2010 elections

Bill Clinton Heading Out On Campaign Trail For Democratic Candidates

Christina Bellantoni | September 2, 2010, 8:05AM

Former President Bill Clinton

Fire up the Bubba-is-more-popular-than-Obama meme machine! Former President Bill Clinton has announced three political events for southern candidates, and a spokesman hints there are more to come.

Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) was the first on Wednesday to announce Clinton would join her in his native Arkansas to "celebrate my first year as Chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee." Clinton helped Lincoln boost enthusiasm during her competitive Democratic primary against Lt. Gov. Bill Halter. She prevailed in a run-off, thanks in part to a Clinton rally. But she's now badly trailing Rep. John Boozman (R-AR) for the general election.

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TN-GOV

Haslam Wins GOP Nomination For TN-GOV

Eric Kleefeld | August 5, 2010, 9:16PM

TN Gov. candidate Bill Haslam (R)

Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam has easily won the Republican nomination for governor of Tennessee, to succeed term-limited Democratic Gov. Phil Bredesen -- and he perhaps didn't even need the "silly vote" to be split between two other candidates.

With only 7% of precincts reporting, Haslam has 51%, Congressman Zach Wamp has 27%, and Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey has 21%. It must be noted, however, that these returns represent much, much more than a mere 7% of the total ballots, due to the fact that it includes a large number of the early votes. As such, Haslam has been projected as the winner by the Associated Press.

As we'd previously noted, this primary saw the other two candidates seeming to trip over each other to be more right wing than the other. Ramsey speculated that Islam might not be covered by the First Amendment's guarantee of the free exercise of religion, on the grounds that it's not really a religion but is instead a "cult." Meanwhile, Wamp flirted with the idea of Tennessee seceding from the United States (again), if the 2010 and 2012 elections did not go well. (Fun fact: A disliked election result in 1860 was the final straw that led to Southern secession last time.)

Meanwhile, Haslam only tacked slightly rightward, abandoning his former ties to New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg's gun control efforts. And as the only "sensible party" candidate in the race, he obviously did quite well. He now faces Democratic businessman Mike McWherter, son of Dem former Gov. Ned McWhether. The TPM Poll Average gives Haslam an early lead of 48.0%-30.0%.

TN-GOV

Splitting The Silly Vote: GOPers Ramsey And Wamp Out-Crazy Each Other In TN-GOV Primary

Eric Kleefeld | August 3, 2010, 8:50AM

Tennessee GOP Gov. candidates Ron Ramsey and Zach Wamp

In a three-way Tennessee Republican gubernatorial primary to be held this Thursday, two right-wing candidates have been splitting what Monty Python would call the "silly vote," leaving Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam as the de facto "sensible candidate," and thus making him the frontrunner.

A recent Mason-Dixon poll gave Haslam the lead with 36%, followed by Rep. Zach Wamp at 25% and Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey with 20%. To be sure, Haslam has tacked right somewhat. For example, he used to be a member of New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg's (I) Mayors Against Illegal Guns coalition. But in early 2009 he left the group and joined the National Rifle Association.

But with that said, there's nothing that Haslam has done or said that compares to the other two. Let's take a look.

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TN-GOV

Colbert Lampoons TN Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey For Calling Islam A Cult (VIDEO)

Jillian Rayfield | July 29, 2010, 10:12AM

TPM reported this week on Tennessee Republican gubernatorial candidate and Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey, who described Islam as a "cult" that may not count when it comes to religious freedom.

On his show last night, Stephen Colbert took a look at the Tennessee Republican primary race, and was taken aback by Ramsey's comments: "Yes. He just called Islam, the world's second largest religion, 1.5 billion people, a cult."

"Him, not me," Colbert was careful to clarify. "I believe Islam is the one great and true cult, praise be to Allah and the Nikes he wears. All glory and honor to the comet that hides his spaceship."

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TN-GOV

Fellow TN GOPers Shy Away From Lt. Gov's Muslim 'Cult' Comment, Dem Condemns It

Evan McMorris-Santoro | July 28, 2010, 6:11PM

TN Gov. candidate Mike McWherter (D)

The men running for the Tennessee Republican nomination for Governor don't seem particularly interested in discussing Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey's recent remarks that freedom of religion might not apply to Islam because, maybe, it's a cult. The campaign of Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam, the frontrunner in the contest, offered only a terse response to a question about Ramsey's quote from the Tennessean this morning. Ramsey's remarks have drawn fire from Tennessee Muslims, but so far his fellow Republicans have let the matter lie.

"The mayor's faith is very important to him, and he respects the right of others to practice their faith, so long as they are respectful of the communities in which they live and the laws of the land," a Haslam spokesperson told the paper.

Rep. Zack Wamp -- the man running just ahead of Ramsey in the primary fight, according to polls -- didn't respond to my request for comment on Ramsey's line at all.

The lone Democrat running for governor, businessman Mike McWherter, was a bit more forthcoming when I asked his campaign about Ramsey's remark.

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TN-GOV

TN GOPer Wamp Backtracks: 'When I'm Governor, Of Course We Will Not Secede From The Union'

Eric Kleefeld | July 26, 2010, 11:42AM

Rep. Zach Wamp (R-TN)

Rep. Zach Wamp (R-TN), who is running in a three-way Republican primary for governor of Tennessee, is now clarifying some earlier remarks and insisting that he does not favor seceding from the Union -- though he does think that governors need to put up a strong front and assert their 10th Amendment rights against the federal government.

"When I'm governor of Tennessee, of course we will not secede from the union," said Wamp. "But we will also not have a governor who will cave in to Barack Obama."

"We're going to be a proud partner as a member of the United Sates of America," Wamp added. "But there needs to be a conflict between the states and the federal government."

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Muslims

Tennessee Lt. Gov: Religious Freedom May Not Count For Muslims (VIDEO)

Evan McMorris-Santoro | July 26, 2010, 11:20AM

TN Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey

Tennessee Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey, currently running third in the state's Republican gubernatorial primary race, says he's not sure if Constitutional guarantees of freedom of religion apply to the followers of the world's second-largest faith, Islam.

At a recent event in Hamilton County, Ramsey was asked by a man in the audience about the "threat that's invading our country from the Muslims." Ramsey proclaimed his support for the Constitution and the whole "Congress shall make no law" thing when it comes to religion. But he also said that Islam, arguably, is less a faith than it is a "cult."

"Now, you could even argue whether being a Muslim is actually a religion, or is it a nationality, way of life, cult whatever you want to call it," Ramsey said. "Now certainly we do protect our religions, but at the same time this is something we are going to have to face."

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TN-GOV

GOP Rep. And TN-GOV Candidate Wamp: States Might Have To 'Consider Separation From This Government'

Eric Kleefeld | July 23, 2010, 2:08PM

Rep. Zach Wamp (R-TN)

Rep. Zach Wamp (R-TN), who is running in a heated three-way Republican primary for governor of Tennessee, has a dire warning about the new health care reform law: If a new Congress and president aren't elected in order to repeal the bill, states might just have to secede.

"I hope that the American people will go to the ballot box in 2010 and 2012 so that states are not forced to consider separation from this government," said Wamp, who has also promised to refuse to implement the law at the state level if he is elected, in an interview with the Hotline.

Wamp also praised Gov. Rick Perry (R-TX) -- who has also floated the idea of secession -- for leading the fight against the health care bill. "Patriots like Rick Perry have talked about these issues because the federal government is putting us in an untenable position at the state level," said Wamp.

The Hotline asked Wamp's GOP primary opponents whether they are opposed to secession. A spokesman for Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam answered, "Yeah," while Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey blasted "Rep. Wamp's trademark over-the-top temperament and overheated, sometimes crazy rhetoric."