CHRISTOPHER BLANK (Host): Fall has arrived in Memphis, and as the city awaits word on what's next with the National Guard deployment here, it's time to take a look at a few other issues coming down the road. With us again is political analyst Otis Sanford. Welcome back.
OTIS SANFORD: Thank you, Chris. Thank you for having me.
BLANK: Well, first Otis, on that issue of the National Guard, both the Memphis City Council and the County Commission voted down their respective resolutions asking Gov. Lee to hold off sending troops. Even though it would probably have made little difference, it doesn't seem as if much was at stake politically here. Why didn't these mostly symbolic resolutions pass?
SANFORD: Well, because there was no unanimity on either the city council or the county commission about it. And there's really no unanimity in the community either. At the beginning, a lot of people thought that most Memphians were against it. But that is not turning out not to be the case. A lot of people on both bodies didn't even vote. So, that kind of caused it to fail, as well. So, they don't want to stick their necks out here, especially the ones who would vote against it. They don't want it to be a successful operation and then they look bad for having opposed it. I'm not surprised that it did not pass.
BLANK: Do you think the anxiety over the troops has waned a bit? At least, as we wait to find out what guardsmen will actually be doing here.
SANFORD: I think it has. And one of the reasons it has is I think Gov.Bill Lee has struck a much more moderate tone in how he has talked about this since that meeting at the White House, which really was nothing but a praise Donald Trump session. He's been a lot more moderate in his discussions about this. The anxiety has definitely waned.
BLANK: Well, let's look at a few other recent government decisions. The Memphis Area Transit Authority has been in financial trouble for a long time now, not to mention the leadership problems. There were board firings last year. Earlier this month, the city created a trust that essentially controls the system's $30 million city budget. This looks like the city wants to hold the reins on public transit, at least for now. What's to like or not like about this?
SANFORD: $30 million dollars is not chicken feed here. So, I think it's a good thing to have more eyes on it. You know, the decision to create a trust and have a couple of people overseeing what's going on over there, kind of rankled the board a little bit. But I think the city is doing the responsible thing because of the much publicized problems at MATA over the last several years. The credibility of that organization has really been called into question.
BLANK: Well, over at Memphis-Shelby County Schools, they've had quite the year, starting with the fallout from the firing of Superintendent Marie Feagins. This week, the county commission voted to put all nine school board seats on the ballot next year. That is, if there's no lawsuit stopping it. Let's start with why this decision matters.
SANFORD: Well, it matters because, finally, the public started paying attention to what the Memphis-Shelby County Schools Board was doing, especially as it related to former Superintendent Marie Feagins and they didn't like it. And so, all of the pressure that has been brought to bear both in the community and in the legislature about that decision and the fact that some members on the current board had lost their credibility, that is what fueled this decision. You mentioned a lawsuit, Chris, and I do think there probably will be some. Because the ones who did get elected in 2024, you know, they're not going to be happy. And they shouldn't be happy having to go back and run again in just two years, and they ran for a four-year term. So, we'll see how the courts handle that. But I think the decision to do this was a political decision based on the discontent that the community had and the discontent that the legislature had, and there's still that prospect of a state takeover looming out there.
BLANK: Well, finally we learned this week the school district also has a big numbers problem. Local public schools are looking at $1.4 billion in needed repairs. Now, that's about the same price as building a new Shelby County Jail or even the new Regional One Hospital that's been talked about. All these are huge plans on the table. With so many costly undertakings, what do voters need be thinking about, politically, in the next few years?
SANFORD: The candidates who are going to run, do they really know what they're doing? Do they understand the fiscal needs that the school system have. Do they understand what should be the priorities, especially as we talk about consolidation, really, because you're closing some schools. That means that the students at those schools will have to go to other schools. Voters need to be paying much more attention, and I think you're going to see a little bit more of that next year because of the discontent with this current school board.
