A Chattanooga City Council employee who went to a Ted Cruz rally last week on city time said he'll use leave time to square things with taxpayers.
Council legislative analyst Thomas Tansil said he was asked to offer the Pledge of Allegiance at the Aug. 10 political rally because he served with some of the five servicemen who were killed during the July 16 attack at the U.S. Naval and Marine Reserve Center on Amnicola Highway.
On Tuesday, he said he didn't intend to break any rules or do anything inappropriate.
"I was asked to go. If it's a matter of leave, then I'll just submit leave and let that be the end of it," Tansil said.
But Councilman Moses Freeman has asked the city attorney's office to investigate. It's his understanding that Councilman Larry Grohn, who also attended the rally, told Tansil to come.
"You can't go to a political rally on the city's time. On your own time, you can go to whatever you want," Freeman said. "And if a councilperson suggested that the employee go, they acted outside of their authority. It's a case of two parties possibly violating our rules."
Regardless of Grohn's and Tansil's intentions, Freeman said, the council should "straighten it out."
Grohn said Tuesday he never ordered Tansil to attend. Rally organizers asked Grohn if he knew any first responders who worked during the July 16 attack or anyone who served at the military site. He immediately thought of Tansil, who is an officer at the Chattanooga reserve center.
"I just made the contact," Grohn said.
He also said he assumed Tansil would make schedule arrangements with the City Council clerk.
This is not the first time Freeman has challenged Tansil's use of time. Last month, Freeman raised issues about Tansil missing a council meeting to attend the funeral of Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Randall Smith. Ultimately, the City Council canceled some of its July 28 meetings so its members also could attend Smith's funeral.
City Attorney Wade Hinton told Freeman during a strategic planning meeting Tuesday he would look into the political rally matter.
Contact staff writer Louie Brogdon at lbrogdon @timesfreepress.com, @glbrogdoniv on Twitter or at 423-757-6481.