Council member comes out of hiding to sit in council chambers for 15 minutes but remains mum about MetroCenter hooker hook-up

Photo credit: WKRN

Brentwood CM Brady Banks sidled into last Tuesday's council meeting after it had already started, sat at his desk for 15 minutes, and then left before it was over. Why did the man even bother, given that he is supposed to be focusing on repairing his private life with his family before putting on a public face again? The City Paper hints at a couple of reasons:

Banks’ exit, more than anything, created confusion. Attending Tuesday’s council meeting seemed to signal an intention to keep his council seat. But council members weren’t sure why he departed early. Perhaps he wasn’t ready to face the cameras, many concluded, or he wanted to keep his perfect-attendance council-meeting streak in tact.

None of these is a valid reason to show up at a Metro Council without intentions of taking care of the people's business. Each reason is self-serving. If CM Banks is going to make symbolic public gestures to subtly cue that he is stiffening his back against the firestorm, then he can also respond directly to questions about what the hell he was thinking when he arrived in North Nashville last week to pad our crime statistics. If he treats his council attendance as a self-aggrandizing game, then he does not appreciate the seriousness of his current situation.

The council member's apologists complain that it is too soon to criticize him and he needs a private period to work with his family. But they did not utter a discouraging word on Tuesday, when their champion appeared in public in his official position of council member and sat mum. The Banks entourage should not get to have it both ways. Either he shows up at council and performs, and he addresses questions about why he engaged in illegal behavior (that should have landed him in jail for a mandatory 7 days), or he stays at home and works on keeping his family together.

But his appearance at Metro Council indicates to me that Brady Banks is likely more focused on rehabilitating his future electoral chances that suit his political aspirations. Otherwise, where was the appearance of contrition on Tuesday night?


UPDATE: In a 2010 United Methodist article on pre-marital cohabitation, Brady Banks said that faith is the "central dynamic at play" in his marriage.