Davidson County’s ten state representatives are back at the Capitol this week for the General Assembly session, joining it’s four state senators.
As previously reported, redistricting and education are pressing issues.
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A newspaper claims that House Speaker Glen Casada’s former chief of staff once bragged to a reporter that he had bugged legislative committee meeting rooms and now a Democratic leader is calling for an investigation. Joel Ebert of The Tennessean reported last week that the ex-chief of staff, Cade Cothren, told a reporter earlier this year that he could view and listen to people in the rooms whenever he wanted. The story is available here. Last week, Cothren denied the comments as well as his ability to eavesdrop. Also, The Tennessean said that white noise machines, which hamper the ability to eavesdrop, were located in the ceilings of the hallways inside and outside of Casada’s office. The newspaper says several lawmakers had expressed concern someone might be recording their conversations in private meetings, but the publication did not name names other than Casada. Ebert, the statehouse reporter for The Tennessean, now says State Rep. Mike Stewart (D-TN-52), chairman of the Democratic House Caucus, has called for a federal investigation. On Wednesday, Ebert tweeted, “Here is a copy of the letter that @RepMikeStewart sent to the US Attorney’s office today, asking for a probe into the information I wrote about…
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New video footage allegedly shows State Rep. Bo Mitchell (D-TN-50) stealing yard signs for Republican U.S. Senate candidate Marsha Blackburn and Mitchell’s opponent, Judd Cowan, in Davidson County. The video is available to watch here. U.S. Rep. Blackburn (R-TN-07) is in a hotly contested race with Democratic former Gov. Phil Bredesen for the Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN). House Majority Leader Glen Casada (R-TN-63) confirmed the identity of his colleague in the State House, according to a Tennessee Republican Party press release. “Bo has a bad reputation at the Capitol for his temper and lack of respect for his colleagues in the legislature,” Casada said. “Unfortunately, none of those that serve with him are surprised by his actions in this video. Instead of respecting the opinions of those they may disagree with, Democrats advocate for mob-like tactics in an attempt to silence the voices of those around them. As Tennesseans, we should never stand idly by and allow this type of dishonesty in our elections.” Tennessee Republican Party Chairman Scott Golden called for an investigation and for Mitchell to apologize to Cowan and voters. “It’s an incredibly petty and childish act, but unfortunately that’s what we’ve…
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In a joint Government Operations Subcommittee on Judiciary and Government meeting held Thursday, during which the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) was presenting, subcommittee member State Representative Bo Mitchell (D-Nashville) used the words “disturbing” and “horrifying” to describe the recent raid on the townhome of 57th District House candidate Jeremy H. G. Hayes. The TBI raid earlier this week of Hayes’ townhome by four TBI agents and a visit to the home of his 78-year-old grandmother by an additional three TBI agents, was reported by The Tennessee Star and News Channel 5. Hayes is running against incumbent State Rep. Susan Lynn (R-Mt. Juliet) in the Republican primary. Unrelated to the raid incident, the Subcommittee, made up of 12 members, six from each body of the Tennessee General Assembly, met to review the performance audit of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation conducted by the Division of State Audit, Office of the Comptroller. TBI Director Mark Gwyn and Deputy Director Jason Locke, along with other TBI representatives, were present to respond to the findings presented by legislative performance auditors Alicia Grice and John Dunne. There were five findings identified in the audit report. During the discussion of the first finding relative to…
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