No. 308: Nashville's Next Attorney General

Good morning, everyone.

A book has recently come to my attention called The Last White Man. It's written by British-Pakastani author Mohsin Hamad whose name I wouldn't blame you for not recognizing. It's a Kafka-esque story about a white man who wakes up one morning to discover that he's no longer white. Whether or not that's preferable to waking up as a beetle is up to the reader to decide.

Hamid's novel emerges from a deliberately political perspective. In an essay he penned in The Guardian back in 2017, Hamad called for a “radical, politically engaged fiction” that would “peer with all the madness and insight and unexpectedness and wisdom we can muster into where we might desirably go, as individuals, families, societies, cultures, nations, earthlings, organisms.”

If you understand what that means, let us know.

Onward.

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Thanks for reading.

➫ NASHVILLE'S NEW AG

The Tennessee Supreme Court will be conducting their public hearings today and tomorrow interviewing six applicants for the state’s Attorney General (AG) and Reporter.

INCUMBENT NOT SEEKING REAPPOINTMENT

Herbert Slatery III is the current Attorney General and was sworn in back in 2014. Slatery III is not seeking reappointment and there are six applicants up for review by the State Supreme Court. The review process is open and allows for public comment if anyone opposed to an applicant wishes to pose a question.

Read more on AG Slatery III’s push against the Biden administration’s attempt to enforce and expand an unlawful interpretation of federal antidiscrimination laws with threats to withdraw key food assistance program funding. (Read More)

SIX ATTORNEY GENERAL APPLICANTS

Donald Q. Cochran, Jr. (64 years old)
• Current Professor of Law Belmont Law School
• Former U.S. Amy Major
• Vanderbilt Law School, Juris Doctor
• Former U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee appointed by President Donald Trump.

Jerome Cochran (50 years old)
• Current Administrative Law Judge, Secretary of State’s Office
• Former State Representative for the 4th legislative district
• Regent University School of Law, Juris Doctor

David Michael Dunavant (51 years old)
• University of Mississippi School of Law, Doctor of Jurisprudence
• Appointed by TN House Speaker Cameron Sexton as a Republican member to oversee appointment on the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) Nominating Commission
• Former U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee appointed by President Donald Trump.

R. Culver Schmid (63 years old)
• University of Tennessee Doctor of Law
• Currently works at Baker,Donelson,Bearman,Caldwell& Berkowitz,PC
• Former Assistant District Attorney General for Knox County

Jonathan Thomas Skrmetti (45 year old)
• Harvard Law School, Juris Doctor
• Current general counsel for Governor Lee
• Former Chief Deputy Attorney General of Tennessee

William Edwin "Bill" Young (65 years old)
• Vanderbilt Law School, Juris Doctor
• Current executive Director of the Tennessee Bureau of Ethics and Campaign Finance
• Former Solicitor General of the Tennessee Attorney General's Office
• Former Davidson County chancellor

The new chief legal officer is expected to take the role Sept. 1 and will serve an eight-year term.

Watch the public hearing live starting at 9:30 A.M. CST today and tomorrow.

HEADLINES

Nashville Nurses Want Law To Identify Patients Who Are Registered Sex Offenders (TCN) Nashville nurses are working to push a new bill that would help provide additional protections against registered sex offenders.
Nashville International Airport unveils 40-foot BNA monument welcoming sign (Main Street) The 40-foot-tall monument showcases Nashville’s airport code, BNA, which stands for Berry Field Nashville in honor of Col. Harry S. Berry, the airport’s first administrator.

POLITICS

Robby Starbuck’s Write-In Campaign Finishes with Less Than 5 Percent of the TN-5 GOP Primary Vote (Star) Robby Starbuck has achieved a maximum of 2,595 write-in votes, or roughly 4 percent of the total, putting him in fifth place for the August 4 Republican primary for Tennessee’s 5th Congressional District seat.
Judicial panel rules that Tennessee education savings account program can move forward (Center Square) A three-judge panel heard arguments earlier in the day from the American Civil Liberties Union and Southern Poverty Law Center. The two groups had asked the court to deliver an injunction against the pilot program.

DEVELOPMENT

Madison Urgent Care Building To Be Converted Into Nashville’s 2nd Pollo Campero (Now Next)
Retail Starts To Take Shape In Phase 2 Of Modera Germantown In Nashville (Now Next)
Donelson building housing Party Fowl listed for sale (Post)

⁕ WHY ARE PEOPLE MOVING?

According to a recent poll from Axios, Democrats moving from blue states are more likely to move to a blue state than either a red or swing state. Republicans, on the other hand, show a much higher preference for moving to red states. While Democrats prioritize abortion rights, racial equality and LGBTQ protection (good news for Tennessee), Republicans prioritize lower taxes.

Maybe none of these things are surprising. People want to move to states that, in addition to being affordable, align with their values as much as possible. Most notably in the poll, 38% expressed interest in moving to a state where their "vote would count more." It's unclear if this means a NY Democrat moving South so that his vote counts more, or more simply, an urbanite moving to a smaller town.

Source: Two Americas Index: Red-blue migration
Axios, 8 August 2022, Read Online

❑ CHART OF THE DAY: A LIVING DOCUMENT?

⚔ MISSIVES ⚔

🇨🇳 China's military announced fresh military drills in the seas and airspace around Taiwan on Monday, a day after the scheduled end of its largest ever exercises to protest against last week's visit to the island by U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
💰 The Senate passed legislation on Sunday that would make the most significant federal investment in history to counter climate change and lower the cost of prescription drugs, as Democrats banded together to push through major pieces of President Biden’s domestic agenda over unified Republican opposition.
🍺 Republican National Committee chairwoman Ronna McDaniel announced on Friday that the party will hold its 2024 convention in Milwaukee, Wis.
🗳 A Conservative Political Action Conference straw poll conducted in Dallas on Saturday found that attendees favored former president Donald Trump — who garnered the support of 69 percent of the audience — to be the GOP’s 2024 presidential nominee.
🎙 A jury in Austin, Texas, decided Friday that podcast host Alex Jones must pay $45.2 million in punitive damages relating to his false comments about the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.
💥 Canada is to ban imports of handguns - part of a move that could see a total freeze on their purchase and sale. The measure, starting on 19 August, is designed to hold up until parliament passes strict new rules, including a permanent importation ban.

THINGS TO DO

View our full event calendar here.

🍺 The Pamphleteer hosts Bar Hours on the third Thursday of every month (the next meeting is August 18th) at Lucky's 3 Star Bar from 6-8 PM. The first ten guests get drinks on the company tab.

🎪 Check out our favorite driving distance festivals this summer.

👨🏻‍🌾 The Pamphleteer farmer's market guide.

⚔️ Knights in Armor at the Frist starting July 1st: European arms and armor from the renowned collection of the Museo Stibbert in Florence, Italy.

🍅 Tomato Fest, all day on the 12th and 13th in Five Points

🎼 Listen to The Pamphleteer's Picks, our playlist of bands playing in Nashville each week.