State Senator and former Lt. Gov. John Wilder, whose three decades at the helm of the State Senate ended dramatically in January, can’t be excited about this typo from opponents of plans to build a meeting hall at the Governor’s Mansion:

Surely the people energized on this issue could go on and on all day about the veracity of the claims made in the ad. But here’s one thing we know is wrong: The phone number listed for Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey.

The number listed there … is actually the phone number for former Lt. Gov. (now Sen.) John Wilder’s office. We just got a call from Wilder’s office to say they’re being flooded with phone calls from people who saw the ad.

The correct number for Ramsey’s office is [615] 741-4524.

Wilder lost his status as Speaker of the Senate (and Lt. Gov.) despite his strong desire to retain the title. This isn’t a pleasant reminder of that defeat, but it may be a relief to Wilder that he isn’t having to address the calls intended for current-Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey. Whew.

The U.S. Senate joined the House yesterday in passing legislation requiring disclosure for earmarks, which are often referred to as pet projects that legislators anonymously insert into spending bills. The disclosure legislation requires members of Congress to list their names along with any earmarks and certify that they do not have a financial stake in the projects in question.

The bill passed 98-0 because no one wants to be seen as anti-transparency come election time, and I’m glad this kind of policy will become law. It begs the question why this didn’t happen a long time ago, but at least it has happened now.

Here in Tennessee, I hope our lawmakers will follow this national example when it comes to ethics and disclosure. The Tennessean reported earlier this week that while the public must follow a 10-step procedure to view how legislators voted on a particular bill via the General Assembly Web site, lawmakers themselves can see the same results with a single click.

In a political climate where many citizens already question the integrity on both sides of the aisle, this inconsistency at the very least reinforces the perception that lawmakers don’t want the sun to shine on their activities on the Hill. Senator Rosalind Kurita called this week for a new focus on open government in the wake of John Wilder’s ouster as speaker of the Senate. I completely agree with the need for this change in direction:

It was time for a change in the structure [in the Senate]. The dedication to keeping a status quo was preventing our state from putting real energy and bi-partisan effort into solving problems and moving Tennessee forward. I chose to break the logjam so there can be a vigorous, but civil, policy discussion over the current and future direction of our state. We face a host of issues—from improving education, healthcare, and job creation to new alternative energy proposals and a more open government. We cannot afford gridlock or stagnation if we are to help solve these problems. It may seem ironic to some, but only now are Democrats and Republicans free to work together on real issues. I voted my conscience.

Open government should also be a part of the legislative agenda. One way to accomplish this would be to allow every voter an equal opportunity to vote for our state’s constitutional officers: Secretary of State, State Treasurer and Comptroller. They are currently elected by the members of the General Assembly. Tennessee is one of very few states where voters are not empowered to make such important decisions on high-ranking government officials. Letting our citizens vote increases accountability and makes sure government is held accountable…

Every member of the Senate is tired of being 49th in so many areas. I intend to work with my fellow Democrats and Republicans as well as the new Lt. Governor to create legislation that moves our state forward. The era of the smoke-filled back room is over and we are now free to have a healthy public policy debate that can only benefit the citizens of this great state.

As I mentioned earlier, this era should have begun a long time ago, but I am grateful that it is happening now. There will always be political maneuvering in the General Assembly, but Tennessee is taking baby steps toward having a more open and honest governing body. I hope this trend continues, including making it easier for local residents to see how their elected officials voted on the bills put before them.

I am amazed how fast the news cycle has shortened. I just received an email from the City Paper reporting the breaking news that John Wilder is no longer speaker. My first thought was that this news is no longer breaking because I read about it 150 minutes ago. Granted, I’m a news junkie, so I’m essentially wrong: This major, first-time-in-35-years news is still breaking, and plenty of people still haven’t heard about it. Note that I just wrote “still.”

Newscoma has an interesting and related post today about, among other things, how news is (or isn’t) evolving. It begs the question, what is all of this going to look like in 5, 10 and 20 years?

Marrying the new media with the old media is a conversation I’m having with a lot of folks. You see, I may run a bi-weekly paper but the thing is, I would like to see how to arrange this effectively where everyone wins.

There are people in this world (I’m one of them) that loves the smudged ink stains on the tips of my fingers, the smell of a newly printed paper still toasty from coming off the press, reading the cutlines with an editor’s words describing their interpretation of a picture and opening the box of a newspaper box, the change clicking into the small box offering me a little slice of the world.

I also love the blogging community I’m in. Instant feedback, intimacy, dialogue and slices of worlds that I used to not have access to.

There has been plenty of ink and plenty of pixels devoted to the notion that newspapers are gradually dying out (some claiming not so gradually), but I’m not sure that’s the whole story. Too many of us still like to read, even if a future newspaper doesn’t look the way Newscoma describes above sooner or later, so I don’t think we’re headed toward an all-video future, as some have suggested. Hopefully, there will always be room for the written word alongside the spoken word and the image (moving or still).

[Thanks to Nashville Is Talking for pointing this post out.]

Related case in point: Even the media we choose to consume is changing. Despite the drawbacks that come from an encyclopedia that anyone can edit, Wikipedia is a favorite site of mine. The entry regarding John Wilder that I have been referencing recently in my posts has already been edited to refer to his tenure as speaker in the past tense. Aside: Does Wilder know about the series of tubes??

I’m relieved by the State Senate’s decision today to replace John Wilder as Lt. Governor. I applaud Senator Rosalind Kurita for following her conscience, as she explained, in voting for Sen. Ron Ramsey for speaker. Whether there were the usual machinations behind the scenes to bring about this result, I have no idea, but this is a good change for the state. In my opinion, voting against her party, regardless of other political implications, was the right thing to do.

Reportedly Sen. Jerry Cooper voted for Wilder, but not before privately urging him to step down as speaker. I would have liked to see him vote against Wilder, but I still respect his direct request of the former speaker. I like the sound of that last phrase.

It is a sad situation that Sen. Mike Williams, who many thought might be the deciding vote, likely made his decision only after seeing Kurita vote against Wilder. With Wilder unable to get the required 17 votes regardless of what Williams did, Williams did the politically expedient thing and voted with his party rather than for Wilder. If the speaker election were a secret ballot announced only after the counting instead of a public roll call vote, Wilder’s tenure as speaker may have ended a long time ago. That’s a shame.

Bob Krumm isn’t as optimistic as Kleinheider. Is he right?

My best guess is that the legislative session will begin as it has for the last 36 years–with John Wilder at the helm. And if that is the case, my sincerest wishes are for the old man to do his job well over the next two years. The future of our State depends on it.

I hope he is wrong, and Bob does, too. He goes on to raise an even more significant issue:

I made John Wilder’s leadership a center piece of my campaign to change the culture on Capitol Hill. The majority of people seemed to agree that he was incompetent. But acknowledging that Wilder needed to go was not the same thing as making Senator Douglas Henry precede him out the door…

Based on what I have read in the past few months, I would have to say that nearly everyone outside of the State Senate (and many within its walls) realizes that having John Wilder as our Lt. Governor is not in Tennessee’s best interest. Making that assumption, why is it that a small group of men cannot act in the best interest of six million people whom they serve? It is disappointing to see, though perhaps no surprise, that we struggle as a society to create positive change through government. Here’s hoping that Wilder’s tenure as speaker ends today and that we inch toward a government better suited to serve as many of its constituents as possible.

Today may (or may not) be decision day regarding the next speaker of the Tennessee State Senate. Whenever a verdict is reached, I sure hope Kleinheider is right:

They say in Tennessee Politics never to bet against the old man [incumbent speaker John Wilder], but I am tempted to this morning. My out on a limb prediction is that a week from now, John Wilder will no longer be Speaker. It may be [Sen. Ron] Ramsey or it may be someone else, but it will not be Wilder.

I think this would be a very positive development for Tennessee. In my opinion, Wilder has succeeded in establishing some level of bipartisanship that may well not have existed without him. That is a good thing. He has failed, though, in doing much other than maintaining his position as speaker, and he is largely responsible for the quagmire that the State Senate often is.

Here’s one question I can’t answer yet: Would Ramsey make a better speaker? Unquestionably, I think he would be a more credible figurehead for this governing body, but his ascension would likely lead to a much more partisan atmosphere.

I also wonder how much that atmosphere would change if Wilder is no longer the speaker. Regardless, I think having someone other than Wilder as Lt. Governor would be a good thing for the state, but how would the Senate operate in the wake of such a big change? Keep in mind that Wilder has served as speaker since 1971, so suffice it to say that there’s a well-worn, if undeniably eccentric, pattern of (or lack of) leadership in place.

I am holding out hope that Randy McNally emerges as the speaker, as Kleinheider speculates may be the case.

If no one can bust through the gridlock, someone very well may put McNally’s name in the hopper. He is a Republican, which would be fitting since the GOP holds a numerical majority. Also he is viewed as a Republican that Democrats can work with. If no one is able to achieve 17, I would look for a Lt. Governor McNally on a third or fourth ballot.

All of this leads me to a larger question: Is there anything that can reasonably be done to improve either legislative body of the General Assembly? There appears to be plenty of cynicism, self-interest and corruption to go around for quite some time, and I would sincerely like to see things change for the better. Unseating Wilder would likely be at least one solid step in that direction.

That’s what I’m trying to tell myself after a conversation about the Tennessee General Assembly last night. A well-connected friend tells me that Lt. Governor John Wilder is more than likely to retain his Senate speaker post in January. Tennessean columnist Larry Daughtrey seems to agree.

In my friend’s opinion, that may not be a bad thing because of the bipartisanship Wilder has maintained by granting Republicans committee chairmanships in the past. Ron Ramsey, the current Republican challenger, isn’t known for building bridges to the other side. Maybe my friend is right, but I have a hard time hoping for Wilder to remain in office.

According to this friend, there are two senators who can land the 17 votes needed to serve as speaker: Wilder and Randy McNally, a Republican who is more moderate and bipartisan than Ramsey, from my limited understanding of the Hill. Here’s hoping McNally gets a shot.

What about Joe Haynes, who is attempting to unseat Wilder as the Democratic opponent? Here’s where things might get really messy. If Ramsey were to run against Haynes, a 16-16 tie might leave the current speaker, Wilder, to cast the deciding vote. Guess what happens if Wilder refuses to vote? He remains as speaker, leaving Haynes and Ramsey on the outside looking in. Yep, that’s the Tennessee State Senate for you.

Blogger Nathan Moore is reporting that Democrats in the Tennessee state Senate, including Senator Joe Haynes, may be working behind the scenes to defeat Lt. Governor John Wilder. From Moore’s post, it appears that Haynes might be trying to convince party members to vote for Senator Ron Ramsey, Wilder’s opponent for the speaker election.

I hope this rumor turns out to be true. As I’ve previously mentioned, I think Wilder is a poor choice for speaker, despite (in light of?) the fact that he has held this office for more than 35 years. My impressions are that he is nearly unintelligible when speaking on a regular basis and that he is focused almost exclusively in preserving his position and power, not on acting in the best interest of Tennesseans. I am admittedly not a fan of Senator Ramsey, either, but I would prefer to see him in the position over Wilder.

According to the City Paper, Lieutenant Governor John Wilder claims he will be re-elected speaker of the state Senate in January. I hope he is wrong.

Wilder (D-Mason) has served as speaker of the Senate and therefore lieutenant governor since 1971, surviving attempts by both Republicans and Democrats to oust him. The most recent effort came in 2005 when, with the Republicans holding a 17-16 majority, the GOP tried to oust him, but two Republican senators crossed party lines and voted for Wilder.

In January, another vote can be held to elect the Senate speaker, and again the Republicans hold a 17-16 majority. One Republican who voted for Wilder in 2005, Sen. Mike Williams (R-Maynardville), remains noncommittal on whom he will support in January – Wilder or the Republican nominee, Senate Majority Leader Ron Ramsey (R-Blountville).

Senator Williams has every right to vote for whichever candidate he thinks is in the state’s best interests, and I sincerely hope that he will not vote for Wilder on those grounds. As I’ve previously mentioned, in my opinion it is time for someone else to hold this important position. This is not a partisan issue for me: It’s more important to me that the speaker be someone other than Wilder than anything else. I very much agree with Liz Garrigan’s recent column on this subject.

This is by no means the first time, but I wholeheartedly agree with Scene editor Liz Garrigan that Tennessee’s Lieutenant Governor John Wilder should be replaced when the General Assembly returns in January.

Last year, when a handful of state lawmakers were indicted on bribery and corruption charges, Wilder condemned not the behavior of profiteering and unscrupulous public officials but instead the federal government for offering “bait to get someone in jail.” His interest is with the small cadre of those who have embalmed him politically, not with the millions of Tennesseans who count on sound policy regarding health care, taxes and other state issues.

We frankly find it troubling that, during 35 years of power, Wilder has yet to risk his hide over any meaningful principle, issue or ideology. As a speaker with nothing worthwhile to say—and, we might add, a tenuous grasp on both standard methods of communication and basic English grammar—his greatest political accomplishment is self-preservation…

We’d urge party elders to try again in the upcoming legislative session. Keeping a cartoon character behind the Senate podium is a good way to get Tennessee on The Daily Show, but that’s about it.

Well said. Here’s hoping Tennessee has a new speaker of the Senate in 2007.