic Women's Club

Rep. Eddie Yokley (D-Greeneville) advanced a proposal to standardize testing the waters flowing through Tennessee’s borders from neighboring Haywood County, North Carolina. The bill is one of the legislator’s several pro-environment and conservation bills to move forward regarding East Tennessee’s Pigeon River.

From the House Caucus:

On Wednesday, House Bill 3482, a bill to establish standards for drawing water samples out of the Pigeon River, passed out of the House Conservation & Environment Committee.

“The pollution problems of the Pigeon River are too important for Tennesseans to be sitting on the sidelines,” said Representative Eddie Yokley (D-Greenville) who is sponsoring the legislation. “This bill will allow us to set specific standards in how we test the water so that we can have definitive, researched evidence of the contamination we’re seeing in our river”

House Bill 3482 would require, under the Water Quality Control Act, that any water sample drawn to test the quality of the Pigeon River be drawn within one quarter mile of the border separating Tennessee and North Carolina, in the center of the river. A water sample drawn from the river must meet both the apparent and true color standards established by the Environmental Protection Agency and be evaluated against Tennessee water quality standards.

“We know there are entities outside the borders of our state that are directly impacting the water flowing into Tennessee,” Yokley said. “Thanks to this bill, we can start building an accurate database of the issues going on in the Pigeon and isolate the culprit.”

(h/t The Donkey's Mouth)

Labels: Eddie Yokley

You should check out this Newsweek article. It was a very good read.

Labels: Barack Obama

The following is from Politics1:

Politics1 had an interesting chat over the weekend with a well-placed source who has been serving as a senior McCain advisor during the primary campaign. For reasons that will be clear, you'll see why he didn't want to be named. The topic: possible GOP Vice Presidential runningmates. "My advice is to pick a safe choice, someone who won't do any political damage," he said, "but I don't think that is entirely where it's heading. Everytime I look at the names, I think the choice is going to be [Florida Governor] Charlie Crist. I mean, just look at the other guys [being mentioned] and they're just so underwhelming that it leads back to Charlie by elimination. Mitt Romney isn't going to happen. Huckabee may end up in the Cabinet, but won't be the runningmate. [Minnesota Governor Tim] Pawlenty has a great story, coming from blue collar roots, but he couldn't deliver Minnesota Republicans, so how is Pawlenty going to do anything for McCain in the general? [South Carolina Governor] Mark Sanford would probably be my first choice, as he's a very safe pick. But Sanford doesn't add anything that McCain doesn't already have." What about former Ohio Congressman Rob Portman, who served as President Bush's Budget Director? "Give me a fucking break: Portman has a zero percent chance of being on the ticket. He'd be a terrible choice." What about the rumors that McCain wants Senator Joe Lieberman (I-CT) as his runningmate? "Absolutely true. Joe Lieberman would be McCain's top choice if he could pick the person he really wants as a runningmate. It would be a bold pick, the kind of choice that would have the potential to remake modern American politics into something new. It would guarantee McCain a landslide win in November -- and, mark my words, McCain won't have the guts to do it. He'd really like to pick Lieberman, but in the end he'll cave to those who want a more traditional choice. That's why I say it falls back to Charlie Crist as the runningmate." Why Crist more than one of the other names? "Crist's endorsement, when Romney was flying up McCain's ass in the polls, and possibly had passed him in Florida in that last weekend, was the single turning point that made McCain the nominee. But for Charlie Crist, McCain would not be our nominee." What about the rumors that Crist is gay or too much of a centrist? "Who cares what he stands for because he delivered for McCain in the primary. Charlie would put Florida safely in the Republican column in November. As to the gay rumors, that's just a lot of insider stuff. Most Americans -- and most Floridians -- have never heard the rumors and really don't want to hear the rumors. Charlie says he isn't gay, nobody has proven otherwise, and the public will accept him at his word ... I have no idea if he is or isn't, but the public just doesn't want to hear this stuff."

Labels: Charlie Crist, John McCain, P2008

Labels: Stacey Campfield

The Greene County Democratic Women’s Club will be hosting an Environmental Forum at its monthly meeting at 6:00 PM on April 17, 2008. The forum is being advertised as hearing from experts concerning a variety of environmental concerns and related issues, including clean water, clean air, nukes and going green.

Casey Nicholson confirms he'll be in attendance.

Labels: Casey Nicholson, Environment, Greene County Democratic Women's Club

Since the last post, quite a few things have happened. Let's get started.....

Not only has Mike Padgett announced his candidacy, but Nashville attorney and former party chair Bob Tuke also announced he will run for the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate. Both men are very well liked in their respective areas, so this should prove an interesting primary. The men are fighting for the right to face Senator Lamar Alexander. Make sure to check out both of their websites: http://www.votepadgett.com and http://www.tukefortennessee.com.

Rob Russell, Director of the Writing Center at ETSU and musician, has announced his candidacy for the U.S. Congress in Tennessee's First Congressional District. Rob is seeking the seat currently held by freshman Congressman David Davis, who also happens to find himself in a tough primary battle against Johnson City Mayor Dr. Phil Roe. Rob has held a couple of petition signing events in the Upper East Tennessee area and has been making the rounds to the Democratic Women's Clubs of the 1st district. Make sure to check him out at http://www.myspace.com/robforcongress.

Casey Nicholson, a Greeneville native, has announced his candidacy for the State House of Representatives for the 5th district. This district encompasses half of Greene County and all of Unicoi County. The seat is currently held by Rep. David Hawk, a Republican from Greeneville.

Casey is the son of a single mother who taught at Highland Elementary School for thirty-eight years. Casey's father was a blue collar auto technician who lived in Greene County most of his life and passed away in 2002. Casey is a graduate of Greeneville High School, Walters State Community College, East Tennessee State University, and Memphis Theological Seminary. He earned honors credentials in all of his post-high school degrees.

Casey is an ordained minister of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church and is currently pursuing a Ph.D. degree at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland where he is studying Religion & Politics.

For more information, check Casey out at: http://www.myspace.com/nicholsonfortn or http://web.mac.com/caseynicholson.

Also, in other news, Governor Bill Richardson endorsed Senator Barack Obama! :)

Labels: Barack Obama, Bill Richardson, Bob Tuke, Casey Nicholson, Congress, Mike Padgett, Rob Russell, TN House of Representatives, U.S. Senate

Mike Padgett says he's running!

Former Knox County Clerk Mike Padgett said today that he will seek the Democratic nomination to the U.S. Senate seat now held by Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander.

"I'm running. Period," Padgett said in an interview. "I think Tennesseans are ready for a choice and a change."

Padgett said he will make a formal announcement on March 4, his birthday. He will be 59.

Padgett said he believes that an East Tennessee Democrat has the best chance of defeating Alexander.

Some other Democrats - including Mike McWherter, son of former Gov. Ned McWherter, and former state Democratic Chairman Bob Tuke - once indicated an interest in the Senate seat but decided against running.

Padgett was ousted in January 2007 after 20 years as county clerk when the state Supreme Court upheld the county charter and its term limits provision, forcing out officeholders who had served more than two consecutive terms.

KNS

Labels: Lamar Alexander, Mike Padgett, U.S. Senate

California's Tom Lantos, a Congressman for 14 terms has passed away from cancer.

May he rest in peace and all those who grieve be comforted.


GoldnI has more.

Labels: Cancer, Congress, Tom Lantos