Posted on 01/15/2009 1:04:21 PM PST by fieldmarshaldj
GOP candidates, including two from Shelby, will fill top state slots
By Richard Locker (Contact), Memphis Commercial Appeal
Originally published 11:30 a.m., January 15, 2009 Updated 12:26 p.m., January 15, 2009
NASHVILLE — Republicans in the Tennessee legislature today swept from office all three of the state’s top constitutional officers and elected longtime Republican officials — two of them from Shelby County — to replace them.
Flexing its political muscle for the first time since the stunning defeat Tuesday of the Republican Caucus’s nominee for House speaker, the legislature’s new GOP majority elected:
* Shelby County Commissioner David H. Lillard Jr. of Germantown as state treasurer. He succeeds Dale Sims, the Democrat who has served as the state’s chief banker since 2003. Lillard is a lawyer and partner in the Memphis law firm of Burch, Porter & Johnson where he focuses his work on bond finance and tax law.
* Former Bartlett state representative Tré Hargett as secretary of state, replacing Democrat Riley Darnell, a former state legislator who has been the state’s chief records-keeper since 1993.
* Nashville lawyer and GOP fundraiser Justin P. Wilson as state comptroller. He succeeds John Morgan, who has been comptroller since 1999. Morgan was top assistant to the previous comptroller for 10 years.
The election of the constitutional officers occurred in a joint House-Senate meeting today after being delayed by partisan wrangling from Wednesday, when it was originally scheduled.
The three offices, which each carry an annual salary of $180,000, are the top positions in state government not elected by the public at large. Along with officials in the governor’s administration, they serve together on several top state boards and agencies, including the boards that govern higher education; the State Funding Board, which estimates the state revenue for budget purposes and oversees finances; and the State Building Commission, which reviews and approves all state government building projects and leases.
The comptroller’s office audits all of state government and its agencies, and oversees local government audits. It evaluates the performance of all state agencies and reports its findings to the legislature for review.
The treasurer manages more than $30 billion in state funds, including the state pension fund.
The secretary of state’s office is the primary repository of official documents, including business and charitable organization registrations and other commercial filings.
All three elections were along party lines except that Hargett defeated Darnell 70-61, with the votes of all 69 Republicans plus Democrat Dennis Ferguson of Harriman. Lillard and Wilson were both elected on 69-62 votes. One Democrat, Rep. Les Winningham of Huntsville, is at home attending to his seriously ill wife.
Hargett, 39, represented the Bartlett area in the state House of Representatives from 1997 through 2006 and led House Republicans. He did not seek re-election in 2006, accepted a transfer by his employer, a private ambulance and emergency services company, to Knoxville. Last year, he moved to Nashville when the General Assembly appointed him one of the four full-time directors of the Tennessee Regulatory Authority, which he chairs.
Lillard, 55, has been a member the Shelby County Commission since 2002 and served a term as its chairman last year. He served on the Shelby County Election Commission from 1994 to 2002, and is an assistant city attorney for both Germantown and Collierville.
Wilson, 64, served as commissioner of environment and deputy to the governor under former Republican governor Don Sundquist.
John Cornyn is trying to recruit Charlie “The Greek McGreevey” Crist to run for Martinez’s seat. The good news is that Crist would have to give up the Governorship, the bad news is that RINO would be a disaster as Senator. Mica, unfortunately, would be 68 at the start of the Senate term in January 2011, he’s too old. :-\
thanks for that info.
my state of Fl was rampant with voter fraud in this election.
Lets hope we put up a decent person to run here as this states has many electoral votes
Let us pray that the GOP Sec. of State will be on hand in 2012.
...and from Montana...
Bill to make crime of breaking legislative rules sputters
Billings Gazette | January 14, 2009 | Jennifer McKee
Posted on 01/14/2009 11:27:49 PM PST by fella
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2164873/posts
Good news. Now they (GOP) need to drum that scumbag speaker out of the party!
These are pertinent questions toward future events, mind you, and thanks in advance for any serious replies.
Tennessee is a great place to live. We do not have state income tax, we have a great roads system, including 6 interstates running through our state. It is a beautiful state with three distinct regions and topography.
Voters used to vote democrat in local elections and republican in national races. Voters have started voting more along conservative lines in recent years.
The democrats are still playing their dirty tricks with the General Assembly, so we are not completely out of the woods.
I use the analogy of “which head do men think with”; THE King is the head on the shoulders, and King Willie is the other.
They did the exacvt same thing in the Texas House
TN is arguably one of the reddest states in the union...and I am a proud Volunteer. We had a tax revolt here against a RINO governor, and, outside of recent shenanigans, our state remains red. We defeated O by almost 20 points here!
There is movement within the TNGOP to oust this guy. I hope they do it and we run a real conservative against him him the next election. He comes from Carter County which is a VERY RED area of the state...he can be beaten.
Cool ... Now we can finally get on with Reconstruction ...
I’m not certain about the Rep in Oak Ridge. But I do know that Randy McNally-R is senator. Sorta -R sorta not. Had the tax protest not gone down he would have voted for it to fund Tenn SCare.
Anderson County has 2 Representatives, both Democrats. Jim Hackworth represents the more urban half, Les Winningham the more rural section and a swath of several other rural counties (Clay, Jackson, Pickett & Scott). Hackworth seems like a buffoon and was responsible for the “Llama Bill”, for which he was lampooned in this cartoon:
http://wescomer.com/webcomic/2007/02/20/stacey-campfield-jim-hackworth-and-a-llama-walk-into-a-bar/
Thanks for all the updates on this, fieldmarshald.
Sure thing.
Why do you say that?
Thanks for the positive news, after the speaker debacle we needed some. Maybe Williams came to his senses and voted right for a change after getting a bunch of scathing e-mails (including 2 from me) from angry Tennesseans.
You’re right and that’s why I could answer who the state Rep was in Oak Ridge for certain. Oak Ridge is the far west end and I am in the far east of the county in Hackworths district. My property line to the south is on the county line & is the U.S. congressional District line between Wamp and JJ Duncan.
It was like the other Williams in ‘07 when he realized his vote wouldn’t matter when Sen. Kurita voted for Ron Ramsey to be the Senate Speaker. Our new traitor Williams’s vote didn’t matter one iota. In fact, his NOT voting for the Democrats was another lie ! He stated he was likely to vote for at least one (if not all) of the Democrat candidates for the 3 offices going back to December. This guy lies to everybody about everything. A hallmark of a pathological nutjob.
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