VOLuntarilyConservative

Bill Hobbs has a hard-hitting critique of Phil Bredesen's rise and Van Hilleary's stalled political career. For those who need a recap of the history's of these two and where they are headed, this column is a necessity.

My two-cents on Hilleary (because, if you don't know where I stand on Bredesen by now, you haven't been reading carefully) - I think Van is a good man. However, I question those who he trusts with his campaign future. What is so odd is that he tended to have wonderful D.C. staffers, but these people were a far cry from the campaign staff that he employed for the 2002 Tennessee Governor's race. I played on Van's Congressional League Softball team and campaigned for him in the East Tennessee region that included Knox County in 2002, so I know both groups of people. The way that the campaign in 2002 was run was disgraceful, and when I say that, I am aiming my criticism at a few high-ranking people. It, along with Dole 1996, was one of the only campaigns that I felt uneasy about working at the time - because of the sleaziness, the running when you should have been standing firm, the lack of political vision by those dealing with the press. Standing in the rain that Election Day morning with Van in 2002, I felt bad for him as GOP voter after GOP voter came up to him and told him how they liked him but wouldn't be voting for him after the "dirty" campaign that he had run. I felt bad for him because I don't think it was Van who was at fault for that "dirty" campaign. Now that he lost his dream job opportunity in 2002, he seems to have lost his senses - not as badly as Al Gore did after 2000, but jumping into a race with three other candidates when you are the only Republican to lose a statewide general election in over two decades isn't politically sane. OK, maybe that's a bit harsh, but at least Van is the victim of extremely poor political advice.

When Van loses this primary, he's done politically. Finished. Over. So why put all of your political fortunes into a primary where you aren't the most conservative candidate (Ed Bryant is), you don't have the most money (Bob Corker does), you haven't been working for and living amongst Tennesseans since 2002 (Bryant, Corker, and Harwell have), and you don't have the best campaign team (Bryant again)? Meanwhile, he has once again surrounded himself with the same cancerous elements that cost him 2002. It's beyond strange, and his campaign looks to be in disarray compared to the Bryant, Corker, and Harwell campaigns. At Lincoln Day events, Van often wasn't present and many times didn't even have a campaign representative attend in his proxy. Heck, his campaign website has been in development for months! I once thought a great deal of Van, but one has to wonder about him when he continues to surround himself with people that only limit his potential. My advice - dump this campaign team and find some real conservatives to run your campaign against Bredesen for the Governor's Mansion in 2006. That way, Van, your integrity, political sanity, and conservative values won't be compromised, and the GOP might take back the Governor's Mansion in a race that many Republicans were ready to write-off only a few months back.