Rule change takes Metro Council a step away from the community rabble, social protest, and democratic process

After a Tennessean local beat writer announced via Twitter that rules were being considered to muffle the people's mezzanine area outside of Metro Council chambers on council meeting nights, I e-mailed the Metro Clerk with the following questions:

I am curious as to what past events precipitated the change in council rules to limit citizen events in the Courthouse and to disallow broadcasts from those events? Could you please e-mail me the minutes from the executive committee meeting where these rule changes are being considered? Who is sponsoring this rules change? Am I correct in concluding that the media will no longer be allowed to broadcast citizen views of pending council action from inside the Courthouse if these rules are approved? Is it fair to say that the media would be limited to live broadcasting only council member opinions on council meeting nights given that the mezzanine would be off limits?

The Metro Clerk responded thusly:

No Council rules have been amended to disallow broadcasts or limit citizen events on Council meeting nights. The discussion that occurred was focused on activities on the 2nd floor mezzanine of the Courthouse, which is the space between the Metropolitan Clerk's Office/Council Chamber on the east end of the Historic Courthouse and the Council Office on the west end of the floor on the second floor .... The purpose of the discussion was to address safety, security, and disruption factors in that second floor area.

Inasmuch as the acoustics in that space are improved only minimally with amplification and loud amplification (such as used for tax sales) can be very distracting, it was recommended that no amplification be allowed at any time in the mezzanine area. Further, on Council meeting nights, because the Council convenes 30 minutes in advance of its start time for Councilmember announcements , it was recommended that all such events on the mezzanine conclude at least 30 minutes prior to the Council meeting start time.

There was no suggestion that interviews, either with the public or Councilmembers, could not occur in the Metropolitan Courthouse. Whether or not it would be beneficial to have a convenient, designated area for interviews was mentioned, but more thought will be given to this idea before any recommendation is considered.

Live broadcast of radio or television programs from within the Courthouse, during the progress of a Council meeting was discussed. Again, this was not referring to interviews, but to live broadcasts of programs. The Sheriff, who now oversees Courthouse security, will be drafting a policy regarding this, from the standpoint of safety and security issues, as there has been concern about the crowded area on the east end of the mezzanine, including the space at the top of a long flight of marble stairs where traffic backs up , both before and during Council meetings. To my knowledge, no policy has yet been issued.

The group that assembled for this discussion was persons involved with the Council and with Courthouse safety and security. Among those present were Vice Mayor Diane Neighbors, Council attorney Jon Cooper, Sheriff Daron Hall, Metropolitan Clerk Marilyn Swing, representatives of Metro3, and support staff. The meeting was convened at this time because of the concerns stated and so that policies could be considered and, if necessary, put in place before any specific requests for future event scheduling are received.

In an interview with the Tennessean this morning Vice Mayor Neighbors, who I suspected of being the force behind these control measures the minute I learned of the news, indicated that the rest of us need to be "more respectful of the meetings in progress." As if the meetings have nothing to do with the rest of us.

Live broadcasting or organized efforts to influence council action in public space outside of the narrow lens of Metro 3 and the compulsory strictures of council hearing podiums do not impinge upon any civic process outside of Ms. Neighbors own draconian control issues. There are plenty of measures for safety and security in the mezzanine stairwell to consider without empowering Sheriff Daron Hall to cordon off "free speech" zones far away from the Metro machine.

Sheriff Daron Hall once again embroiled in charges of cavorting with prejudice

Aunt B has deeply-held concerns about the company the Sheriff's Office is seeking to keep with news of his latest anti-immigration faux pas concerning the controversial Center for Immigration Studies:

This marks the second time that Hall was scheduled to speak to white supremacist groups (the first being his lovely trip to the CCC) ....

But let’s bear in mind that, if he had not been called on it, our sheriff was ready to fly to Washington D.C. and speak about 287(g) on a panel in which he was the only non-CIS participant (Steven Camarota, Director of Research, Center for Immigration Studies, and Jessica Vaughan, Director of Policy Studies, Center for Immigration Studies, were scheduled to be the other two panelists and Mark Krikorian, Executive Director, Center for Immigration Studies was to moderate). His participation gave that panel legitimacy and a hook that would have brought the media. And he would have been sitting there talking about the wonders of 287(g) while Camarota and Vaughan were prepared to speak about how studies may show that there’s less criminal behavior among immigrants than there is the general population, but really, immigrants (of all stripes) “have relatively high rates of criminality.” (Quote directly from the press release touting Hall’s appearance.) ....

That old stereotype set off NO warning bells in the Sheriff’s office?

This is exactly how CIS is designed to work–to mainstream noxious ideas.

Council approves continuance of anti-family, pro-criminal, racial-profiling Sheriff's Office program

And 34 council members provide vote coverage for 3 others to symbolically oppose the resolution. I say "symbolically," because I'm pretty sure that the opponents would vote "yea" if their votes had actually been the determining ones to accept free money from the federal government to fund the Sheriff's Office.

Without 287(g), What Does the Sheriff Have?

The Tennessean has Daron Hall's response to a GAO report on ICE failures at stopping violent criminals in the immigrant community.

Here's part of what the GAO concludes:

Taken together, the lack of internal controls makes it difficult for ICE to ensure that the program is operating as intended. ICE and participating agencies used program resources mainly for personnel, training, and equipment, and participating agencies reported activities and benefits, such as a reduction in crime and the removal of repeat offenders. However, officials from more than half of the 29 state and local law enforcement agencies we reviewed reported concerns members of their communities expressed about the use of 287(g) authority for minor violations [like speeding] and/or about racial profiling.

Daron Hall Visits CCC in November & the Media Finds It Out Two Months Later

Metro Sheriff and self-proclaimed Democrat Daron Hall met with the Middle Tennessee chapter of the Council of Conservative Citizens at a Nashville cafeteria just before Thanksgiving, he says because he thought they were a Republican group. Never mind what that says about the character of Republicans or the intelligence of Democrats. The fact that Sheriff Hall has charge over incarcerated immigrants and would egregiously fail to be circumspect about his appearances, to know his audiences (or have people around him who do), but then make excuses for his poor judgment is unacceptable.

If this guy is a Democrat, he is not the kind of Democrat progressives should support. Sheriff Hall reportedly surrounds himself with yes-men and lackeys. His support group, "Friends of Daron Hall" once made a rather curious donation of $500 to "Friends of Charlie Tygard," a mere 3 months after CM Tygard sponsored a motion to move $250,000 tabbed by former Mayor Bill Purcell for the Arts Commission into the Sheriff's budget, even though the Sheriff claimed afterwards that he had not asked the Council for any extra money. I could not identify any other prominent Democrats who donated to Tygard during the last election cycle. However, I would like to note that Daron Hall did join a list that included ultra-conservative English Only donor Lee Beaman and his wife Kelley, each of whom gave Tygard $1000 in 2007. In 2006, Sheriff Hall had some problems with his Christmas cards. And on his watch a pregnant woman was shackled while she was delivering.

But as bad as Sheriff Hall may be, media coverage of Hall's attendance at the CofCC event was worse. How did it take 2 months and the initial discovery by a watchdog group for the local media to catch this one? What were they doing back in November?  Oh yeah, I forgot.  They were fighting the battle over closure of after hours bars and giving Eric Crafton as much free, uncritical publicity as he wanted.  

Even as reporters write that all Hall had to do was Google CofCC, they fail to acknowledge that they were remiss themselves--with all of their paid professional time to research and probe--in unearthing information about Hall's visit sooner. The press should also be more circumspect before giving politicians directions on web searches. They also missed a story that Enclave broke last September about the Williamson County GOP blaming all Nashville's Kurdish citizens for local crime. You know how I found that one? Clicking on the Williamson County GOP website. That took quite a few well-placed sources. The pattern emerging here is that the media is late on reports where political leaders are involved with derogatory attitudes towards immigrants.

UPDATE:  Post Politics blog says Hall should have known.

UPDATE:  The anonymous "news team" at CofCC.org accuses the Tennessean of "attacking" CoCC with "leftist propaganda."

UPDATE:  ACK frames the scope of the problem that was missed by the media: "one of the chief law enforcement officers in the County spoke before the modern incarnation of the Citizens Councils of the 50s and 60s." The White Citizens Councils of that era were the iced tea and finger foods partners of the KKK and other lynching groups.  How could the media have missed this story for so long?

Sheriff Seeks the Kudos without the Culpability

Sheriff Daron Hall could have practically run for Mayor with the fist taps he was getting from every other local government big wig (not the least of which, Metro Council) on his deportation program, which is not very effective at keeping illegal immigrants from returning to Nashville after deportation.

Hall is pointing his finger at the federal government, which is all fine and good. However two questions deserve to be asked. First, did Hall's program--absent any measurable results--ever deserve the love it got given that it is actually limited at keeping deportees out? Second, how many Metro programs are there whose directors can say that they do not have to depend on some sort of outside support or aid?

Sheriff's Advisory Committee "Cover" for Daron Hall's "Political Ambitions"

Enclave commenter, Mr. Mack, relates a personal experience with Metro Sheriff Daron Hall:

Mike, I was a member of the original counsel. Hall never intended for our role to be anything but a cover for his political ambitions. He shouted me down at a meeting, and everyone else in the room just sat there, too cowed to call him out. I never went back. I'm not about to sign off on this war of attrition.

Local Media/Metro Council Darling, Daron Hall, Fires Immigration Attorney for Not Advising Him in the Fashion the Sheriff Wished

What does the Davidson Co. Sheriff want? A committee of advisors or a goon squad of yes-men (and women)?

Rank Remiss: Another Abominable Product of Privatizing Prisons

Just days after a report that Nashville-based CCA intends to expand facilities in San Diego, a Tennessean article reports that a prisoner at Nashville's CCA facility was allowed to stay in his cell for 9 months (not even leaving to take a shower). No mental health evaluation was ordered until the Metro Health Department received a complaint about the prisoner's unhygienic condition. CCA may be expanding its San Diego facility to deter higher numbers of illegal immigrants. Can you imagine how much worse immigrant detainees would be treated by the for-profit corporation?

A corollary to this story is the finger pointing that Sheriff Daron Hall--the golden boy of the Metro Council, seeming to get gold from and to spread gold to council members--is doing at the Health Department and at CCA. Doesn't privatization of public institutions just create an outside object of blame? And aren't the private subcontractors a layer removed from the control of voters? It's not like average citizens can boycott CCA if we don't like their product, because their clientèle is the government. But regardless of the bureaucratic torture of logic in the Sheriff not accepting responsibility, doesn't mere common sense direct that ultimately the person with the title of "Sheriff" generally oversees an institution called a "jail"?

Council Darling Takes One on the Chops

The Metro Council has given him $250,000 out of the Arts budget that he didn't ask for, toyed with the idea of giving him more police-like blue lights for his auto fleet, and may just try to transfer Animal Control to his oversight. But the ethical cauldron Sheriff Daron Hall now finds himself in concerns charges of self-promotion and a conflict of interest over department Christmas cards. The cards were financed by one of the jail's private vendors and have Hall's name on them. This story has gone national.

Money Matters at Tonight's Council Meeting

Financial quandaries face Metro Council members tonight, including whether to raise general water rates to compensate for reinstating lawn sprinkling discounts. There are also moves on the agenda designed so that the Council can monitor the exact number of copies of published materials for outside distribution and so that they can keep track on a monthly basis of the gas Metro vehicles are using.

I am curious as to why keeping track of copies and of gas has to be written into law. Can't individual Council members take it upon themselves to request these reports on a regular basis? Just sending copies of reports outside of these departments (with reports on the reports, if the copies-distribution bill passes) to every Council member does not guarantee that those members will read them, although more paper stacked up on their desks does make them look busy.

And there are other motions up for consideration that would seem to nullify efforts to save Metro money. For instance, I would like to know how much more the following measures are going to cost Metro:

• Buck Dozier wants to let the Sheriff's auto fleet have the same flashing blue lights that Metro Police cruisers have. Is there some kind of inferiority complex tied up in non-blue lights? I guess the cost of removing the Sheriff's current flashing lights and replacing them with blue lights is moot since the Council gave the Sheriff's Office budget more money to play with this year, even though the Sheriff did not request it.
• Jamie Isabel wants the Fire Department to staff an EMT at Council Chambers for all regular meetings in case on one of us citizens, whom he says are "very passionate and emotional," keels over during a meeting. I know I'm old-fashioned, but whatever happened to the idea of calling an ambulance or stocking a defibrillator?
• Ludye Wallace wants to prohibit chain link fences in front yards. Have you ever noticed the high number of chain link fences in front yards around town? If so, then ponder the costs of policing all of these violators.
• Ludye also wants the MTA to market public transportation to Metro and state employees to conserve energy. A worthy goal, but who is going to pay for the marketing campaign? Also, does this mean that Ludye will be taking the bus to Council meetings and that he will stop accepting the free parking space provided to him as a Council member?

If we've got to save money where we can, what's up blue lights, EMTs, fence prohibitions, and marketing campaigns?

There Is No Art to Picking Up Trash

I have only wanted the Sheriff's Office garbage details to come through Salemtown once: when some lame-brained dolt dumped a used toilet at the back of my property instead of hauling it away. Otherwise, I do not need the inmates to come out and pick up the litter that gets thrown in my general vacinity. Even if I do not like it, I realize that "policing the grounds" in the neighborhood is part of my responsibility, and we do not need to spend more Metro money on that.

So, I need a valid explanation on why the Sheriff's Office needs any more money, which they did not request, transferred from the Arts Commission by 14 Council members ("ayes"--Charlie Tygard, Vivan Wilhoite, Randy Foster, Eric Crafton, Ed Whitmore, Ludye Wallace, Harold White, Carl Buch, Jim Gotto, Rip Ryman, Jim Forkum, Jason Hart, Michael Craddock, and Jamie Isabel). You can bet that I'll be keeping tabs on whether or not I witness any inmates making more trash runs in my neighborhood (or anywhere else in Ludye Wallace's district).

And if I do not get quick and efficient response when I do call the Sheriff's Office to haul away something big dumped on my street, I'll know which 14 Council members to blame. In the meantime, I am happy to pick-up litter on my block if it means that the arts can have a little more money the future.

Charlie Tygard's Broadside Against the Arts

Council member Charlie Tygard told the Nashville City Paper that, because he could not get some department cuts that he wanted, he went after Arts Commission. That was popular with the conservative horde in Council chambers, who no doubt see Piss Christ in every statue that doesn't resemble Billy Graham and a cross. Council responded by slashing $258,400 from Arts, sending it instead to the Sheriff's Office. The spirit of Fate Thomas was no doubt lurking around the chambers near Tygard's corner when he hatched that misdirection. An extra cheap jail clean-up detail or two make a few constituents happy; meanwhile Nashville's relative poverty of public art will continue.

Tygard also raided the Mayor's Office and leveraged $50,000 so that Council members could build one single Habitat for Humanity home and feel closer. Now, I'm not down on Habitat. They are an effective private charity that makes a real difference in people's lives. But Tygard's primary intentions are not to build a house for a needy family; his primary intentions are to sponsor a bonding event for current Council members. The buzz is that the event is also self-promotional: Tygard is running for Vice Mayor. So, why raid the Mayor's budget so that Charlie Tygard can promote a Kumbaya Council and his own electability? Seems to me that he should have worked for that $50,000 the old fashioned way: by lobbying his cohort for pledges of private donations, which actually may be ethically done in back rooms. Instead, Tygard lazily used Council prerogative to channel public money to this private charity. This may end up costing those of us who benefit from Metro services like the Mayor's Office of Neighborhoods.

Council member Erik Cole called Tygard's amendment and the conservative horde to the carpet:

I don't vote on the budget to make a political statement about who's in the Mayor's office.

No, Mr. Cole, but apparently the conservatives do. Though in the final analysis, Charlie Tygard's single Habitat House will amount to nothing but ground clutter compared to a Purcell legacy that leaves us sidewalks, community centers, and a beautiful downtown public square.