WKNO TRANSCRIPT
CHRISTOPHER BLANK (Host): Thanksgiving week is a time for food, family, and a little reflection. With us to share his thoughts on this year's holiday is political analyst Otis Sanford. Welcome back.
OTIS SANFORD: Thank you, Chris, and Happy Thanksgiving weekend to you.
BLANK: Well, before we get to some -- maybe -- more uplifting thoughts: US Attorney General Pam Bondi kicked off this week with a visit to Memphis, touting huge decreases in crime over the last 2 months. That's a good thing, I think. One thing she didn't do was take any questions from local media, and she blamed the weather for that. Otis, if you had been in that press pool, what might you have asked?
SANFORD: Well, two major things I would have asked, Chris. One is: what can and should the federal government do to help with the jail overcrowding here in Shelby County? I mean, because of the task force, arrests are up significantly. And that is really putting a a strain on the jail. But primarily, I would ask her about the task force's repeated tendency to give out false information about immigrants who are picked up, rounded up, thrown in jail, carted off to far flung prisons and even deported. And we're talking about people who have no criminal record even though the federal government is saying that they are the worst or the worst, and they're putting out falsehoods about that. I would be asking her those questions.
BLANK: The media did corner [Tennessee House Speaker] Cameron Sexton at this press conference and they asked would the state be willing to kick in some funding for a new jail? Everyone knows we need it. He said no, that's a local issue. What what do you think about that?
SANFORD: Well, I thought it was an unfortunate thing for him to say. I mean, he's one of the ones that's been touting let's lock people up and basically throw away the key. You know, if you're going to do that, we need additional help. I don't think this is just a local issue, because the state is involved in this increase in arrests. Because the way this task force is operated, it has really put a hardship on people in charge of the jails and the clerks and courts.
BLANK: Well, I don't know about your family, but this year for Thanksgiving, my family has decided not to talk about politics whatsoever. I think it's a really good policy these days.
SANFORD: I Agree.
BLANK: So after Thanksgiving, I was thinking maybe I could have you talk about a few things that maybe we are a little more thankful for in local politics and we can start with something in county government. Anything in county government that you've seen lately that maybe looks good to you?
SANFORD: Well, I had to search high and low for that, Chris. I'll be honest with you. I do think, when we talk about the county commission, for example, it was a good thing for the commission to appoint Shante Avant as the chair for this year. She has served well. She's very level-headed and she is conducting meetings, I think, in a very appropriate way. I also think it was good -- despite what the critics say -- that Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris, has done his best to just hold people accountable for the use of the National Guard in town and whether that was appropriate or not. So, I think that's good where the county government is concerned.
BLANK: And what about Memphis city government? Can we point to any positives there?
SANFORD: Well, the one positive that I thought I saw this this year was city government trying their best to hold Elon Musk and xAI accountable in respect to the building of that supercomputer operation that they have going on here in Memphis. The mayor and the city council approved tax money that's coming from xAI and putting it back into the communities that are affected by these operations. And hopefully, it will go back into those communities for infrastructure and just a lot of other improvements, environmental improvements, as well. So, that's the one thing that I saw.
BLANK: Well, finally, Otis, looking ahead to the end of the year. Do you see any hopeful spots on the horizon just in the next month or so?
SANFORD: Well, I mean I just hope that if it's true -- and I do believe it's true -- that crime is down in Memphis, the task force deserves a little bit of credit for that. Not as much as they are trying to take because crime was already going down. So, I'm hopeful that the downward trends continue. But I'm also very hopeful, Chris, that some people will understand that other people involved in this roundup are being mistreated. And we are breaking up families and we are tarnishing people whose only crime was coming to the country undocumented. They have not committed any other crime, and they have been treated like the worst of the worst. I hope we get a conscience, and say let's not break up families and let's not treat people in inhumane ways just to prove a point that you're trying to crack down on immigration.
BLANK: Well, if I know Memphians, I imagine that many of them would agree with you on those sentiments. Thank you again, Otis!
