The lead singer for Twisted Sister, the 1980’s heavy metal band that battled Al and Tipper Gore over warning labels on rock albums, announced he’s voting for Gore for president. Dee Snider told the Associated Press, ”I’m sort of supporting Al Gore, which is bizarre. I don’t trust the guy as far as I can throw him. He’s a conservative liberal, but I think he’s going to chew up George W. and spit him out. He’s an old-school, dirty-fighting politician.“ That’s an endorsement?
And they’re off
University professor Jeff Clark of Murfreesboro, Federal Express worker Mary Taylor-Shelby of Memphis, theater owner Shannon Wood of Nashville, and retired carpenter James Looney of Smithville—never heard of ’em? Neither have very many other people, but that’s the field of Democrats challenging John Jay Hooker for the right to tackle GOP Sen. Bill Frist in this fall’s election. They filed their qualifying petitions last week. Hooker, the kooky political gadfly, is the odds-on favorite to win the Democratic nomination, embarrassing the party once again.
Whither Fred?
Democrats were delighted by the rumor that Sen. Fred Thompson might not run for governor in 2002, but might become head of the Motion Picture Association instead. Thompson’s friends pooh-poohed the idea, but Washingtonian magazine and Daily Variety have run stories naming Thompson as a potential successor to Jack Valenti, 78, who is paid an estimated $1.2 million a year.
