New state Democrat chief decries GOP’s ‘racist’ attacks

NASHVILLE — Steamrolling over top elected Democrats who opposed him, Chip Forrester was elected Tennessee Democratic Party chairman Saturday and immediately vowed the party no longer will tolerate what he called “racist, bigoted attacks” by state Republicans.

“Robin Smith, Jason Mumpower, Bill Hobbs and Chip Saltsman ... you are put on notice,” Mr. Forrester, of Nashvile, told cheering executive committee members. “As chairman of this Democratic Party I will not stand by and see this happen without full frontal attack on the racist, smear tactics that you have used.”

Mr. Forrester said he was referring to state Republican campaign attacks last year on President Barack Obama, who is black, and former state Rep. Nathan Vaughn, D-Kingsport, who is black.

The state GOP last year put a news release on its Web site using Mr. Obama’s full name, Barack Hussein Obama. It featured a photo of Mr. Obama wearing what the release termed “Muslim” garb, including a turban. Mr. Obama, whose father was from Kenya, was wearing traditional African clothing.

A direct-mail piece attacking Mr. Vaughn featured his head, Mr. Obama’s face and U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who is white, plastered onto black birds.

Mrs. Smith, the state GOP chairwoman, congratulated Mr. Forrester on his 42-25 landslide over Nashville attorney Charles Robert Bone, a prominent Democratic fundraiser. She said she looked “forward to working with him on a substantive level but will not accept his cock-of-the-walk attitude.”

“His very bold posturing needs to start in his own party in that it was Hillary Clinton who absolutely wiped the floor up with Barack Obama in the (Tennessee) Democrat primary in February of 2008,” said Mrs. Smith, who is from Hixson. “And it was also Hillary Clinton that first put Barack Obama’s middle name into use.”

She accused former U.S. Labor Secretary Robert Reich of recently saying the federal stimulus money “should be put out for anyone but white contractors, so I look forward to seeing Mr. Forrester’s statements on members of his own party.”

In a Youtube.com posting of a recent U.S. House hearing, Mr. Reich said he was “concerned” that “these jobs not simply go to highly skilled people who are already professionals or to white male construction workers.”

He went on to say “I have nothing against white male construction workers. I’m just saying there are a lot of other people who have needs as well.”

Mr. Bone had the support of Democrats including Gov. Phil Bredesen and four of the state’s five congressmen.

Some executive committee members, including Forrester supporter Weldon Markham, of Chattanooga, accused some of the congressmen or their aides of engaging in strong-arm tactics with several committee members and threatening to withhold financial aid to the party.

“They threatened members of the committee,” Mr. Markham said. “Some had to change their votes because of it.”

Aides to U.S. Rep. Lincoln Davis, D-Tenn., and U.S. Rep. Bart Gordon, D-Tenn., left the state House chamber immediately after the chairmanship vote and could not be contacted later. None of Gov. Bredesen’s aides was present.

Mr. Forrester, who replaces Gray Sasser as state party chief, pledged to “open this party up to everyone.”

He said he intends convene a summit to sort through Tennessee Democrats’ disastrous showing in 2008 election in which they lost their state House majority, the GOP increased its hold on the state Senate and Mr. Obama lost to Republican John McCain.

A former state party executive director who served in roles including deputy campaign manager in Ned McWherter’s successful 1986 campaign, Mr. Forrester said he is “very confident that the leaders of the party and the elected officials will understand that to take back the House and to take seats in the Senate we have to circle the wagons and come together.”