One-on-one with Fl Senate President Tom Lee
Monday, March 7, 2005
Next to the governor, Senate President Tom Lee is considered the most powerful politician in Tallahassee.
Lee will be in the spotlight Tuesday morning when the legislative session gets underway.
The following is a transcript of an interview Bay News 9's Al Ruechel conducted with the Brandon developer and family man.
AR: How do you view your role as Senate president, more as a gate keeper or a facilitator?
Tom Lee: Definitely as a facilitator. Real leaders are servants. Power is an illusion and I'm not interested in that. I manage a body of some 300 employees and other elected officials. It's my job to make them look good and the state of Florida look good. I'm not interested in building any monuments to myself. It's not all about me. It's all about them.
AR: How did you get nominated to the post of president of the Senate. It takes a lot of political positioning to get that nomination, doesn't it?
Tom Lee: It took a lot of hard work. I was honored that my colleagues thought enough of me to nominate me to the position. I think again it was because I've had that role of servant in mind and have acted that way and didn't make it all about me.
AR: Will you be advising lawmakers to pass legislation on behalf of Terri Schiavo?
Tom Lee: I suspect there will be several bills that try to address that issue. I advise them not to make any legislation that is so specific, but rather address a body of issues that may be similar to the kind of issues that were brought up in the Terri Schiavo case.
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