I’ve wondered why Phil Bredesen would leave the comfort of his Nashville mansion to run for the U.S. Senate. I’ve seen his clever ads where he eats a fake lunch with actors reading lines or heard about his applying for the job and supporting what’s good for Tennessee. This all sounds comforting in a time of turmoil. But the turmoil didn’t just suddenly start with Hillary’s loss.
Recently at a rally held for Rep. Marsha Blackburn, the audience was asked to observe a moment of silence for those tragically murdered in Pennsylvania. During that silence, the dignity and respect of that moment was deliberately interrupted by a presumed Bredesen supporter screaming “Marsha Blackburn is a white supremacist.” It was so like the maniacal screaming in the U.S. Senate Chamber during the Kavanaugh vote. And if anyone speaks out against their issues they will get called vicious names or lectures on civility from the subjective media experts.
Where has Phil been in all of this turmoil? Has he condemned the bullying and even rioting by masked mobs? Did Phil condemn Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan’s reference to Jews as termites shortly before the Pennsylvania shooting? (Nazis often referred to Jews as termites). I guess Phil, and people like Howard Dean, who is no stranger to maniacal screaming himself, hope we’ve forgotten about Farrakhan. They hope we’ve forgotten about Michael Sanford, an illegal who tried to kill Trump during the campaign in Las Vegas or the Bernie Sanders volunteer who shot and nearly killed Rep. Steve Scalise because he was a Republican.
And has anyone wondered why gun control is not their mantra right now? It’s because they’re gleefully pushing the climate of hate scenario, only minus the dangerous and vicious things they’ve said and done for more than the last two years.
As time passed we’ve learned a little more about what Phil really believes and his motives for running. He opposes a border wall. He calls his solution to the migrant caravan a chance to show we are grown ups. He even revealed a plan for dealing with those who in the caravan who show up at our border seeking asylum.
The problems with his plan include additional judges to hear the cases of the thousands showing up at the border which he doesn’t address. Statistics tell us only 20 percent of those seeking asylum actually receive it. So if 7,000 arrive 1,400 are let in. If it’s 14,000, that’s around 2,800 given asylum. So then what’s Phil’s plan for the other 5,000 to 10,000 hungry and weary people? Grown ups would have thought that one through to its logical conclusion. But he needed a quick press release.
Democrats desperately want to control the senate so they can resist Trump’s federal judge and Supreme Court Justice appointees and his legislation. That’s why a man who will be 81 years old when his term ends could be coaxed into running right now. That explains why Phil will dance around some issues or say what he thinks independents and moderate Republicans want to hear from him. He doesn’t have to keep promises especially if he’s not running again in six years.
What Phil might consider is seriously looking at what’s happening with his party and his nation. I’m still wondering if he has a fence around his stately Nashville mansion. Maybe he needs to sit on his porch there behind his fence, if he has one, and allow the President to continue making our nation safe and prosperous.
Ralph Miller
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Ralph,
I read your piece with an optimistic mind and I can't help but notice that you seem colorblind. No, not the kind of colorblind that blocks out all colors, but the kind where the red has overtaken your ability to see any other color.
I feel sorry for you based on your outlook of this race. You see, your whole approach to politics is "NOT HIM." You've spent nearly 600 words telling us why not to vote for Phil Bredesen, but did not use one word to triumph your de facto candidate. Everything that you detest in Mr. Bredesen is similar, but in a different color, to your candidate. If we boil down partisan politics, we can see that both the Red and the Blue candidates are equally unpalatable and for the same reasons.
I would encourage you to go back and rewrite your opinion piece to praise the good things in Marsha Blackburn. After all, the old saying goes, "You catch more flies with honey than you do with vinegar." We saw this play out with Hillary when the blue folks used the same script you are using and...well... look how that turned out!
If you find that you cannot write 600 words praising your candidate, I would suggest your reevaluate your support.
Tim Giordano
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Thanks Mr. Miller. I have said Bredesen is nothing but a politician claiming to work with both sides to resolve issues. If it smells, go around it. His ads are easy to see through and phony as well. He also allowed thousands of illegals to obtain Tennessee driver's licenses.
He and Al Gore need to set around their campfires and dream on about playing educated people as fools.
Jack Varner