By Mike Edwards, President and CEO, Knoxville Chamber

“Statesman”.... the Merriam Webster Dictionary defines statesman as “one who exercises political leadership wisely and without narrow partisanship.”

I’d define statesman as someone that puts governance above politics. Someone that places the good of the people above the good of self or the good of their political party.

I suspect that a lot of East Tennesseans – maybe a lot of Tennesseans – think of Howard Baker as the consummate statesman. Certainly, there are others in the history of the state of Tennessee and the United States –others that you or I could name.

Unfortunately, Congress doesn’t seem to have very many leaders cut from that cloth anymore. Too many representatives, senators and even members of the administration are interested in politics more than they seem to be interested in good policy. The sides square off with dueling press conferences and rallies. They advance pieces of legislation simply to get the “other side” on the record. And they plan to use those “gotcha” votes against their rivals in the next election with designs of defeating them at the ballot box.

Let me explain what I mean by a “gotcha” vote. I’d define that as a vote on a bill that has no likelihood of passing or that includes a measure or amendment that polarizes the political parties and does not advance the overall legislation. Certainly, one side or the other may see this measure as meritorious, but the real purpose is to define the members of the other political party and to use that to defeat them in an upcoming election.

But, the real losers are the people.

I’m concerned that the symptoms that plague Congress may one day infect the Tennessee General Assembly. This is of particular concern during an election year, and 2008 is an election year.

I’m concerned about our state legislators being distracted by this “gotcha” kind of politics because I think there are more important things for them to deal with. To me, the most important of those issues is education. If the state of Tennessee does not significantly improve the rigor of our educational system we will be in economic peril. We must have a well-educated and well-skilled workforce to compete economically. And we must begin to reform education now.

Unfortunately, the changes that need to be made are not painless. They require politicians to put aside immediate notoriety for the long-term good. The long-term gains also require the state to shine a light on the lack of rigor in our education system and the low level of achievement when compared to national and international standards. It will require statesmen to make these changes.

If the General Assembly succumbs to “gotcha” politics we will be to blame for allowing it to happen.

We will have allowed politicians to define us. We will have allowed them to play to our fears. We will have allowed them to make headlines instead of good public policy. And we have allowed them to distract us from the important issues that will lead to real improvements in our way of life and standard of living. We will have allowed politicians to put politics before governance – just like we’ve allowed it to happen in Congress – and we should have the blame.

As a businessperson and a business leader you can help put an end to it. You can limit your political donations to only those candidates and officials that govern, that are statesmen, and that insist on an end to “gotcha” political maneuverings.

The Tennessee Legislature has had its share of statesmen. There are lots of current members of the General Assembly that continue to place the common good above politics. These leaders were willing to compromise, to find common ground and to truly govern. Let’s demand that all state legislators continue to follow their lead.