Commentary
Commentary: Will Hillsdale charter schools teach truth?
Watching the news unfold about Hillsdale College creating Tennessee schools that my tax dollars will pay for is like watching a horror film where you know bad things are going to happen. I am a product of Tennessee public schools in Oneida, Tennessee, married a graduate of a public school, and am the stepmother of […]
Editor’s column: Absolute power corrupts absolutely
In July 1989, I was lying on the sofa of my brother’s Knoxville apartment one night. It was the summer I’d quit work to go back to school and finish the degree I abandoned to work on political campaigns a few years back. The TV was turned on, the volume low, while I read. And […]
Stockard on the Stump: Speaker firing two suspended employees linked to FBI investigation
Two legislative staff members suspended since an FBI raid on the Cordell Hull Building in January 2021 are being fired, just days after Rep. Robin Smith resigned her post and pleaded guilty to wire fraud. Speaker Cameron Sexton confirmed Thursday the two employees who’ve been on suspension with pay for 14 months will no longer […]
Commentary: GOP “socialists” propaganda campaign lacks credibility
The Republican Party is engaged in a persistent propaganda campaign asserting that Democrats intend to impose “Socialism” on America. Perennial Republican gnat Newt Gingrich declared in September 2021 that Republicans had an opportunity to “rebrand” Democrats as “Big Government Socialists.” In May 2021, Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel accused Democrats of engaging in “Big […]
Editor’s column: War on librarians is another effort to destabilize public schools
I’ve got a soft spot for librarians. As a kid, my mom hauled us to the downtown Franklin library every week as far back as I can remember. Even before I could read, I went along as she and my older brother checked out books. After I, too, could read, I got to know all […]
Stockard on the Stump: Registry members ticked about Casada comments
Registry of Election Finance members are chafing over former House Speaker Glen Casada’s claim this week that the registry should have called him first about a questionable political action committee rather than issue a subpoena. The more they think about it, the angrier they get. “Casada accuses the Registry of bias and in the same […]
Commentary: We cannot address racism if we can’t talk about race
Lawmakers in Tennessee are pushing some bills that would ease the removal of books from school libraries, limit diversity initiatives in higher education, and restrict the teaching of diversity and equity concepts at the college level (the so-called ban on Critical Race Theory). These bills represent an effort to legislate away uncomfortable truths and bend […]
Biden’s State of the Union address
Following is the text of the State of the Union address as prepared for delivery by President Joe Biden on Tuesday night at the U.S. Capitol, as released by the White House: Madam Speaker, Madam Vice President, our First Lady and Second Gentleman. Members of Congress and the Cabinet. Justices of the Supreme Court. My […]
Editor’s column: Dearth of Democratic candidates in CD 5 leaves voters underrepresented
A redistricting that sliced Congressional District 5, the historic Nashville district, into three parts like so many pieces of the pie caused a freakout among Democrats. U.S. Rep. Jim Cooper, who has held the seat since 2002, announced the day after the redistricting was made public that he would not seek reelection. Never mind that […]
Stockard on the Stump: Governor goes off the rails with charter school comment
Gov. Bill Lee might have gotten a little discombobulated Thursday when he wrapped up the press conference for his triumphant and “historic” funding formula proposal. Asked whether his plan will divert public school funds to charter schools, which are being wrapped into the formula, the governor said, “Public schools are charter schools and charter schools […]
3 poll numbers that should scare Democrats, and 3 that should give some hope
If the central argument for President Joe Biden’s election in 2020 was his competence and decades of experience in Washington, three numbers in a new nationwide Quinnipiac University poll are a warning shot for the White House and Democrats as they look to hold their majorities in the U.S. House and Senate. Here they are: 56, 61, and 62. And […]
Editor’s column: Blackburn’s role in opioid crisis overshadows her crack pipe concerns
Given the Republican Party is so full of conspiracists and crackpots these days, it’s understandable Tennessee’s federally elected GOP characters get short shrift from the media. Competition is tough from U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia who doesn’t know the difference between the Nazi Germany police force and cold tomato soup. A year ago, […]