So you already knew about Mark Twain Clemens, a Bledsoe County resident who is challenging U.S. Sen. Bob Corker in the 2012 GOP primary.
But here’s another name that evokes the Nineteenth Century: one Grover Cleveland Mullins Jr. is running for the same seat. According to The Green Papers, Mullins is running as a Democrat.
This news makes me want to start a rumor that Andy Berke’s middle name is “Jackson.”
Brenda Lenard, a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, was recently interviewed at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) by Kevin Jackson of TheTeaParty.net. Here’s the video:
At 3:29 in, Lenard uses the phrase “enough is enough.” That seems to be a developing theme in this year’s elections, as 3rd District congressional candidate Weston Wamp has adopted it as his campaign slogan. One difference, though: so far, Wamp has been fairly well in rhetorical lockstep with U.S. Sen. Bob Corker, while Lenard is running to defeat the state’s junior senator.
According to federal records, Lenard raised $19,391 in the fourth quarter of 2011 and had spent $16,759 by year end.
The Daily Caller interviewed Zach Poskevich, one of several candidates planning to challenge U.S. Sen. Bob Corker in 2012.
Poskevich believes that Corker’s voting record is simply not conservative enough. “Anywhere from seven out of 10 times, he votes with the Constitution, which means three out of 10 times he votes against the Constitution,” said Poskevich in an interview with The Daily Caller, referencing Corker’s ratings by various conservative groups.
“Anytime we have an elected official that even has one time when he’s voting against the Constitution, he or she needs to be held accountable,” he said.
As the article points out, the Tea Party movement in Tennessee is not unified in its assessment of Corker.
(HT: @Tennessee_Wild)
UPDATE: I had inadvertently misspelled the candidate’s first name, even though I know better. The error has been corrected with my apologies.
A Gannett report last week identified U.S. Rep. Stephen Fincher as the top recipient of campaign funds among Tennessee’s U.S. House delegation in the most recent reporting period (July – September 2011).
A quick glance at OpenSecrets.org shows that U.S. Rep. John J. “Jimmy” Duncan is the House member with the most cash on-hand, with $1,534,506. U.S. Sen. Bob Corker is sitting on more than $6.5 million.
In the Third District, U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann shows a total of $410,439 raised so far in the 2012 election cycle. Fleischmann hosts U.S. House Speaker John Boehner at a fundraiser later this week. A donation of $1,000 will get one into the general reception; a $2,500 check means a photo opportunity with the Speaker.
No numbers are yet available for Fleischmann’s GOP primary rivals, Jean Howard-Hill and Weston Wamp.
In the Eighth District, independent candidate James Hart has raised $502 compared to Fincher’s $943,564.
In the Ninth District, Tomeka Hart, a Democratic Party primary challenger to incumbent U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen, has reported zero dollars raised. Cohen has raised close to a quarter million dollars.