CAPITOL VIEW
By Pat Nolan, NEWSCHANNEL5 Political Analyst
August 12, 2022
NASHVILLE MAYOR JOHN COOPER ON INSIDE POLITICS; TRUMP RAID AND MULTIPLE INVESTIGATIONS ROIL NATIONAL POLITICS; FROM BUILD BACK BETTER TO REDUCING INFLATION; THE INSULIN CAP; JULY SEES A DROP IN INFLATION; SCHOOL BEGINS IN NASHVILLE AND MEMPHIS BUT SCHOOL VOUCHERS HAVE NOT; MORE REFLECTIONS ON THE AUGUST 4 ELECTION; A NEW TENNESSEE ATTORNEY GENERAL; CHANGE AT THE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION; THE REST OF THE STORY
NASHVILLE MAYOR JOHN COOPER ON INSIDE POLITICS
Being the mayor of a major American city never has a dull moment.
That’s why we are happy to have Nashville Mayor John Cooper join us on INSIDE POLITICS this week.
It has been a few months since our last conversation with him, so we thank the Mayor for taking time to be with us.
Our interview with Mayor Cooper will first air on the main channel of NEWSCHANNEL5 tonight (Friday) at 6:30 p.m.
INSIDE POLITICS can be seen as well on its regular weekly schedule on NEWCHANNEL5 PLUS.
Those times include:
7:00 p.m. Friday.
5:00 a.m., 3:00 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. on Saturday.
1:30 a.m. & 5:00 a.m. on Sunday.
THE PLUS is on Comcast Cable channel 250, Charter Cable channel 182 and on NEWSCHANNEL5’s over-the-air digital channel 5.2. We are also on DISH TV with the rest of the NEWSCHANNEL5 NETWORK.
One option for those who cannot see the show locally or who are out of town, you can watch it live with streaming video on NEWSCHANNEL5.com. Just use your TiVo or DVR, if those live times don't work for you.
This week’s show and previous INSIDE POLITICS interviews are also posted on the NEWSCHANNEL5 website for your viewing under the NEWSCHANNEL5 PLUS section. A link to the show is posted as well on the Facebook page of NEWSCHANNEL5 PLUS. Each new show and link are posted early in the week after the program airs.
Finally, I am now posting a link to the show each week on my own Facebook page, usually on the Monday or Tuesday after the show airs.
TRUMP RAID AND MULTIPLE INVESTIGATIONS ROIL NATIONAL POLITICS
Nobody in my memory has been investigated as often as former President Donald Trump.
But when the home he keeps at his Florida resort Mara-A-Lago was raided and searched by the FBI on Monday, Mr. Trump and his supporters came a bit unglued in their reactions. That included calls to “defund the FBI” and removing the federal officials along with the judge involved. Among those quite upset are the 9 Republican members of Tennessee’s 11- person congressional delegation.
What the FBI did in raiding a former President’s home and serving search warrants to seize materials is clearly unprecedented. But the process to do so seems to have followed the law. Even former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, who served under Republican President George W. Bush (and is now Dean of the Law School at Belmont University), says the raid was handled properly.
Reaction to the raid has been so pronounced the word “civil war” has been trending on Twitter and the level of threatened violence on line is now the highest since just before the January 6 takeover of the U.S. Capitol. Threats became reality on Thursday when there was an attempted takeover of an FBI office in Cincinnati.
There have been angry demands from Republican leaders for the Department of Justice to release what information Justice officials were seeking in the raid and what they found. Prosecutors are usually loath to release or talk publicly about any information or evidence on any case they are investigating.
But with their silence becoming deafening, and the political pressure building, Thursday afternoon Attorney General Merrick Garland, days after the event, for the first time confirmed he personally authorized the raid and said his office will go to court to get the warrants and a list of the records seized released.
In getting approval to search Mara-A-Lago, the FBI had to detail, to the judge who approved the raid, exactly what they were seeking to find and seize. That information in a warrant also has been given to former President Trump and his lawyers.
News reports say Mr. Trump and his lawyers don’t plan to release the information on their own, even though they could have done so, even while demanding, for days, the Justice Department do so immediately. Overnight into Friday, Mr. Trump now says he supports the court releasing the information.
Of course, the public learning what was being sought and now recovered, could play in different ways. Will it show the FBI had good reason to stage the raid and seize the materials? Or will it be seen as an unprecedented government overreach?
Here is what the media says the FBI was seeking. Trump had classified nuclear documents in his possession, among other items.
When the warrant and other information is released, how will that jive with the former President’s claim of being victim (politically, nobody plays that role better). How will Trump’s claim that the investigation is yet another “witch hunt,” (another one of his favorite phrases), look when all the information is released?
My guess is those who support President Trump will continue to be in his corner. Others will not and never will be.
The Mara-A-Lago raid was not the only time this week when Mr. Trump had to deal with an ongoing investigation. On Wednesday, he was set to testify as a part of a probe into his family business being conducted by the Manhattan District Attorney in New York. The former President pled the 5th Amendment over 400 times which meant he declined to answer questions on the grounds his answers might incriminate him. The U.S. Constitution gives citizens the right not to testify or give damaging information about themselves.
FROM BUILD BACK BETTER TO REDUCING INFLATION
From the Washington department of “better late than never,” President Joe Biden and Democrats on Capitol Hill are on the verge of a major celebration. A significant piece of the administration’s legislative agenda is about to receive final approval in the House of Representatives today (Friday).
Finally.
In a long and winding road through Capitol Hill, that began over a year and a half ago in the early days of this Congress and this President, a bill that was billions in size to “Build Back Better” is now under a single billion dollars in scope. Its’ new name and goal is to reduce inflation (and the deficit), while also making significant changes in tax law, health care and energy, along with other global climate issues.
Assuming the House makes no changes when it approves the bill today, here is what the measure does.
The reason it took so long to get a bill passed was not because Republicans opposed it. All of them did in both the Senate and the House. The reason it struggled, and was cut in size, is largely because Democrats were not united in what should be in the measure. If you want to pass legislation by using the budget reconciliation rules, in an evenly divided 50-50 Senate, you had to have every Democrat voting yes, with Vice President Kamala Harris voting yes as well, to gain final approval.
There were months and months of off and on negotiations, with the bill ruled to be dead for good, several times. But finally, about two weeks ago, a deal was reached with the bill’s biggest opponent Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia and the measure got its new name the “Reduce Inflation Act.” Then another Democratic Senator, Krystin Sinema of Arizona, came on board. Over last weekend, all 50 Democrats stuck together and defeated dozens of Republican amendments during what is called a “vote-a-rama that lasted all night Friday night into Saturday morning. Later that day, the Senate passed the final bill.
There are questions about how much and how soon the new law will impact inflation. There appears to be a more positive consensus on the measure’s impact on climate change.
On a political level, the passage of this major proposal, along with the approval of several other important bills in recent weeks, has given Democrats new hope, and improved talking points, to try and bolster their efforts to hold the Senate in the fast-approaching mid-term elections, and perhaps limit what has appeared to be major losses looming in the House.
What will all this mean for President Biden now and in 2024? His job approval ratings have been way down (now in the high 30s) for almost a year now? It is too early to tell, but White House aides seem optimistic.
The big challenge for Mr. Biden may well be one a couple of his predecessors struggled with. Once Presidents Jimmy Carter and George W. Bush hit the skids (Bush over his handling of Hurricane Katrina and Carter over the Iranian Hostage Crisis) their poll numbers never improved, and both left the White House on the downbeat (Carter defeated for a second term by Ronald Reagan and Bush term limited with Democrat Barack Obama winning the White House).
THE INSULIN CAP
The Reduce Inflation bill does not place a cap on insulin costs for people with private insurance.
There was an effort to include such a limit and 7 Republican Senators voted in favor. But it took 10 GOP votes for approval.
Tennessee has one of the highest rates of diabetes in the nation. Neither of Tennessee’s Senators, Marsha Blackburn or Bill Hagerty, voted for the cap and both have been slow to say why.
JULY SEES A DROP IN INFLATION
Consumer prices in July saw a small decline from its recent record pace, dropping from 9.1% on an annual basis in June to 8.5% in July.
The decline, while modest, was greater than expected and appeared to come primarily from the drop in gas prices. Those are down almost 20%, from a national average of $5 a gallon in June to now just under $4.
Other elements of core inflation continue to increase, particularly in areas such as housing, For example, here in Nashville, the average apartment rent is now $1600-plus a month. But, for some good news, rental rates are now declining, from 2% a month over the last year, to half now or 1% a month, which is still high.
With interest rates rising to combat inflation, the home sales market in Nashville has begun declining, down 19% in July from this time in 2021. Given the super overheated market conditions of the past year, Realtors say the change reflects a more balanced and healthy market with home prices now for the most part holding steady.
All in all, this better news for the Biden administration. The worst of inflation may have peaked, while job numbers remain more robust than expected or feared. But to get inflation down to the Federal Reserve’s goal of 2%-3% annually, more work, including another interest rate hike, seems highly likely in September.
SCHOOL BEGINS IN NASHVILLE AND MEMPHIS BUT SCHOOL VOUCHERS HAVE NOT
After winning another round in court last Friday, it appeared the administration of Governor Bill Lee had the final green light to begin a pilot program in Memphis and Nashville to provide $7500 vouchers to students and their families who wish to attend private rather public schools.
But after state officials claimed more than 2,000 families had expressed interest in the program, it appears only a handful have actually applied, and none have been approved for funding. The same is true for the 40 private schools that say they want to accept voucher students but so far haven’t been approved to accept them.
So much for Governor Bill Lee’s push to “fast track” the program.
Elsewhere on Capitol Hill in Nashville, despite all the fast track efforts by GOP state lawmakers to protect students from being taught controversial subjects such as “critical race theory”, it turns out, so far, only one complaint has been filed. And the complaint didn’t pan out.
MORE REFLECTIONS ON THE AUGUST 4 ELECTION
The August 4 election saw two major changes in the Davidson County delegation to the General Assembly.
It will be interesting to watch how the two social justice activists elected by the voters, Justin Jones to the House and Charlane Oliver to the Senate, approach their work when they become lawmakers next January.
Jones is best known for being a protestor on the Hill, being frequently arrested as he fought for issues such as the removal (ultimately successful) of removing the Nathan Bedford Forrest statue from the Hill. How will he approach and work with lawmakers, who are now his colleagues, not his adversaries?
As for new Senator Oliver, her social justice background is as more of a community organizer, through her founding of the Equity Alliance, which has focused on expanding voting rights.
Both will struggle with being Democratic lawmakers who remain in such a minority that even if every elected Democrat boycotted the Hill, the GOP supermajority in both houses can still whatever they want.
But, as social justice advocates, both Jones and Oliver are used to being ignored, but still finding a way to ultimately prevail.
Based on recent a news article concerning campaign contributions, it appears the two Republican state lawmakers who lost their primary re-election efforts, Terry Lyn Weaver and Bob Ramsey, may have been taken out by large expenditures from groups who support charter schools and vouchers.
A NEW TENNESSEE ATTORNEY GENERAL
The Tennessee Supreme Court has selected a new Attorney General.
He is Jonathan Skrmetti, who takes office September 1, has served as Governor Bill Lee's chief legal counsel since December.
Skrmetti replaces Herbert Slatery, who did not seek a new eight-year term as AG.
Coincidentally, before serving as Attorney General, Slatery was the legal counsel to then-Governor Bill Haslam. So was the AG before that. AG Robert Cooper served as legal counsel to Governor Phil Bredesen.
CHANGE AT THE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION
Best wishes to my friend Ellen Lehmen, who is retiring as Executive Director of the Community Foundation. It is the largest non-profit in Nashville, and an organization that she founded 30 years ago, beginning the effort out of her garage.
Any group facing a change in top leadership, especially its founder after three decades on the job, has a challenge ahead to find a new leader. The Community Foundation has recently had issues raised about its accountability about the funds it raised for tornado relief.
That too will be a challenge for the new Community Foundation director.
For now, I wish Ellen Lehman all the best and congratulations for a truly remarkable job in founding and building the Community Foundation these past 30 years.
THE REST OF THE STORY
For months, the Cooper administration has been working hard to put in place its Vision Zero plan to eliminate the number of people killed or severely injured along our roadways. It’s a number that has been increasing at a record pace every year. The Metro Council is being asked to pass a resolution giving its final approval to the Vision Zero plan Tuesday night.
It would be assumed roadside safety also applies to those using their bikes in our city parks. That brings us to a local news story that has been often in the headlines in recent days. Nashville’s legendary singer Amy Grant wrecked her bicycle in Percy Warner Park. The accident was caused by her hitting some potholes. The wreck left Grant temporarily unconscious and with a concussion along with scrapes and bruises. She is recovering at home.
The potholes have been reported for repair in the past, but nothing had been done. But now, at least temporary repairs have been done. Here is what NEWSCHANNEL5 INVESTIGATES reports.
In a somewhat related matter, if you want to see and follow how your local tax dollars are being spent on major city projects, you can now do so online with a new tracker.
This new effort by Metro government to provide for more accountability and transparency is one of several matters we discuss in detail with Mayor Cooper tonight on INSIDE POLITICS at 6:30 pm on NEWSCHANNEL5. Tune in!
