Tennessee conservatives out for blood

Noted here before, a group of Tennessee Republicans in the State Senate had decided that John Wilder would be the best choice for state Senate speaker. Problem for them was John Wilder was a Democrat, and this provoked outrage and ire from the state Republican party.

Well, the vote has been taken, and Wilder was elected. And now the GOP is beginning to exact revenge on the two Republicans who helped put him there:

Conservative talk show host Steve Gill and a Weststate Republican group want an investigation into Sen. Mike Williams' campaign expenses, particularly a payment to an ex-wife, NASCAR tickets and memorabilia, gasoline, framing expenses and other items.

Other Republican lawmakers who voted for Democrats John Wilder as Senate speaker and Jimmy Naifeh for House speaker can expect the same kind of grilling, Gill said.

"They stepped out of line. They should expect more scrutiny," said Gill, a commentator on WWTN-FM radio and former Republican political candidate.

The Tennessee Republican Party and Team GOP have said separately that they would work against Republican lawmakers who do not stay in line by trying to get them beaten in their next primary elections.

(snip)

Williams said he has done nothing wrong. "I'm sure they're trying to make me look as bad as possible," Williams said.

"I'm saddened by the fact that I know what I'm doing is helping a lot of people who could not afford things - toys for young people, NASCAR tickets. I do that by traveling around my district, knowing how they live and knowing what's going on in their lives."

Gill acknowledged that it's not clear whether Williams violated election laws but said there's enough suspicious spending for an investigation. He said a first step should be for the Senate Ethics Committee to look into the matter.

Another lesson for moderates in the GOP. Your party does not want you.