Bill Haslam and Don Sundquist enjoy quality time together.

Tennessee Democratic Party Chairman Chip Forrester is curious if Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Haslam and other Republican candidates for office will show up at former Gov. Don Sundquist’s “Thank You” barbecue this Saturday in Nashville.

Sundquist is hosting the barbecue at the home of friend Al Ganier, once accused of obstructing a federal investigation into government contracts. Ganier wound up pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge related to the investigation.

“Everyone knows that the Haslams are friends and supporters of Sundquist, who unsuccessfully tried to push through a state income tax with the help of Bill’s father,” Forrester said. “The big question is, in light of the recent Haslam television ad touting Gov. Phil Bredesen and Gov. Ned Ray McWherter, will Mr. Haslam be seen with Sundquist? He didn’t include Mr. Sundquist in the ad. That’s an odd way for old family friends to treat one another.

“Mr. Haslam is obviously going out of his way to distance himself from the father of the Tennessee state income tax proposal. I also wonder how many other Republican friends of Mr. Sundquist will show up at the barbecue.

“Mr. Sundquist has been kind enough to financially support Republican campaigns over the years. Surely the candidates will show their appreciation and respect by joining Mr. Sundquist at his barbecue.” Forrester added.

Silent About Anti-Semitic Facebook Posting

Tennessee Republicans are scrambling to save face with Rutherford County state House candidate Mike Sparks who posted an anti-Semitic statement on his campaign Facebook page and fabricated a college degree.

“GOP Chairman Chris Devaney is desperately trying to deflect criticism of a candidate who has no business running for the state Legislature,” Tennessee Democratic Party Chairman Chip Forrester said. “Mr. Devaney needs to cut his losses now and denounce Mr. Sparks for being a bigot and a liar.

“The state GOP is defending Sparks for falsifying his resume with a fake degree, which is a ludicrous defense, but I haven’t heard anything from the Republicans for that anti-Semitic posting,” Forrester said. “Someone who shows this kind of judgment has no business running for an elected office in this state or this country. The Tennessee Republican Party should immediately remove Mr. Sparks from the ballot.”

A few weeks ago Mr. Sparks posted anti-Semitic material written by a Nazi sympathizer on his campaign Facebook page and provided a link to other bigoted YouTube videos. Sparks also implied he was a 1997 graduate of Middle Tennessee State University on his Facebook page. Forrester pointed out that Sparks used a similar posting reflecting his high school graduation information, which reads “Smyrna High School ’85.”

“The logic they are using to defend Mr. Sparks for lying about his college degree would mean that he is lying about graduating from Smyrna High School in 1985, too,” Forrester said. “Regardless, I’d like to hear their logic on the anti-Semitic posting.”

Sparks, a Rutherford County commissioner, is seeking the House seat currently occupied by state Rep. Kent Coleman of Murfreesboro.

Forrester also pointed out that Sparks had to amend a filing with the Tennessee Registry of Election Finance revealing that he has made expenditures during his campaign. His first two filings with the state agency claimed no expenditures had been made. Sparks’ campaign website also fails to list an appropriate authorization line as required by state law.

“Mr. Sparks is not at all ready to represent the people of Rutherford County in the General Assembly,” Forrester said. “Rutherford County citizens deserve a lawmaker who understands that we need good jobs for our families, good schools for our children and safe, desirable communities in which to live.

“They don’t need someone who reflects intolerance and dishonesty,” he added.

Rutherford County Republican state House candidate Mike Sparks has once again gotten himself into trouble over a Facebook posting that implies he is a 1997 graduate of Middle Tennessee State University.

According to MTSU officials, Sparks has never received a degree from the university. Tennessee Democratic Party Chairman Chip Forrester is asking Sparks to apologize to Rutherford County voters for “falsifying his resume.”

“People are routinely fired from their jobs for a lie like that,” Forrester said. “Mr. Sparks is guilty of falsifying his resume. He should explain to the citizens of Rutherford County why he decided to pass himself off as an MTSU graduate.

“This is just one more in a list of blunders Mr. Sparks has made during his campaign for the state House. The people of Rutherford County deserve a representative in the General Assembly who is honest, hardworking and beyond reproach. Mr. Sparks is not that leader.

“Just a few weeks ago Mr. Sparks posted anti-Semitic material written by a Nazi sympathizer on his campaign Facebook page and provided a link to other bigoted YouTube videos. Someone who shows this kind of judgment has no business running for an elected office in this state or this country. The Tennessee Republican Party should immediately remove Mr. Sparks from the ballot,” he said.

Sparks, a Rutherford County commissioner, is seeking the House seat currently occupied by state Rep. Kent Coleman of Murfreesboro.

Forrester also pointed out that Sparks had to amend a filing with the Tennessee Registry of Election Finance revealing that he has made expenditures during his campaign. His first two filings with the state agency claimed no expenditures had been made. Sparks’ campaign website also fails to list an appropriate authorization line as required by state law.

“Mr. Sparks is not at all ready for prime time,” Forrester said. “We need lawmakers who understand that we need good jobs for our families, good schools for our children and safe, desirable communities in which to live.”

State Sen. Bill Ketron shoulders much of the blame for recent election blunders that call into question the intention of the Murfreesboro lawmaker and Republican colleagues who fired election administrators across the state and delayed a law meant to improve elections.

Reported election mishaps in Rutherford, Davidson, Hawkins, Maury and Shelby counties have revealed troubling problems in Tennessee and the Republicans responsible for conducting those elections, according to Tennessee Democratic Party Chairman Chip Forrester.

“Mr. Ketron and the Republican leadership in the General Assembly should apologize to all Tennesseans for mishandling elections in this state,” Forrester said. “People, regardless of their party affiliation, expect their votes to be counted correctly.

“Using wrong voter files, miscounting ballots, and not even opening voter precincts at all like over in Rutherford County do not provide many of us with confidence in the election process, which is the bedrock of our democracy. It appears the Republicans responsible for running our elections are either grossly incompetent or trying to manipulate election results.”

Ketron sponsored the bill that delayed until 2012 the Tennessee Voter Confidence Act, which required all county election commissions to make the switch to optical scan machines and paper ballots before the November 2010 elections. More than $30 million in federal funding has been set aside to purchase the new machines.

“If we had those machines in place earlier this month and Republicans hadn’t fired so many experienced election administrators, we likely would not have encountered as many problems,” Forrester said. “Republicans flat out lied when they said the purchase of these new machines would be a financial burden to county governments.”

Republicans took control of local election commissions in all 95 counties after the November 2008 elections, firing many county election administrators soon thereafter and threatening to fire Rutherford County Election Administrator Hooper Penuel, as well.

A federal lawsuit was filed on behalf of Penuel and several other county election administrators in Tennessee contending Republicans violated their constitutional rights by conspiring to treat their jobs as political patronage. Penuel has settled his claim with the Rutherford County Election Commission and will retire at the end of the year.

“Conducting fair and accurate elections is not a partisan issue,” Forrester said. “It is at the core of this country’s foundation. Instead of disenfranchising voters we should be encouraging as many citizens as we can to get involved in the process. Mr. Ketron appears to be more worried about playing partisan politics and taking care of special interests than he is about governing responsibly.”

“Sen. Henry and Mr. Yarbro met this morning to discuss Mr. Yarbro’s request for a recount. At the end of that discussion, a procedure was proposed and agreed to by Mr. Yarbro regarding a recount of the election. Sen. Henry does not oppose the procedure.

“As part of that procedure, I will convene a meeting of our executive committee, which also serves as our state Primary Board, at 6 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 23, at the Freedom Room of the Tennessee Democratic Party headquarters.

“During the meeting, the Primary Board will consider the proposal and whether we should order the Davidson County Election Commission to conduct a recount.”

Tennessee Democratic Party Chairman Chip Forrester is calling for the state GOP to renounce state House candidate Mike Sparks for posting anti-Semitic material written by a Nazi sympathizer on his campaign Facebook page and providing a link to other bigoted YouTube videos.

“This is absolutely deplorable,” Forrester said. “Someone who shows this kind of judgment has no business running for an elected office in this state or this country. The Tennessee Republican Party should immediately remove Mr. Sparks from the ballot.”

Sparks, a Rutherford County commissioner, is seeking the House seat currently occupied by state Rep. Kent Coleman of Murfreesboro.

“Former KGB agent Yuri Bezmenov explains how Jewish Marxist ideology is destabilizing the economy and purposefully pushing the U.S. into numerous crises so that Big Brother tyranny can be put in place in Washington…” Sparks Facebook page stated.

The post was originally written by an individual who goes by MHadden88 on YouTube. It was used to introduce a video clip of former Soviet KGB official Yuri Bezmenov whose words Sparks called “very prophetic.”

“It is obvious MHadden88 is a bigot and a Nazi sympathizer,” Forrester said. “His YouTube Channel included videos implying that the Holocaust was a lie and denying the existence of Nazi gas chambers. Another video claimed that the Anne Frank diary was a hoax, while yet another said photographs of Auschwitz were forgeries.

“Sensible Tennesseans have no tolerance for anyone who would propagate garbage like that,” Forrester added.

Tennessee Democratic Party Chairman Chip Forrester said recent election debacles in Memphis where a wrong voter file was initially used underscore either incompetence or an intention by Republicans to manipulate election results.

“Secretary of State Tre Hargett and his election coordinator Mark Goins have continued to show their willingness to manipulate vote counts to keep their party in power,” Forrester said. “People across this state, regardless of their party affiliation, expect their votes to be counted correctly.

“Using wrong voter files, miscounting ballots and opening voter precincts late do not give too many of us confidence in the election process, which is the bedrock of our democracy. I appreciate Shelby County District Attorney Bill Gibbons’ request that the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation take a close look at what happened on Election Day in Memphis last week.”

Republicans took control of local election commissions in all 95 counties after the November 2008 elections, firing many county election administrators soon thereafter. That prompted a federal lawsuit to be filed on behalf of several former county election administrators contending Republicans violated their constitutional rights by conspiring to treat their jobs as political patronage.

Forrester also pointed to actions of the Benton County Election Commission, which invalidated earlier this spring 2,100 voter registrations for various reasons, including a simple failure to check a box. The commission warned voters to correct their registrations by July 31 or they would be ineligible to vote in last week’s primary.

“This kind of behavior is damaging our political process,” Forrester said. “This is not a partisan issue. It is at the core of this country’s foundation that we have fair and accurate elections and that we engage as many citizens in the process as we can.

“I don’t see how disenfranchising legitimate voters betters our country, our state or our communities,” he added.

Washington DC Wins Republican Nomination
After tonight’s primary results, Tennessee Democrats responded to Stephen Fincher’s (R-Washington, DC) campaign for Congress. Fincher has suffered merciless, nasty, negative attacks from fellow Republicans for the last several months that have raised major doubts about his credibility and trustworthiness with Tennessee voters.

“Big Wall Street banks that want to outsource jobs and backroom political operatives in Washington, D.C., got their man with the nomination of Stephen Fincher,” said Keith Talley with the Tennessee Democratic Party. “Stephen Fincher’s disastrous economic plan would be good for those who want to send our jobs overseas and dangerous for middle class families struggling here in Tennessee. From now until November, Fincher will tell us that he’ll stand up for our jobs but even his fellow Republicans know what he says can’t be trusted.”

Republicans on Stephen Fincher
“The Hypocrisy of Stephen Fincher has no limits. Fincher says one thing …but does another.” [mailer, Robert Kirkland Committee]“Handpicked Washington candidate Stephen Fincher” [Kirkland Press Release, 7/20/10]

“was recruited to run for Congress by Washington politicians, and the same politicians who sold out our country voting for TARP and the bailouts have held fundraisers for Fincher.” [Politico, 7/2/10]
###

Background
Stephen Fincher is a recruit of the National Republican Congressional Committee and has been criticized for his ties to Washington interests. [Roll Call, 2/22/10, 7/28/10]

Fincher signed a pledge written by the Americans for Tax Reform to oppose tax increases, signaling his support for tax breaks for companies that shift jobs overseas. [ATR Web Site, accessed 8/03/10] ATR has said that eliminating a tax break for companies that ship jobs overseas would be a violation of the pledge. [ATR Legislative Alert, 7/25/07]Boehner voted against the Small Business Tax Relief Act (H.R. 5982) which cracks down on companies that take advantage of tax breaks that make it more profitable for them to outsource jobs. [HR 5982, #514, 7/30/10]

Tennessee Democrats will be fanning out across the state on Saturday, Aug. 7, to canvass neighborhoods and ask residents to vote for Democrats in the Nov. 2 general election that will determine our next governor, 99 state House representatives, 17 state senators and nine congressmen.

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mike McWherter will begin the statewide canvass in Big Sandy for the annual duck blind draw at 9 a.m. CDT with state Rep. Butch Borchert of Camden. The two will then go to the Borchert campaign office in Paris at 11 a.m. to meet canvass volunteers before knocking on doors and asking for votes and support.

“Democrats will be spreading the message that the fall’s general election is important to everyone in the state if you care about jobs, education and quality of life,” Tennessee Democratic Party Chairman Chip Forrester said. “Under Gov. Phil Bredesen’s leadership, we were able to steer the state through rough times.

“He and Democratic leaders in the General Assembly were able to create jobs and manage the state’s finances in a responsible manner. Republican leaders in the General Assembly and in Congress, on the other hand, were more focused on do-nothing resolutions meant to posture and grandstand over divisive issues.

“Tennesseans deserve lawmakers who solve problems and represent their best interests, not special interests. Mike McWherter and Tennessee Democrats want and will continue the kind of responsible stewardship that keeps this state and our communities on sound footing,” he added.

For more information about Saturday’s statewide canvass and how you can help, go to the Tennessee Democratic Party’s website at www.tndp.org.

State Rep. Tony Shipley of Kingsport has once again shown an inept understanding of his role in the General Assembly by claiming the federal government played no significant role in helping the state deal with historic flooding earlier this spring.

And his so-called “Contract with Voters of the 2nd District” has essentially become null and void. Nothing he promised during his 2008 campaign has been implemented.

“I don’t think more than $275 million in federal assistance for flood relief is nothing,” Tennessee Democratic Party Chairman Chip Forrester said. “Mr. Shipley’s assessment of what happened in Middle and West Tennessee during the flood is absolutely wrong.

“Two days after the rains stopped, counties in Tennessee were declared disaster areas. And more than 65,000 people in 46 counties have registered with the federal government for assistance. I don’t know of anyone other than Mr. Shipley who thinks we had to go it alone in this recovery effort.”

Last week, Shipley reportedly told a Greater Kingsport Republican Women’s luncheon that “Tennessee had its (Hurricane) Katrina. And substantially we dealt with that… without any federal aid.”

Forrester also pointed out that Shipley’s promise to address illegal immigration, eliminate sales tax on food, to expand lottery scholarships for students, to get Memorial Boulevard rebuilt and to rebuild Highway 93 has gone nowhere.

“Former Rep. Nathan Vaughn was far more effective at helping Sullivan County than Mr. Shipley has been,” Forrester said. “Mr. Shipley even tried to take credit earlier this year for Rep. Vaughn’s work on Memorial Boulevard.”

According to the Tennessee Department of Transportation, the state spent $2 million for project planning and environmental work on State Route 126 (Memorial Boulevard) between 2004 and 2008 during Vaughn’s tenure in the state House. The state during that period also added new highway striping, guardrails, reflectors and center-line rumble strips, and redesigned the intersection at Carolina Pottery.

TDOT officials have said that planned long-term improvements along Memorial Boulevard, which include reconstruction of a length of the highway, have been estimated at $90 million.

“Mr. Shipley needs to quit trying to take credit for other people’s work and he needs to deliver on his campaign promises. Empty promises don’t help hard-working Tennesseans,” Forrester added.