By Richard Locker/The Commercial Appeal
NASHVILLE — The big law firm’s conference room was decorated with red balloons forming the number “28,” the new tally of Republicans in the 33-member Tennessee Senate. The office penthouse atop Nashville’s 31-story Fifth Third Center gave members of the Senate Republican Caucus a fabulous view of the city.
Caucus members assembled there Dec. 10 to celebrate the electoral victories of the previous month and to lay the groundwork for the 2015 legislative session convening a month later. The holidays were ahead, and the mood was festive.
Toward the end, the caucus chairman, Sen. Bill Ketron of Murfreesboro, spoke to his colleagues about the American Legislative Exchange Council’s annual “policy summit” in Washington, which he and six fellow senators attended the previous week. He said 22 Tennessee legislators attended the ALEC conference, which Ketron said was the most from any state.
Outside Influence series
This series of stories was reported and written by the Tennessee News Network, a cooperative of the Chattanooga Times Free Press, the Knoxville News Sentinel, the Tennessean of Nashville and The Commercial Appeal of Memphis. Sunday* Out-of-state interests seek to influence Tennessee’s legislatorsMonday* Outside interest groups wage battle over school vouchers in TennesseeTuesday* Powerful national group spending big to sway Tennessee lawmakers