"The primary offense of Justices Clark, Lee and Wade? Appointing an attorney general who did not join 27 other state AGs in a 2012 lawsuit challenging the Affordable Care Act." Gee, isn't that too bad?

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​Koch brothers direct ire, money against Tennessee judges
By Rob Robertson, July 24, 2014

The Tennessee chapter of Americans for Prosperity, a network of conservative organizations founded and funded by billionaire industrialists Charles and David Koch, says it is launching “a major new effort” to unseat three Tennessee Supreme Court justices and the state’s attorney general.

The AFP (“the state's foremost advocate for economic freedom”) says it will launch radio and direct mail efforts across the state to “educate the public on the liberal records” of Tennessee Supreme Court Justices Gary Wade, Sharon Lee and Cornelia A. Clark and Tennessee Attorney General Robert Cooper.

The primary offense of Justices Clark, Lee and Wade? Appointing an attorney general who did not join 27 other state AGs in a 2012 lawsuit challenging the Affordable Care Act.

The AFP campaign is part of an effort initiated by Tennessee Lt. Gov. and Senate Speaker Ron Ramsey (R-Blountville) and the Republican State Leadership Committee, which seeks to defeat the three justices, all of whom were appointed by former Governor Phil Bredesen, a Democrat.

The GOP campaign is the first serious challenge to sitting Supreme Court justices in nearly two decades.

Only one Supreme Court justice, Penny White, has been defeated in a retention election. White lost her position in 1996 after a campaign centered on her stance in a death penalty case.

Justices of the Tennessee Supreme Court are appointed by the governor to serve eight-year terms, and then voters determine whether the justices should be retained or replaced during the August election. Ordinarily this process is benign and not particularly partisan, but this year is different.

Ramsey is also working to build support for a constitutional amendment that would get the state legislature much more involved with how appellate court judges are seated.
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