BEST POLITICAL TRAGICOMEDY: LI’L BOB AND THE BLOG RANTERS
One of the odder things about the latest mayoral race was the whiny aggression coming out of the Clement camp. The ranters promoting Clement online did his campaign no favors with their trash talk about “Fatboy Karl,” the “trophy husband” living off his old lady. Yeah? You got a problem with women having money? Then there was the just plain weird stuff. Choice quote from the Scene’s blog: “BOB CLEMENT is GONNA EAT ALL YOUR BALLS” (poster’s caps). Take heed, future candidates. Send a memo to supporters: “If you wouldn’t shout it on a street corner holding one of my signs, don’t post it online!” It’s sad to watch a candidate flame out at the end of a long career playing the criminal-loving-tax-crazy-liberal-from-Massachusetts card. But the mangy dogs barking taunts in the background? You gotta laugh at that. —LISA ROBBINS
BEST TV ANCHOR NEWCOMER: ALLISON HATCHER
In the local TV world, we can’t think of someone who represents a sort of That Girl better than Hatcher, an anchor at WKRN-Channel 2. An MTSU grad, Hatcher went off to Evansville, Ind., as a general assignment reporter before returning to Nashville in 2002. She worked her way up from reporter to weekend anchor to weekday anchor, and she’s a face as fresh as a cucumber martini on a hot July night. We predict big things for her. —LIZ GARRIGAN
BEST NEW STATE LAW: NO SMOKING IN RESTAURANTS
The change is long overdue. Throw away those ashtrays and post the No Smoking signs. No more wafting scent of burning cigarettes at your favorite eatery. We like it too that your basic watering holes can still allow smoking if they limit their clientele to adults 21 or older. Let the big dogs belly up to the bar with their Marlboros. Enter at your own risk. —JEFF WOODS
BEST METRO COUNCIL MEMBER (TIE): ERIK COLE, MIKE JAMESON AND JIM FORKUM
There’s something to be said for a Metro Council member who manages to stave off opposition after the first term, which doesn’t often happen. Generally, it means the representative has comported himself thoughtfully, has the respect of his peers and is regarded well among the 17,000 or so constituents in his district. And so was the case in this year’s election with these three men—hailing, respectively, from Inglewood, East Nashville and Madison. (The same was true for a couple of others, namely Greg Adkins, also a standout rep.) And it’s no coincidence. Each is very different—Cole, a professional do-gooder as executive director of the Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services, and Jameson, an attorney, would both hang that vague “progressive” tag around their necks, and Forkum, a retired insurance agent, is simply a nice guy who doesn’t mill with Nashville’s intelligentsia quite as much as the other two honorees. In any case, we’re glad to have them around (even if Jameson is a hopeless smart-ass who won’t look you straight in the eye). —LIZ GARRIGAN
BEST POLITICAL PIPE DREAM: FRED THOMPSON ’08
Tennessee loves Fred. In a recent poll of the state’s “likely voters,” he was the only Republican to trounce Hillary Clinton in a hypothetical matchup. He generates the kind of “our man” love that makes Gore scream in the dark of the night. But can we be honest here? The man will not win the White House, no matter how much you wax nostalgic about red pickups. Ronald Reagan quit acting to devote his life to politics. Thompson quit politics—well, except for the lucrative lobbying part—to act. Watch him on Law & Order today! —LISA ROBBINS
BEST NEXT MAYOR: LEO WATERS
There’s not a soul in this city who can sit the fence between old and new Nashville better than former Metro Council member Leo Waters. And, yes, there are parts of the “old Nashville” sensibility that remain valuable to the overall culture of this city. While Waters is viewed more as a labor guy, a crusty advocate of constituent politics and more comfortable in smoky dives than in the Windexed new restaurants of, say, the Gulch, readers may be interested to know that he and Scene publisher Chris Ferrell, who is considered a liberal and served in the council with Waters, voted almost identically during their eight years as legislators. Unfortunately, Waters and his lovely wife Helen—designer, former marathon runner, businesswoman—spend much of their time in Colorado, dabbling in real estate and skiing on those aging bones of theirs. Here’s hoping Waters sticks around at least part-time, and if they ever give up that good life in the mountains, he’d make a hell of a mayor. —LIZ GARRIGAN
BEST CAPITOL HILL REPORTER: TOM HUMPHREY
The indefatigable Knoxville News-Sentinel reporter and columnist has a tendency to pull his punches occasionally to avoid dust-ups with hometown lawmakers, and his coverage is a little superficial at times. He is, after all, handcuffed by the he said/she said conventions of the mainstream media. But after 30 years covering state government (he’s known affectionately as “Ol’ Tom”), no one has better sources or more institutional knowledge. He probably breaks more stories than any other journalist in the state. Plus he’s fun to drink with, and he’ll let you bum cigarettes. —JEFF WOODS
BEST ECCENTRIC RADIO PROGRAMMING: 1470 AM
Where else are you going to hear Robert Johnson, Luther Vandross, The Beatles, political commentary and the word of God, all on one station? WVOL 1470-AM, that’s where. From Muddy to Marvin, The Temptations to Tavares, “Nashville’s Heritage Station” will keep you groovin’, blessedly bereft of Clear Channel-style programming and annoying morning personalities with idiotic animal nicknames. It’s my go-to car listening, particularly late at night when the play lists can get as sultry and free-spirited as that twinkle in your companion’s eye. Wanna get him/her in the mood? Park the car and recline those seatbacks as Al Green sings, “Sometimes late at night I get to wonderin’ about ya, baby.” Time to get nasty? Parliament’s “Flashlight” is just around the corner. Saturday from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m., “The Blues Café” delves deep into America’s musical roots. Sunday, it’s time to get right with the big man, whether through classic gospel music or some old-school, on-air testifyin’. From the sacred to the salacious, the nostalgic to the naughty, the Mighty 147 has…wait a second…OMG! It’s that Ohio Players tune from my senior prom! —JACK SILVERMAN
BEST POLITICAL BLOGGER (PAID): ADAM KLEINHEIDER
Since its takeover last spring, the new management at WKRN has axed—oh, sorry!—“consolidated” the station’s many individual blogs into just a handful. One of the few survivors was VolunteerVoters.com, authored by onetime amateur blogger Adam Kleinheider. Good call. Kleinheider is prolific and does the legwork of a reporter, including going out and getting the facts and figures behind a story rather than relying only on mere rumor or hearsay. Kleinheider’s still more blogger than writer, but with some coaching he could parlay his natural aptitude for political analysis into bigger and better things. —ROGER ABRAMSON
BEST POLITICAL NEWCOMER: MEGAN BARRY
OK, we’re a little biased since Megan is the wife of Scene contributor Bruce Barry. But given her intelligence and honesty, we know we’d like her anyway. As a corporate ethics officer, Barry is especially strong on good behavior in government. “I believe that for local government to be effective, citizens must have confidence that their lawmakers are acting in the best interest of the community, serving community needs and not those of special interest groups,” she says. What a novel idea. —JEFF WOODS
BEST POLITICAL BLOGGER (UNPAID): SEAN BRAISTED
He only recently turned 25, but Sean Braisted, sole proprietor of seanbraisted.blogspot.com, has more political sense than most people twice his age. Serving as both executive committeeman for the Davidson County Democratic Party and regional vice president of the Tennessee Young Democrats, Braisted has turned his fledgling site into a great source for local political coverage written from the perspective of an interested citizen. (His self-description on the site: “I like politics. It’s that simple folks.”) Most impressively, the activist Democrat can discuss his political views and those of others without being a self-righteous partisan pain in the ass, no mean feat in the vast wasteland of the local political blogosphere. —ROGER ABRAMSON
BEST POLITICAL COMEBACK: RONNIE STEINE
It was an unceremonious exit in 2002 when Ronnie Steine, then the vice mayor, resigned amid the scandalous news that he had shoplifted at Target—for the second time—then sought special treatment from the Davidson County District Attorney to make the charge go away. But give him credit for apparently having enough support and respect—and, to be fair, personal wealth—to stage a comeback to countywide elected office. Like most of the other two dozen or so candidates for at-large Metro Council, Steine spent the better part of the year attending events ad nauseum, raising money and trying to expose himself to as many people as possible. We look forward to seeing what the resurrected Ronnie will do in the council. —LIZ GARRIGAN
BEST DODGED BULLET: DAVID BRILEY
Imagine, if you will, a parallel universe where there was no Karl Dean and the city’s “Anybody but Clement” crowd had coalesced around at-large Metro Council member David Briley instead, prompting a Clement-Briley runoff on Sept. 11. Now imagine what the Lee Atwater/James Carville acolytes of the Clement campaign would have done when the news of Rob Briley’s unfortunate scrape with a bottle of bourbon, three bottles of pills and the Watertown police came to light just two days before the election. No, none of it would have been David Briley’s fault, but since when does that matter? He would have been the one paying the price, along with the city. —ROGER ABRAMSON
BEST TV SURVIVOR: BOB MUELLER
Let’s not beat around the bush here: can you think of anyone else in Mueller’s peer group who’s remained as relevant and as respected for as long as he has? Or, for that matter, who’s been able to keep the same hairstyle for the better part of two decades or more? Mueller is as comfortable behind the anchor chair as he is reporting a nuanced story on Capitol Hill. Even through WKRN-Channel 2’s video journalism experiment—when Mueller, now into his sixth decade on this earth, was expected to blog, for chrissakes—he maintained his influence and stature in the newsroom as a go-to guy for other reporters and management looking for advice on story approach. Mueller (a.k.a. “Slapshot,” because he likes to play hockey) is one of our favorite people in this city. —LIZ GARRIGAN
BEST POLITICAL CONSULTANT WHO OUTDID HIMSELF: JIM HESTER
An old rat around the political barn, Hester has worked for more than a few losing campaigns for public office. But with Karl Dean pouring his wife’s inherited wealth into the mayor’s race, Hester finally produced a winner. It’s debatable just how much credit Hester should receive. One school of thought holds that he ran a lackluster campaign, and Dean won in spite of it only because his opponent, Bob Clement, was such a terrible candidate. That may be true, but Hester had a job in an off year for elections and even landed a position as senior adviser in the new administration. Short of a six-figure book deal, that’s about the best outcome a political pro could hope for. —JEFF WOODS
BEST NEEDED LOCAL POLITICAL REFORM: EXPANSION OF AT-LARGE COUNCILMANIC VOTING POWER
Seriously, what does being an at-large councilperson really get you, other than good seats in the council chamber, marginally better committee assignments and the illusion of future countywide electoral success? In the end, an at-large vote carries the same weight as all the other votes on the big board. Even if all at-large councilpersons banded together as a bloc, that’s still only five votes out of 40, which is ridiculously little leverage for the group of people who ostensibly represent the will of the city as a whole. One thought: convert the at-large group into a sort of mini-Senate for the council. A bill couldn’t pass, for instance, unless a majority of at-large members approved of it. Does this run the risk of vesting too much power in the hands of five people? Perhaps. But voters might start taking the office itself a little more seriously too. —ROGER ABRAMSON
BEST NEEDED LOCAL ELECTION REFORM: INSTANT-RUNOFF VOTING
As thrilling as the Clement-Dean showdown might have been for political types, many voters probably would have been just as happy to have had the whole thing over with on Aug. 2. That could have happened with instant-runoff voting, which works like this: instead of voting for just one candidate in each race, voters rank the candidates by personal preference. If no one candidate gets the majority of “first” votes, then the secondary votes cast by voters supporting the last-place candidate are distributed among all of the other candidates and the process continues until someone eventually compiles a majority of votes cast. It’s really not as complicated as it sounds. The biggest bonus? No more low-turnout, off-the-radar-screen district council runoff elections. Not to mention one less month of robocalls. —ROGER ABRAMSON
BEST PHOTO-OP: DEAN AT THE CLEMENT LANDPORT
In the waning days of the mayoral race, as the any-weapon-to-hand tactics of Bob Clement’s campaign were taking their toll, someone in the Karl Dean camp got the bright idea of holding a press conference at the Clement Landport, a federal government pork project (we’re basically talking about a $4 million vacant parking lot) from Clement’s days in Congress. The event shone the necessary light on Clement’s blatant pandering to those voters for whom taxes were a major issue—the fact that it was called the “Clement” landport made it pitch-perfect—and it seemed to mark the point at which the Dean campaign had finally recovered its footing on its way to victory. —JEFF WOODS
BEST ENVIRONMENTAL WRITER YOU WON’T SEE IN THE MOVIES: PAUL CONKIN
Every movement needs its poster boy, and the stiff-yet-glamorous Prince Al has done a fine job of putting a little gloss on the green cause. Gore’s not only photogenic, he preaches a rousing sermon that brings people to the altar of environmentalism. But converts need knowledge to sustain their faith, and for that they would do well to look to another notable Nashvillian, Paul Conkin, and his book The State of the Earth: Environmental Challenges on the Road to 2100 (University Press of Kentucky, 2006). Conkin is an emeritus professor of history at Vanderbilt, highly respected for books on the Southern Agrarians and the history of Darwinism in the U.S. The State of the Earth contains a thorough yet reader-friendly exploration of current environmental science, along with a historian’s insights into the social and political realities that any new environmental policy must confront. His act may be a little short on glamour, but Conkin writes with quiet passion for his subject, and offers thoughtful, patient instruction for would-be friends of the earth. —MARIA BROWNING
BEST METRO COUNCIL MEMBER OUT THE DOOR: ADAM DREAD
We admit it, we had our doubts at first. In fact, we thought Dread was a clown. But as it turned out (and this actually isn’t saying much), Dread comported himself more professionally than most members of the council. At the same time, he was refreshingly blunt: “It’s bullshit,” he said of the English-only bill, which passed the council but was vetoed by Mayor Bill Purcell. The former comic and radio disc jockey performed a few good deeds before term limits ended his time in office. At the top of the list was coming to the rescue of the legendary Bobby’s Idle Hour, which found a new location with the help of Dread a couple years ago. —JEFF WOODS
BEST NEW POLITICAL IDEA: VICE MAYOR DIANE NEIGHBORS STREAMLINING METRO COUNCIL MEETINGS
“You don’t need to be sitting there for an hour-and-a-half of presentations on a public hearing night and not have yours to come up until 11:30,” says our new vice mayor, Diane Neighbors. She figures she can save time by asking council committees to tackle more of the vetting of proposed ordinances. And all those pointless memorializing resolutions? No need to take up time with those on Tuesday nights, Neighbors says. —JEFF WOODS
BEST PLACE TO MEET DEFEATED HUMANITY: BRANDON’S BAR & GRILL
The dregs of the Capitol—the lobbyists, the lawmakers, the ink-stained wretches, the PR hacks—they soothe their souls at this little gritty tavern in the dank alley that bisects The Arcade. Who cares if the carpet reeks? The barmaids are sweet, if curt, and give mean pours, and it’s two-for-one at happy hour. There’s plenty of news and gossip to go with the whiskey, wine and beer, and sometimes the arguments get loud around the Formica tables on the tavern floor. “You bloodthirsty bastard!” one regular shouted at another the other night. No one batted an eye. The guys sitting at the bar didn’t even turn around on their stools. Just another night at Brandon’s, where it’s sometimes possible to forget that you’re a total loser. —JEFF WOODS
