Old Hickory's revenge

WATE citing the Knoxville News Sentinel recounts a truly bizarre set of events, but it's been that kind of run lately for Tennessee political news. Basically a man who was injured at a State GOP event by a falling flag can't sue the party, according to the Tennessee Court of Appeals. But the series of incidents leading up to the accident are entertaining, though the man's injury is not, of course.

The Knoxville News-Sentinel reported portraits of former presidents Andrew Jackson, James K. Polk and Andrew Johnson, all Democrats, had been covered for a Republican party celebration on election night.

During the event, a flag that both the Republican Party and the hotel deny placing in front of a shrouded landscape painting fell onto Elmer Paul Allen, who sued the hotel.

A year later, Allen added the political party as a defendant.

The appellate court ruled Allen's suit against the hotel could proceed, but said he waited too long to sue the Republicans.

Newsweek editor coming to Jackson to talk about Jackson

Newsweek editor Jon Meacham will be in Jackson on October 30 for an event which he will discuss his book, American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House.

With the presidential election in November, it's a perfect time to have a new book out on Jackson. Meacham said, "Whoever takes the oath of office next Jan. 20 is taking over an office essentially created not by Washington or Adams but by Jackson."

Then he added, "Your city is named for a president who had two bullets in him, who had killed a man in a duel, engaged in a street brawl in which he almost lost an arm. He was a man who attacked his own assassin twice. He tried to physically assault a man afterward. This was not a retiring soul. He believed he had the interests of the people at heart against the elites."

Meacham pointed out that Jackson came in as president "after exactly the same kind of rhetoric you're hearing from Obama and McCain - 'We're going to clean up Washington.' He was the first person who wrote that public script."