CAPITOL VIEW
By Pat Nolan, NEWSCHANNEL5 Political Analyst
March 24, 2023
EXEMPTIONS TO TENNESSEE’S ABORTION BAN MOVES TOWARD APPROVAL; A GOOD WEEK FOR GOVERNOR BILL LEE; A SECRET VOTE OF CONFIDENCE FOR LT. GOVERNOR RANDY MCNALLY; THE CONGRESSMAN ANDY OGLES SAGA CONTINUES AS A MAJOR LOCAL REPUBLICAN SPEAKS OUT; THERE IS NO ROOM FOR HATE; THE FEDERAL RESERVE HIKES INTEREST RATES ANOTHER QUARTER POINT, LEAVJNG THEM AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL IN 15 YEARS; SOME SCARY NUMBERS ABOUT HUNGER IN TENNESSEE; NASHVILLE BASEBALL HISTORIAN SKIP NIPPER ON INSIDE POLITICS; THE NEXT FEW WEEKS
EXEMPTIONS TO TENNESSEE’S ABORTION BAN MOVES TOWARD APPROVAL
It has been clear since the Roe v. Wade abortion ruling was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2022, and a total ban on the procedure became the law in Tennessee, a significant majority of voters (including Republicans) feel exemptions to the ban should be made.
But progress in that area was bogged down for several weeks on the Hill, despite strong calls from doctors and others to legally protect physicians and the life of the mother or the fetus in some cases.
The logjam began to break when the state’s Attorney General said Tennessee’s law would be more easily defended in court if some exemptions were added. Another big development came when Tennessee’s largest right-to-life group endorsed a narrow set of exemptions.
The full House approved such a measure on Monday with the same bill getting approval in a key Senate committee on Tuesday.
It appears the full Senate could approve the bill next week, sending it to Governor Bill Lee’s desk. Earlier, the Governor said he likes the abortion law as it currently is, with no exemptions. Would he cast his first veto in 4 plus years as governor, to void it? It would seem questionable given the strong majorities the exemption bill is likely to pass in both houses.
There are lots of Democrats, pro-choice activists and some Republicans who want other abortion exemptions for rape and incest. But that appears to be a fight for next year or later.
A GOOD WEEK FOR GOVERNOR BILL LEE
As the calendar moves into April, and with more and more key legislation moving towards approval or being put on hold, might we begin to see the new operating budget start to move soon? The best sign of that happening is when Governor Lee submits his supplemental appropriation bill. In terms of some of the Administration’s top legislative priorities, it was a week of progress.
The Governor's massive roads involving privately operated choice/toll lanes and $3 billion in new funding passed in the Senate and the outlook for it in the House is positive.
Another priority, for paid family leave for most state workers, a proposal that went nowhere in the last legislative session in 2020, passed in the Senate this week.
The bill now begins it journey in committee in the House.
But a bill the Governor’s office was reportedly pushing to axe an independent commission on children services has now been shelved due to lots of negative pushback.
Even still more surprising, bills to attack or limit the rights of LGBTQ citizens have now run into issues.
A bill being pushed by House Speaker Cameron Sexton blocking Tenn Care and insurance firms it works with from providing gender health care has been stopped in the Senate.
Elsewhere, some of the anti-Nashville bills that have dominated this session are still moving ahead, but some others have now been put on hold.
The law just passed to reduce the size of Nashville’s Metro Council by half from 40 to 20 members, is already creating headaches. The deadline to redraw the lines to hold the scheduled council elections in August election, is so tight, it left council members feeling caught in the middle to approve the structure of the new council without public input. Therefore, they adjourned a special meeting on Wednesday after they decided to hold a public hearing instead on April 4.
The city’s planning staff is holding its own public sessions and drafting new lines on its own. Will everyone be on the same page at the April 4th public hearing? The Council must approve a redistricting plan by April 8 or be in violation of the new law.
April 4, 2023 is shaping up to be a historic day in Metro‘s 60 year history. The city has filed a lawsuit to stop the Council Reduction law. Metro wants an injunction issued and the hearing for that is on the morning of April 4. That night the Council’s meeting agenda, along with the public hearing and a vote on the new council district lines, also has a crucial second reading vote on the $2.1 billon Titans roofed stadium and event center!
If you find this situation about paring down the Council to be confusing and chaotic, you are correct. The Republican Super Majority in the Legislature designed the new law to create exactly this kind of situation.
While they preached the big lie that a smaller Nashville legislative body would be better and more efficient, what the Republicans really want to do is punish the Council for refusing to host the GOP National Convention next year. In terms of pay back, anything that creates confusion or chaos in trying to follow this law under impossibly tight deadlines, all the better for the Super Majority to enact their revenge.
Here is a good summary of where things stand about the Council size reduction as of today (Friday). Stay tuned.
Elsewhere this week, the Legislature also continued to do other things to move ahead with its second job…which is interfering with Nashville. Lawmakers now are working again to set aside a vote of the people of Nashville by voiding a provision of the Metro Charter that requires a two-thirds vote of the Council to allow demolition of any building at the Fairgrounds. It seems the meddling never ends.
A SECRET VOTE OF CONFIDENCE FOR LT. GOVERNOR RANDY MCNALLY
This week the Republican Super Majority in the State Senate gave Lt. Governor and Speaker of the Senate, Randy McNally, a vote of confidence.
The lawmaker has been embroiled in scandal for the last couple of weeks over his use of social media, in particular his online messages and emojis to a transexual man and others, sometimes scantily clad.
Critics say McNally is a ‘hypocrite” for doing that, while also supporting anti-LBGTQ legislation.
McNally says he was only trying to be encouraging to everyone, but later he closed his Instagram account to better reflect on the use of social media.
The vote of confidence was 19-7. The results were released by the Lt. Governor’s office. The voting was apparently by secret ballot. While I suspect Senator McNally knows, or strongly suspects, how each of his caucus members voted, how much confidence should the public have in a process which was conducted in secret?
THE CONGRESSMAN ANDY OGLES SAGA CONTINUES AS A MAJOR LOCAL REPUBLICAN SPEAKS OUT
Now there is at least one prominent Nashville area Republican speaking out against new GOP congressman Andy Ogles.
He should resign in the wake of all the recent disclosures of discrepancies and embellishments in his resume and in his educational background as well as other issues.
The message that Ogles should go is contained in a newspaper ad that calls Ogles “a national embarrassment.” Adding: “You are the George Santos of Tennessee.”
Nashville businessman Bobby Joslin paid for the ad, and says of Olges: “I don't think the guy has a conscience. If he can't be man enough to tell the truth, he don't need to be representing the 5th district of Tennessee in Congress," Joslin explained.
So far, the Congressman and his office have not responded to requests for comment.
THERE IS NO ROOM FOR HATE
In recent weeks here in Nashville there have been a rising number flyers filled with antisemitic hate circulated in some neighborhoods along with vandalism. Some residents have united to fight back by cleaning up the mess and trashing the flyers.
The Metro Council has also passed a resolution condemning the hate and declaring “Nashville is a welcoming city to all.”
Unfortunately, these types of incidents have been increasing across the country.
THE FEDERAL RESERVE HIKES INTEREST RATES ANOTHER QUARTER POINT, LEAVJNG THEM AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL IN 15 YEARS
After a week of angst and finger-pointing over the recent failures of three significant banks, two in the U.S. and one in Switzerland, the Federal Reserve Board has decided to continue to fight against stubbornly high inflation by raising interest rates another quarter point, the ninth increase in the last 12 months. The Fed a few weeks ago had considered a half a point hike, then when the bank issues surfaced, there was speculation there might be a pause in any more rate hikes, at least this month.
But Fed officials feel the banking system is stable and strong, and so a quarter-point hike should be enough to be effective against inflation, and perhaps hold off the need for continued future hikes this year.
SOME SCARY NUMBERS ABOUT HUNGER IN TENNESSEE
During the pandemic, the federal government increased the SNAP monthly nutritional benefits for poor families.
With the pandemic easing those extra benefits expire soon.
That word comes as a new poll is released that says, in the wake of continued high inflation, especially in food prices, 40% of Tennessee families face hunger insecurity issues.
NASHVILLE BASEBALL HISTORIAN SKIP NIPPER ON INSIDE POLITICS
Is the Nashville area about to be home for another major league sports team?
That speculation grew more intense in recent days when it was reported the Office of the Commissioner of Major League Baseball has hired a 5-member lobbying team to represent the league on Tennessee’s Capitol Hill.
This week on INSIDE POLITICS to assess Nashville’s chances, and all the other changes to America’s Pastime that are dominating the annual hot stove league, as Opening Day for a new MLB season arrives, is Nashville baseball historian, Skip Nipper.
We welcome Skip back to the program!
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THE NEXT FEW WEEKS
I am taking a few weeks off.
No Capitol View column on April 3 or April 10.
The next Capitol View will be sent out April 17.
We will feature an encore program on INSIDE POLITICS the weekend of April 3, but a fresh show the weekend of April 10.
