"You and I have a rendezvous with destiny. We'll preserve for our children this, the last best hope of man on earth, or we'll sentence them to take the last step into a thousand years of darkness." – Ronald Reagan

Gail Kerr, columnist for The Tennessean, had a few things to say about Barrettgate over the weekend:

Absurd? You’d think so. But that, in effect, is exactly what the legislature is debating. A Rutherford County business wants a new road into its new shipping facility. Problem is, it crosses state property that is an easement along I-24. The feds, who fund interstates, don’t like that. State transportation officials turned it down.

The company owner just happened to deposit $10,000 in the coffers of state legislators, including the Senate Transportation Committee chairman and a state representative the businessman is engaged to marry. The committee voted for the bill.

Seriously, have they no shame? Instead of an all-you-can-eat buffet, it’s a help-yourself road project.

The legislation grants an easement on state land along I-24 for Barrett Firearms. Owner Ronnie Barrett claims the state promised him the easement in 2005, but state officials dispute that.

Bottom line is, the state transportation department builds roads, not the legislature. Except, apparently, when a state representative is a customer of the company that wants the road.

Follow the details of the Barrettgate scandal right here, beginning with the story that broke this news on Nashville 24/7 last week. Also, check out my behind-the-scenes account here.

It’s been a week since the story originally fell into my lap and five days since it broke. The DNJ finally has the news:

The Senate Transportation Committee has approved a measure that would require transportation officials to grant an easement along I-24 long sought by Barrett Firearms, a company that makes high-caliber military rifles. Owner Ronnie Barrett says transportation officials have reneged on a promise to allow the easement that was made when he launched an expansion in 2005.

But some observers say the legislature is overstepping its bounds — perhaps to benefit only one well-connected local business owner.

Since 2004, Barrett has given nearly $10,000 to legislators, including Senate Transportation Committee Chairman Jim Tracy, R-Shelbyville, and state Rep. Donna Rowland, R-Murfreesboro, to whom Barrett is engaged.

“There clearly is an issue … when there is a legislator or two doing something to favor a constituent or a friend or a contributor,” said Dick Williams, state chairman for Common Cause. “What’s not clear is that this is just to benefit one special interest.”

Governor Bredesen commented on the issue, as well:

Gov. Phil Bredesen said the measure might lead to more meddling in roadway disputes.

“I would not think that the state legislature ought to be determining individual projects that are done,” he said. “If we start passing bills to build interchanges or build roads independently, I think we’re on a really bad course in terms any kind of an intelligent transportation strategy.”

The DNJ came close, but didn’t find all the details of this story. Read my update from last night’s related post to find out who else carried a bill that would have directly helped Barrett Firearms.

Here’s a well-written account by Scott Broden of last night’s Rutherford County GOP caucus to select candidates for county offices:

Republican delegate Adam Johnson, who’s an MTSU political science major, was pleased with the convention process that will save the county an estimated $100,000, which is the cost it would have faced in running a primary.

“The party is really excited, especially the younger people involved,” Johnson said. “We’re going to keep this thing moving forward. Conservatives have something to shoot for. It’s good for the country. It’s nice to see a healthy political system coming back to this country.”

By now, you’ve most likely read the story of how two state senators conspired to sneak a provision into a caption bill to help Murfreesboro businessman Ronnie Barrett with a little trouble he’s having with the Tennessee Department of Transportation. If you haven’t, then you can check out the original account written by me here.

The story launched a firestorm this week, catching the senators in question off guard and destabilizing the political system in Nashville for days. For those who have forgotten, here is the video from the Transportation Committee when Senators Jim Tracy (R – Shelbyville) and Doug Jackson (D – Dickson) partook in a little bi-partisan back-scratching (thanks so much to my good friend Christian Grantham for ripping this video and sending it to me):

I’ve been relatively quiet and until now have not explained how all this sort of landed in my lap late last week. Those details are just as compelling as the story itself.

My interest is in honest government. I seek the same honesty from Republicans as I do from Democrats. For years now, I have called out Republicans and Democrats alike who have misbehaved. I have praised Republicans and Democrats when they do things with which I agree. I have never been, nor will I ever be, an apologist for someone who does wrong, be they Republican or Democrat.

So, about this story:

Last Thursday evening I receive a rather anonymous e-mail from someone purporting to be a well-connected Republican in middle Tennessee. In part, the e-mail read:

As you may or may not be aware Ronnie Barrett and [edited out] have attempted on several occasions over the past two years to get TDOT to pay for and install an access road for Barrett Firearms. What you may not know is the extent, some cases unethical, to which Ronnie Barrett and more specifically [edited out] have pursued this construction project at tax payer expense. I have spoken with all Republican members of the Rutherford County delegation and to a person none of them are currently in support of the project. Moreover it is my understanding the representative whose district the proposed project resides hasn’t been contacted by Barrett or [edited out] and was only aware of the project because of second hand conversations with other members of the legislature who refused to sponsor the Barrett/[edited out] legislation.

The e-mail further explained which bill addressed the issue of Barrett’s road extension. I was told to check the amendments of HB0150 and SB0094 – that I could find my answers there. I checked HB0150, sponsored by Charles Sargent, and found nothing, but upon inspection of its Senate companion, sponsored by Doug Jackson, I found an interesting detail (the amendment). After laying low for a year, both bills made their way to committee.

I routinely follow up with tips or other information that could lead to a story. This anonymous tip was no exception. Now, it’s at this point that I should mention that I could not find the fingerprints of the House member which I have replaced with [edited out] in the anonymous e-mail mentioned anywhere on the legislation; however, I am fairly certain that some detail links the Member in question with the request – I just can’t find it.

As is routinely the case, Members ask others to carry legislation or sign on as a co-sponsor, and this is what I think happened to Charles Sargent. Someone in the House asked him to sponsor this bill, he didn’t carefully read over it, and instead just put his name to it without a second thought. Why would anyone trick him into sponsoring something that would hurt him, right? Well, unless their own blind ambition got in the way.

I found out that another version of the bill likely existed last year, but did not get traction. I also found out that another senator was originally asked to sponsor the senate version, but the senator in question refused. I do not think that senator would admit to that taking place, so mentioning his or her name is not important.

I had to find details and piece this puzzle together. The first version of the story was written more as an opinion piece, but I thought a newsier approach would increase the impact of the information uncovered. I spent the entire weekend writing and re-writing, making sure all the pieces fit together – and they do.

The story appeared Monday morning on Nashville 24/7 and was picked up by Jeff Woods at the Nashville Scene. Woods would eventually write 4 or 5 posts about the story. On Tuesday, some legislators headed down to a gun shoot co-sponsored by Barrett Firearms in Tullahoma. With the cloud of this legislation hanging over the event, WSMV hit the scene to report on the legislation, I thought. Wrong. WSMV failed at further uncovering the actual story. Sam Stockard took my reporting, splashed an opinion with it, and called it an editorial.

There are other details. The story was picked up all over the internet and continues to bounce around in the news. The AP picked it up yesterday, and I understand it is being looked at more closely by one of the television stations in Nashville. I know I’m forgetting some details, but the important part is that the story broke – that some people were paying attention to what their elected officials were doing in Nashville and knew this was wrong.

This is a reminder that it is up to us to hold our elected officials accountable; that we must expect honest and ethical government; and we must keep a close watch on those we send to Nashville and Washington to fight on our behalf. Their actions speak louder than words.

UPDATE!

I found the original legislation in question. Around the same time last year that HB0150 and SB0094 were filed by Sargent and Jackson respectively, Representative Judd Matheny (R – Tullahoma) and Senator Bill Ketron (R – Murfreesboro) filed HB2054 and SB1688, which read:

It is the intent of the general assembly that the state of Tennessee shall transfer a parcel of property to Rutherford County in order to promote the orderly development of business and industry in such county. The state of Tennessee shall transfer a state right-of way in Rutherford County along Interstate 24, as designated by the Rutherford County mayor and agreed upon by the commissioner of finance and administration and the commissioner of transportation, to Rutherford County.