News from Tim Skow of First Tuesday

From Tim Skow:

1ST TUESDAY Members, friends and those who care about Nashville !

Thankfully ... Election Day is coming fast ... VERY FAST !

Here are 2 ''opportunities'' I hope you too will be excited to take advantage of as November 6th approaches. 

This Sunday SENATOR LINDSEY GRAHAM comes to Nashville on behalf of MARSHA BLACKBURN!

This FREE event is slated for 2:30-4:00pm at RAY's CABARAY SHOWROOM  in Bellevue.  

If you have not already put in an RSVP, please connect ASAP via 

https://www.tngop.org/gotv_marsha_blackburn 

LOCALLY ....

For Nashville residents, nothing on the ballot threatens to impact local citizens more than Amendment 1.

ULTRA-liberal groups have proposed a ''Citizen Review Board'' trying to snatch oversight of the Nashville Police Department away from those who are elected and legally empowered including the TN Bureau of Investigation , our local District Attorney and many more. responsible. 

Please understand, people do not even have to be a citizen to be on the ''Citizen Review Board''   

Amendment 1 must be DEFEATED .... and here is your opportunity to help !!! 

Many know 1ST TUESDAY has a history of supporting our Members running for local area offices. 

JUDD COWAN, running for State Representative, has come forward to help defeat Amendment 1. 

In conjunction with our friend, Metro Councilman STEVE GLOVER, the attached radio spot has been created. For a mere $30 each, radio ads will run reaching large segments of voters around Nashville. 

In the past 1ST TUESDAY has offered to waive annual dues for those contributing $50 or more at a 1ST TUESDAY event to a 1ST TUESDAY Member on the ballot. 

FOR 2018 ONLY !!  

Anyone from this day forward who contributes at least $30 to Judd's radio spots campaign, your 2019 dues will be waived ! Time is short !!  Please visit Judd's website to and contribute at least $30 ! 

Judd says that ALL $$$ raised will go into his radio campaign and his mission to help defeat Amendment !

Contribute via Judd's website at Vote Judd Cowan for District 50 State House

Vote Judd Cowan for District 50 State House Enable, Innovate, Preserve. Elect a Republican engineer on the 6th of November

IF ... you'd prefer to contribute by check rather than on-line, please call me at 615-429-7569. We can arrange a time place to meet and I will get your contribution to Judd's effort ASAP ! 

FINALLY, remember our November event for 1ST TUESDAY is slated for Monday, November 12th!

Our new 1ST TUESDAY website is about to go live. It still needs a bit of ''polishing'' ... but you too will have an opportunity add your feedback and ideas! 

Hope to see you this SUNDAY with Senator Lindsey Graham, Marsha and many more !

Please visit Judd's website to contribute... OR... give me a call and we will connect for your contribution!!

Then plan to join in on the VICTORY parties coming Nov 6th [ Marsha at the Cool Springs Marriott ] 

and for our next 1ST TUESDAY event on Monday, Nov. 12th !!!!

Thanks again.....  AND GO VOTE EARLY .... if you haven't already.

See you soon.

Tim Skow

Host of 1ST TUESDAY

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Bellevue Republican Breakfast Club

From Bellevue Republican Breakfast Club:

Bellevue Republican Breakfast Club

Saturday, Nov. 3rd at 8:15am 

Corner Pub in the Woods, 8058 Hwy 100

Our guest speaker will be Brian Wilson, conservative morning talk show host on WTN 99.7.  Hope you will join us.

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Nashville Young Republican's Early Voting Happy Hour

From Nashville Young Republicans:

Nashville Young Republican's Early Voting Happy Hour

Tuesday, October 30th at 5pm 

Martin's BBQ, 410 4th Ave. S.

Come join us for a drink at Martin's and then we'll walk over around 6:15 to the Howard Office Building to cast our early voting ballots. See you all there!

More info here.
 

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Victory rally with US Senator Lindsey Graham and Congressman Marsha Blackburn

Click here to RSVP, doors open at 2pm.

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As governor, Phil Bredesen pushed for solar, then helped launch solar company

As governor, Phil Bredesen pushed for solar, then helped launch solar company

The Tennessean - ... He dedicated millions in stimulus dollars to set up the Tennessee Solar Institute in Knoxville, recruited two large manufacturers of solar materials to the state, and his administration pushed for legislation providing green energy companies a series of tax breaks.

Weeks after the tax bill passed in June 2010, Bredesen had another reason to root for the burgeoning sector’s success: He became chairman of a new Nashville solar company, Silicon Ranch. .... Silicon Ranch raised questions about conflicts of interest for Bredesen and Silicon Ranch co-founders Reagan Farr and Matt Kisber, who were both state commissioners at the time. Both the timing of the company’s creation and the introduction of tax incentives directed at the solar industry spurred criticism of the governor during his last months in office.

Rod's Comment: Phil Bredesen is corrupt.

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Brent Moody will put the interests of his district and state above special interest.

Brent Moody

by Rod Williams - Bob Freeman is running to replace Beth Harwell in District 56, the seat currently held by Speaker Beth Harwell.  Freeman is the Democratic candidate, selected by their party leadership, facing off against Republican nominee Dr. Brent Moody who won a spirited primary in August.

Freeman's campaign talks about listening and bringing people together but not about specifics.  How would he improve Education?  What ideas does he have for Transit in Davidson County and Middle Tennessee?   Does he have suggestions for preserving and improving the economic progress of the last few years of Republican governance?  You can read his candidate profile in the Tennessean at this link.

What we know about Freeman is that, despite his talk of being born and married in District 56, he only moved here recently in order to run for office.  His ties to the area seem to be less important than the opportunity to seek a political position.  Apparently if Speaker Harwell were running for re-election, the Freeman family would have stayed put or moved into another district where he would create deep 'ties' to the community.  We can see that Bob Freeman doesn't want neighbors, he wants voters.  

Freeman talks about people being tired of "partisan rhetoric" and seeking "common ground" but a PAC to which his father donated over $100,000 earlier this year has sent out a dishonest mail piece attacking Brent Moody for being a highly respected skin cancer surgeon who travels widely to train other doctors in how to employ certain promising cancer chemotherapies.  Clearly Bob Freeman is above partisan rhetoric, leaving that to his father's friends.  Dirty campaigning is dirty campaigning even if you pay others to do it.  

The big question is why the Freeman family is focused on the State House.  There are already several Democrats representing Davidson County.  One more won't change the Republican super majority in the House.  But Bob's father Bill is predicted to run for Mayor next year.  

Bill Freeman didn't buy the company that owns the Nashville Scene and the Nashville Post just to lose money.  He already fired Megan Barry's husband from his role as a respected columnist.  And there is considerable speculation that the Freeman political machine was behind some of the revelations that helped expose Mayor Barry's romantic activities.  Having the new State Representative from Nashville's wealthiest area would be politically valuable to the Freeeman machine even if it did nothing to help the city and county.  

A vote for Bob Freeman is not a vote for specific ideas or for a clear philosophy of government.  It is a vote for politics as usual and to further a larger agenda to help elect his father.  

District 56 has benefited from having Beth Harwell as their Representative.  So has Tennessee.  Both groups will benefit from electing Brent Moody.  He will put the interests of his district and our state first and ahead of special interests.  He is strongly supported by Governor Haslam and Speaker Harwell and State Senator Steve Dickerson. You can read his candidate profile at this link to see some of the key distinctions.

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Vote "against ratification" on Amendment 1, Amendment 5. and Amendment 6.

When you go to the polls to vote you will see six proposed Charter amendments on the ballot. To view the complete language of the amendments, go to the Election Commissions website and go to page 3.

I am recommending that voters vote "against ratification" on amendment 1, Amendment 5, and Amendment 6. 

Two of the  other three amendments are harmless housekeeping amendments that do no harm and may even be beneficial. One of the other three, I think, is flawed but not a disaster and it doesn't much matter if it passes or not.  If you get into the polling booth and cannot remember which amendment does what and in doubt how to vote, just vote against them all.


Below is a summary of the six amendments.

Amendment one would establish a community oversight board that would have the power to investigate allegations of misconduct against the Metro Police Department. This is a terrible proposal.

There are currently at least eight different layers of accountability in place for our local law enforcement agencies, several made up of civilians. These include local agencies such as the Office of Professional Accountability as well as state and federal agencies such as the TBI and FBI.  Also, there is no requirement in the proposed amendment that would require the perspective of someone who is knowledgeable of law enforcement policy, procedure and training. Nor is there a requirement for anyone on the board to have a comprehensive understanding of local, state and federal law.  Also, this would add another $2 million annually to the Metro Budget. When the metro government cannot give employees a promised raise and is cutting tens of millions of dollars out of the budget to stay solvent, Nashville cannot afford this redundant, expensive layer of bureaucracy.

The amendment would also stack the deck to have the board dominated by liberal activist. Also, there is not even a requirement that board members be U. S. citizens.

Amendment two would set a procedure to follow if the mayor's seat is vacant and for some reason the vice mayor can't or won't fill the seat.

Amendment three clarifies and changes when special elections would be held for vacant mayor, vice mayor and council member seats. A special election would be held for mayor if there is more than 12 months left in the term. For vice mayor, that number is 24 months. District council members would have an election if more than eight months were left in the term and at-large council member seats would remain vacant and have no special election.

I think this is flawed and will vote against it also but don't care that much. I like the part about the call for election if the mayors seat would be vacant for 12 month and if the vice mayor's seat would remain vacant 24 months. I think a district seat should have more than 8 months left before calling a special election, however. By the time you could have the election, there would be less than 8 months remaining. By that time you could have the special election, people are already campaigning for the next regular election. So, whoever gets elected would not even have time to recover from the campaign before campaigning for reelection. A council member at large looks after the affairs of vacant council seat. I think there should only be a special election if at least 12 month are remaining so I will vote against this but don't care that much one way or the other.

Amendment four would require certain elected city officials to take an oath to uphold the Charter of Metropolitan Government of Nashville. Currently, those officials only take an oath to uphold the Constitution of the State and the Constitution of the United States. A charter of a city does not protect basic rights the way a State or the U.S. constitution does, so I don't think this is terribly important, but it does no harm.

Amendment five would change the term limits for council members from two terms to three. I don't think there is inherently anything better about two terms than three terms and am not a big proponent of term limits. However, the people have spoken on this several times and I think the issue ought to stay settled for a while. I am tired of the opponents of term limits continuously bringing this back up.
 
Amendment six would change masculine pronouns in the Metro Charter to gender neutral pronouns. For example, references to "he" would be changed to "he/she." "Councilman" would be changed to "Council member." This is butchering the language and grammar for political correctness. The singular pronoun "he" or "his," includes people of either sex.  Consider the sentence, "Everyone brought his own lunch."  The "his" covers both males and females. That flows much better than this awkward sentence: "Everyone brought his/her own lunch."

To summarize, I am voting against amendments 1, 3, 5 and 6. Or, I might just vote against them all, just for the heck of it.

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How Republicans deny people the right to vote.

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Ride a bike, take Uber, walk. You may not miss your car.

This week the organization Nashville Connector has launched a Commuter Challenge asking downtown commuters to pledge to make at least one trip to work not driving alone during the week of Oct. 22-Oct. 28. I don't work downtown but if you do, I encourage you to try it.

I go downtown about once a week, sometimes more.  I am using my car less and less. Last time I went down town was last Wednesday to attend the First Tuesday event. I Uberred to the the event and walked back.  I try to get some exercise each day so I often walk for exercise. It was a pleasant day for a walk.  The fare to the event was about $8. When I drive, I park beneath the public library in that garage and get my ticket stamped at the library so the first hour is free. It still ends up costing me about $5 to park. Sometimes, I have to drive repeatedly around the parking garage waiting for someone else to leave in order to find a parking space.

Sometimes I go to Lower Broadway to listen to music and drink beer. From my house near the Wedgwood  Ave and  8th Ave intersection, to lower Broad is about two miles. I just checked the cost of an Uber fare. If  I was going right now at noon on Monday, October 22nd the fee for an UberX would be $7.53.  If I wanted to take the Uber Pool it would only be $4.58.

Actually, I usually walk when going to Lower Broad which is good exercise and free. Last time I went, I rode mys bicycle. If I am going with someone else, I Uber. If two people are sharing the $7.53 fee, it is cheap. To park near lower Broadway is about $20 and those parking spaces can be hard to find.  Another advantage of Ubering is that I do not have to monitor my beers in take so much. When driving, I carefully monitor to make sure I do not drink more than one beer an hour. When some one else is driving, I can enjoy an extra beer. Like Judge Kavanaugh famously said, "I like beer."

Uber is quick to respond, and catching an Uber at my house or downtown is almost always quick. My usual wait time is about two minutes.

Back in September, my daughter and I went on a weekend trip to Montreal. The trip to the airport was $13.34. The return trip was $15.42.  There is no way I could get there and back with less hassle and as cheap. Driving is a hassle and even leaving your car at a fly away lot is expensive.

I know if you live further out, to take Uber or Lyft can be more expensive, but if you have never tried it, you owe it to yourself to at least see what it would cost. Unless you have a free parking space downtown, taking an Uber may be cheaper than the cost of parking.

I know habits are hard to break, but if you start not driving you may find out you like not driving. Door to door service, no stress of driving, no looking for a parking space, no paying up to $20 to park or $20 to park and $2 for valet service are advantages of not driving.

The market and technology are providing solutions to congestion and traffic woes. There is much more the market and technology could do if government would become a welcoming partner rather than an obstacle. In the meantime, rather than just complain about traffic and parking and congestion, embrace what we already have.  I have not ridden one of the Lime or Bird scooters but last time I was biking, I saw lots of people using them. They are becoming a significant contributor to mobility without relying on ones own car.  So, I encourage you to try life without a car: Uber, Lyft, Lime, Bird, MTA bus service, bike, walk, carpool. It is not expensive and you may not miss your car.

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