May 18, 2005

Kill Bill Bash Blog

Tennessee's only blogging state legislator, Rep. Stacey Campfield, R-Knoxville, reports on the death of his proposed ethics legislation in a House subcommittee, where some of the Democrats on the subcommittee took jabs at Campfield's blog:

The bill was killed - all Republicans voted yes to save it, Democrats voted no. As I was thanking the committee, a State Representative on the committee(I believe it was Rep. Jones) laughed and said something to the effect of "go write that in your little blog."

Well Representative Jones, I've written it. More obstructionism and stalling on ethics legislation, and possibly as bad, the revelation of a general feeling of disdain, if not antagonism for open government. To criticize a blog - which is only a tool to communicate with Tennesseans - should speak volumes to Tennessee taxpayers.

It is ironic to hear such antagonism about a means of telling Tennesseans what is going on - after all, government belongs to the people. Nashville isn't the personal playground for a privileged few elected officials - at least it shouldn't be.

Rep. Ulysses Jones, D-Memphis, was elected to the state legislature in 1986 and is a member of several powerful House committees involving education, elections and lottery oversight, and he chairs the House State and Local Government Committee. You'd think he would want to communicate more effectively with his constitutuents in the 98th district and with the people of Tennessee. But I'm guessing he won't be accepting my offer for him - and all state legislators in Tennessee - to have a free blog at VolPols.com.