Daily Dose for July 10, 2006

Daily Dose

Knoxville Debate Still On, At Least -- After Bob Corker CM Ben Mitchell called to cancel the debate between the U.S. Senate candidates hosted by News Channel 5 and the League of Women voters in Nashville, a man in a chicken suit showed up outside of Bob Corker's Nashville field office to criticize the move. According to the Corker camp, the cancellation was based on campaign strategy, which apparently includes spending more time going door-to-door in select Nashville neighborhoods and avoiding mass media events like debates. Another debate is scheduled for the Knoxville market between all three candidates, however. The Knoxville debate will be Thursday at West High School and feature panelists Bill Williams of WBIR, moderator and Hallerin Hill, WNOX; Tom Humphrey, News Sentinel; and Robin Wilhoit, WBIR. Two of the three GOP Senate candidates gave stump speeches from an actual stump in Chattanooga at an event sponsored by the VFW Auxiliary.

Mueller to Launch Nashville Politics Talk Show -- Veteran WKRN News 2 broadcaster Bob Mueller is launching a new weekend talk show this fall with a focus on state politics that will include other local pundits and members of the media in a round table format. The show is scheduled for a Sept. 9 launch date with a spicy line-up that will feature Gov. Phil Bredesen as the first guest. The co-hosts for the first panel include radio personality Steve Gill, Nashville Scene Editor Liz Garrigan and City Paper Executive Editor Clint Brewer.

$10 M for Attracting Films -- Among the one-time items in Governor Bredesen's budget this past cycle was $10 million industry officials think might make Tennessee more competitive in attracting the movie industry. Tennessee has lost movie and television projects to Canada, Romania and southern states such as Louisiana and North Carolina because it hasn't been able to match the perks the other areas offer, said David Bennett, executive director of the Tennessee Film, Entertainment and Music Commission. The $10 million will allow state officials to offer rebates on money spent in-state on film production above a certain threshold, not including producers' and stars' salaries.

Blogs Begin Investigating Bredesen Qualifacts Connection -- Bill Hobbs is doing a bit of citizen journalism and asking Governor Phil Bredesen to answer the hard questions on his connections to a new health care information system company called Qualifacts. Bredesen's TennCare czar J.D. Hickey is leaving the state to serve as the new head of the company, which Bredesen is the major shareholder. Predictably, some of the folks connected with Qualifacts also have connections with the TennCare system. Nathan Moore has a bit more and a call for a serious investigation.

Groups Attune to Judicial Races -- Citizens for Home Rule, a Knoxville-based organization promoting property rights, has singled out Court of Appeals Judge Herschel P. Franks as a target in the upcoming statewide vote on appeals court judges. The group has even bought out $30,000 of radio advertisements "informing" voters that Franks may have misapplied the facts in a case. Retiring State Senator David Fowler's pro-family organization Family Action Council and TeamGOP have also targeted certain judicial retention candidates for "no" votes.

CA Profiles Shelby Co. Mayor's Race -- The Memphis Commercial Appeal takes a look at the Shelby Co. Mayor's race in which a pro-business Democrat who often shows up to Republican events - A.C. Wharton, is running against a pro-payroll tax Republican often at odds with his party - John Willingham. Willingham's campaign has mostly focused on labeling Wharton a "good old boy" and himself as a political outsider and political pundits say Willingham's candidacy shows the local GOP doesn't consider the race winnable.

Posted by Adam Groves | Email This |