Sorry, Can't Come to the Phone... Politically Buffering
☎️ Nashville mayor slow to back reprimands placed on Metro’s Charlie Kirk haters · State House finger-pointing reinvigorated by the Casada/Cothren case · New COVID vax guidance · AP poll ranks Commodores · Much more!
Good afternoon, everyone. Megan here! I’m taking the reins while Davis is abroad this week, so things are going to look a little bit different—salute to our editor-in-chief!
Mayor Freddie O’Connell quick to condemn political violence, but avoids supporting reprimands on Metro employees who posted about the assassination of Charlie Kirk… COVID vaccines only recommended for those with serious medical conditions or people over 65… Lawmakers ask judge to go easy on Casada and Cothren… The AP poll ranks the Commodores… And much more!
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📏 Two Metro Employees Reprimanded For Posts About Kirk The Nashville Fire Department and the Nashville Department of Emergency Communications have both placed employees on administrative leave in response to their comments made on social media regarding the assassination of Charlie Kirk. On Thursday, the Fire Department confirmed that the person in their department is a paramedic, while the DEC, made up of employees who oversee dispatches for Metro’s police and fire departments, announced that they’re actively investigating comments made online.
Mayor Freddie O’Connell called the situation “somewhat complicated” during Friday’s media roundtable. “First Amendment protections impact private and public sectors differently,” O’Connell told the press. “You've probably been aware of litigation and legal issues related to speech on social media platforms as individuals may be taking personal account on non-Metro accounts. We take these moments very seriously, but they are working their way through an HR and legal process.”
O’Connell also rebuked the acts of the shooter, this time without mentioning gun violence as he did in his initial statement about the incident. “I absolutely condemn both political violence and rhetoric that may be overheated in response to incidents that occurred,” he said.
💉 Fear Over COVID Guideline Changes At the end of August, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, under the direction of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., announced that emergency-use authorization of COVID vaccines was terminated and released new guidelines recommending immunization for "those at high risk" and people over 65. According to a report by the Banner, fear has been stirred up in Tennessee regarding the potential unavailability of the vaccine to healthy individuals under the age of 65. That said, according to a response the publication received from Walgreens, those seeking the COVID vaccination can simply “self-attest to their qualifying condition—no proof or additional documentation is required.”
⚖️ Lawmakers Vouch For Casada/Cothren State Representative Paul Sherrell (R-Sparta) and former State Representative Kent Calfee (R-Kingston) submitted letters supporting former Tennessee House Speaker Glen Casada and his ex-chief of staff Cade Cothren, who face sentencing after being found guilty of several counts, including conspiracy, bribery, fraud, and money laundering. Both men face up to 20 years in prison after an investigation into a shell company scheme involving the consulting firm Phoenix Solutions, though the judge has since dropped three federal corruption charges due to insufficient evidence.
According to State Affairs, Sherrell highlighted his positive working relationship with Cothren and Casada, while Calfee emphasized that he received exactly what he paid for from Phoenix Solutions and that Cothren is a kind-hearted individual, not a hardened criminal. Calfee also questioned the entire investigation: “I’ll tell you this with certainty, there is a lot more going on in the State House and above that would make this look like kindergarten shenanigans!”
🏈 Commodores Ranked In AP Poll The Associated Press poll is out, and Vanderbilt (3-0, 1-0 SEC) is now ranked No. 20 among the top 25 college football teams after their victory over South Carolina (2-1, 0-1 SEC) on Saturday. University of Tennessee (2-1, 0-1 SEC) held their rank at No. 15 following their loss to Georgia (3-0, 1-0 SEC). Titans fans are still looking for their offensive line, but hey, all the bus rides were free yesterday.
🖋️ Edited by Megan Podsiedlik.
THINGS TO DO
View our calendar for the week here.
TONIGHT
🎸 Billy Strings w/ Bryan Sutton @ Ryman Auditorium, 7p, Info
🎸 Turnstile @ The Pinnacle, 7p, $75+, Info
🪕 Kyle Tuttle's Bluegrass Monday @ Station Inn, 6p, $10, Info
🪕 Val Storey, Carl Jackson, Larry Cordle & New Monday @ Station Inn, 8p, $20, Info
💀 Grateful Monday @ Acme Feed & Seed, 7p, Free, Info
🕺 Motown Monday @ The 5 Spot, 9p, $5, Info
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Today's newsletter is brought to you by Megan Podsiedlik and Camelia Brennan.