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Daily Dose for January 22, 2008
Clinton's Visit
Clinton's Visit -- Former President Bill Clinton tried to capitalize on the hottest political buzzword yesterday by telling students at Fisk university that his wife would be a "world-class change-maker." While mentioning a myriad of issues from health care to No Child Left Behind, Clinton's focus seemed to be on the dignity Hillary would restore to White House foreign policy and criticism, amidst bad economic news of President Bush's economic policies. Clinton: "If she’s elected, her message will be, first of all, we’re back ... And we’re going to employ diplomacy from now on.” More here.
Thompson Campaign Withdrawal Likely Soon -- The Washington Post says a campaign withdrawal is likely from the Fred Thompson Presidential campaign. The campaign has still not released a Florida travel schedule - a sign that Fred is probably pulling out of the race. TN political scientists also saw it coming with a diagnosis that Fred didn't properly capitalize on the campaign buzz before he entered the race.
Legislature Takes Second Look at Dog Ban -- State Sen. Tommy Kilby who intially proposed a ban for all pit bulls in TN has since changed that legislation to cover compensation for pets who cause injuries. Meanwhile, State Sen. Doug Jackson has proposed legislation to allow lawsuits even when a dog bites a person on the dog owner's property. Another bill would create an offending dog registry system which would catalogue dog attacks and be publically accessible in much the same way the sex offender registry is kept. All of this legislation is an effort to crack down on animal attacks.
Local Briefs -- Here's some news from local governments around the state:
- Sullivan Co. - Commissioners are still opposed to a seniors property tax freeze in Sullivan Co, making it one of the few counties not to adopt an optional state law that would freeze property tax rates for seniors over 65. The Commission also has a proposal on its current agenda to support a proposed change to the state's open meeting laws to allow private communication between two members of a public body.
- Knox Co. - More neighborhood forums are poping up in what will be a very interesting election season in Knox Co. government. With the county's recent struggles with open meeting laws, there is renewed interest from average citizens in local government. Yesterday, several folks running for Commission seat gathered at a spur community gathering in Commission District 2
- Shelby Co. - In response to controversy about whether or not a Kwanza celebration could be hosted on Shelby Co. government property, County Mayor A.C. Wharton has unveiled a policy preventing any meetings other than county business from happening on county property. The ban does not apply to county-sanctioned charitable event.
