While Senator Bob Corker's fence straddling can often be nauseating, he was right on the money with his answer to a constituent about whether he could do anything to restore House Speaker Kent Williams' Republican identification:
The question that came from an audience member was: Tennessee House Speaker Kent Williams was elected as a Republican from this community, so what can you do to convince the Tennessee Republican Party to restore his “bona fide” GOP affiliation? Corker’s response: “Nothing.”
“Kent is a friend of mine,” Corker continued. “People on the other side of this issue are friends of mine. This is a local and state issue. ... I got more fish than I can fry now. I’m going to let you guys figure all this out.”
While it is becoming increasingly apparent that there is a developing fissure in the Republican Party (how "major" it is is a matter of debate) over whether or not to readmit Kent Williams as a Republican after Williams joined in league with House Democrats to make himself Tennessee House Speaker, Corker is right to stay out of the whole matter.
Senator Bob Corker (R-Tennessee) (Photo: Wikimedia)
While Senator Lamar Alexander and Republican gubernatorial candidate and Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam have hinted rather strongly that they support Williams' reinstatement, others, such as Chattanooga Representative Gerald McCormick, have said that they think Williams should have to wait until the end of the 2010 General Election (in fairness, Williams once called McCormick "fat boy" in a caucus meeting, so there is likely no love lost). In Haslam's case, he may have a vested interest in the possible re-enstatement of Williams to the GOP since some known Haslam supporters are actively working on Kent Williams' behalf. Haslam may see Williams as a potential ally in the House when some other Republicans would be prone to distrust Haslam because of his reputation as too much of a moderate-to-liberal Republican.
The best course of action for non-legislative elected officials in the Kent Williams affair is to stay out of it. Williams' status as the Representative from Carter County is not in question, and for at least one more year, neither is his position as Speaker of the House. Whether he can run as a Republican or not is a matter for the political party with which he wishes to affiliate to decide through its State organization. Yes, the people may influence the organization because Executive Committee members are elected in primaries, but it shouldn't be a matter up to elected officials in other strata of government other than where their status as ordinary voting citizens and party members.
As party members, we all have the right to influence the Executive Committee, but the best thing that Bob Corker could have said is precisely what he did say in this situation-not very much.
Comments