Remember Tennessee’s drunk-driving gun loon state legislator Curry Todd? The guy who gave us guns-in-bars, then was clocked shitfaced drunk going 60 mph in a residential neighborhood with a gun loose in his car? Good times, good times.
Let us dig into the memory hole from that incident, shall we?
Todd refused to comment on his political future or on nagging allegations that he is living with a lobbyist in Green Hills.
Well, it only took over a year but those “nagging allegations” have finally been confirmed:
Rep. Curry Todd lived rent-free in lobbyist’s home
State Rep. Curry Todd lived rent-free for an undisclosed amount of time in the expensive Nashville home of a prominent lobbyist in 2011.
State ethics law forbids lobbyists from providing gifts, including housing, to lawmakers. The lobbyist, Chuck Welch, regularly worked on legislative issues that passed through the House State and Local Government Committee, which Todd, R-Collierville, chaired until he was removed in late 2011.
[...]
Welch, who did not respond to a request for comment, is the managing director for the Nashville office of the influential lobbying firm Farris, Mathews and Bobango. Until his arrest, Todd wielded significant power at the capitol in his role as chairman of the House committee.
Thanks to a generous carve-out in the state ethics law, the free housing may not constitute a violation because Todd and Welch are long-time friends.
Both Welch and the firm regularly lobbied on bills considered by Todd’s committee, including the ongoing issue of how utility poles are regulated across the state. The lobbying firm’s clients include the Tennessee Cable Telecommunications Association. Welch’s other lobbying clients include tw telecom, the American Legal Finance Association and the Tennessee Development District Association.
Oh, well, if they’re friends ….! Nothing to see here, move along!
By the way, if you want to get a look at the home Todd lived in rent-free while accepting nearly $30,000 in per diem and mileage reimbursements which are supposed to cover travel and living expenses, here’s a video of the home from YouTube. It sold last August for $460,000:
As if Curry Todd couldn’t get any sleazier, I remind you all that he is the Tennessee state chair of ALEC, as well as an ALEC board member. Last year he killed the Democrats’ Influence Disclosure Act, which would have required legislators to disclose the private groups behind boilerplate legislation of the type ALEC promotes. Why would he be against something so clearly in the public interest? Because, he said,
“I know what it’s getting back at. It’s getting back at ALEC.”
Yes, so when he says his “friendship” with a lobbyist never interfered with his independent judgment? Don’t believe a word of it.
