Bill Haslam told me that General Motors leaders at Spring Hill say they're sticking to their plan to refrain from making new cars in their Maury County plant until Americans start buying more cars. What a mess. A thousand words won't say it better than our editorial cartoon today, but here's a suggestion. Send a lot of the cars and trucks that aren't selling on a slow boat to China where, as we're told, the big wigs like Buicks... more

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke now admits that the economic recovery is even weaker than he thought. New International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde says "we must act now" to save the global economy. "We" don't need to do anything. In fact, it's prior actions taken or encouraged by the IMF and the Fed that have led to this sluggish recovery... more

It's time to retell the tale of when a high school junior was on a school board between Baltimore and Washington, D.C. The high schoolers who served one term each rotated off in the winter of their senior year, after suffering through budget meetings during the summer. ... more

Ever heard the expression 'Where there's smoke there's fire?' Our economy is on fire. Not in the good sense but in the destructive sense. We have serious problems in our economy that have yet to be addressed. All the while this administration has been concentrating on the smoke... more

Every once in a while, someone comes into this office on Lewisburg's public square, complaining about what's going on in City Hall, or among the county commissioners. The school board isn't exempt. In fact, it's one of the usual targets. Often enough, complaints come with a suggestion that so-and-so ought to be fired. Sometimes there's a complaint that people don't care enough to get riled up and demand change... more

I don't know that it's written anywhere but it should be. When it comes to legislation, it's probably not good for your party's agenda if you pass legislation that couldn't pass with members of your own party. That's what the U.S. House of Representatives did with the debt ceiling legislation. ... more

Perhaps my theory on political vacuums will be substantiated or dismissed in about 16 months. It's based on observations that when a long-time leader steps aside, or is defeated, there's a reaction to the change. After a honeymoon period when a new leader has settled in, events test the public's patience and/or satisfaction with the official... more

WASHINGTON --Joining other Republican senators who've been governors, U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander on Tuesday advocated a balanced federal budget like most state governments. "One way balancing the budget helps create jobs is if we keep our interest payments down," Alexander said. "We keep our taxes down. We can spend our money wisely on things that count... more

What is poor? That's the question the Heritage Foundation explored in their study 'What is Poverty in the United States Today?' The answers might surprise you. First, let's explore our perception of poverty. The Catholic Campaign for Human Development polled Americans and asked them, "How would you describe being poor in the U.S.?" The vast majority focused on homelessness and hunger or not being able to eat properly, and things like electricity and running water. ... more

Recall with us now, those thrilling days of yesteryear and consider what happened before the nanny state started looking out for us. It was high atop Keith Springs Mountain not far from Robin Hood's cave, the site of a moonshiner's still just north of the Alabama line... more

While everyone was obsessed with the Anthony Weiner tweeting scandal another more important story was going untold. The spotlight shifted to Weiner's wife, Huma Abedin, and the humiliation she must have been enduring. We knew she was Muslim and Weiner was a Jew; an odd combination, no doubt. However, whether through trained political correctness or lack of curiosity few looked beyond the Weinergate scandal... more

I should thank Councilman Ronald McRady for making public the specifics about City Treasurer Connie Edde's pending retirement and part-time service to continue for a couple of years, or less. What the heck: Thanks Ronald. However, there are other opinions... more

I told on myself and word travels fast in a small town, so before long someone told me, "I hear you've got Joey + Rory concert tickets to sell. " It was Friday evening in Lewisburg during the Festival on the Rocks, brought to you by the Lewisburg Rotary Club. Rory and Joey Feek were the headliners on stage... more

Adult cicadas should all die off: A) soon, B) in a couple of weeks, C) by mid-June, D) not soon enough, E) five weeks after they started bothering us. All of the answers above are correct. Cicadas have been so bothersome that an otherwise peaceful, professional and gentlemanly businessman greeted a friend the other day by asking, "How many cicadas have you killed today?"... more

Today, a foursome: What's goin' on Memorial Day; What's my reason; How Marshall is ahead of the pack; and more on signs. Memorial Day marks the start of summer vacation season. It really commemorates U.S. soldiers who died in military service. I was asked to speak on Lewisburg's public square Monday. Of course I said yes. Veterans want to know how this member of the Fourth Estate feels about their comrades' sacrifice... more

Atlanta businessman Herman Cain announced his candidacy for the presidency. If you were only paying attention to the mainstream media, you probably missed it. With the exception of a Fox News Sunday appearance (which we'll get to in a moment), most everyone else turned a blind eye to the announcement... more

Some folks just don't have anything better to do, do they? The question comes from a variety of newsmakers and this week it came from Lewisburg's recently re-elected councilman. He asked the question during a return phone call. He deserved to have his side of the story told, so he was called... more

It almost happened again Tuesday night. Lewisburg's city recorder was about to lock up City Hall and she asked, "Is everybody out of the building?" Actually, no. Mayor Barbara Woods was the last out. Small thing, and she'd probably have escaped anyway, but it's not so uncommon as one might think. It happened to me and it happened to another man during Mayfest, the Chamber of Commerce event last weekend... more

With Mother's Day and Decoration Day at Lewisburg cemeteries around the corner, the incomplete debate over rules on how graves may be decorated at city-owned cemeteries has a few questions lurking in the background. It's beyond the question of enforcement. ... more

Tennessee has one of the least restrictive foreclosure processes in the country. But Tennessee Bankers hope to make foreclosure simpler in Tennessee. Tennessee is one of only five "non-judicial review" states. We rank near the top for ease and speed of foreclosures; no courts, no judges, no long drawn-out process... more