Tennessee Governor-elect Bill Haslam today announced the addition of media veteran Tom Griscom to his transition team.
Mr. Griscom will join the transition on a temporary, part-time basis and help Governor-elect Haslam develop a communications plan and assemble his communications team.
The transition team is currently headed up by Haslam campaign general consultant Tom Ingram, who is assisted by former Haslam campaign manager Mark Cate and Ingram’s frequent partner in politics and business, Lewis Lavine. Former Haslam campaign finance director Kim Kaegi is planning the Inaugural celebration.
“Tom has a long and successful career that spans both the media and the communications arenas, and he brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to the table,” Governor-elect Haslam said. “Tennessee faces big challenges and has important opportunities, and my team and I are committed to communicating clearly and consistently to all Tennesseans. Tom will help us develop the communications plan and build the team dedicated to effectively carrying it out.”
A native Tennessean, Mr. Griscom calls Chattanooga home and has experience communicating in government, business and education fields.
He was the press secretary to former Sen. Howard Baker and the White House Communications Director for then-Pres. Ronald Reagan. He retired this year from the Chattanooga Times Free Press, where he was the publisher and executive editor.
“I’m excited to be part of Gov.-elect Haslam’s team, and I look forward to working with him and others to reach out to the people of Tennessee so they know what this government is doing to help create jobs, continue the momentum in education reform and manage a conservative budget,” Mr. Griscom said.
Mr. Griscom, 61, is married to Marion, and they have three grown children.