For this Brentwood resident, Leatherwood is the best choice for Congress

I live in Brentwood, TN., also the home city of "Congressman" Marsha Blackburn.

Tomorrow, I'll be voting for Tom Leatherwood for the Republican nomination for the Congressional seat held by Blackburn. That doesn't mean I'm a Republican. I belong to no political party, but the GOP ballot is really the only one that counts here in Williamson County. And it is my duty to vote.

I've followed Blackburn's career closely. She has definite beliefs, conservative ones. But her handling of finances with the state film office and now her congressional office leaves a troubling picture of a public official telling government to act better than she has with money from the people.

The best way to lead has always been by example.

But the example being left by too many Republican lawmakers across the country has been a negative one. Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens has just been indicted for charges showing he is tied too closely to lobbyists and the corrupt system in Washington than the integrity of his office. And that office belongs to the people of this nation, no matter how much pork you bring home to Alaska like the bridge to nowhere.

I don't believe in overlooking wrongs in Democrats or Republicans. I call them all out. And problems in handling someone else's money is a violation of a sacred trust, no matter the excuses.

Yes, all people including U.S. senators are innocent until found guilty. But just as with Operation Tennessee Waltz with the General Assembly, the Feds don't go after someone powerful unless they have all the goods on that person. Stevens is too powerful of a politican to challenge with a poor case of charges.

I'm not saying that Blackburn has or will ever face that kind of problem. She is not accused of breaking the law, just rules of the Federal Election Commission. That she told on herself publicly about breaking the rules does not make up for the years of letters from the FEC asking for correction. Rules that ensure fair elections in our republic -- particularly with finances -- are very important.

The reporting from Gannett News Service of her son-in-law making a big living in the same system in Washington is not against the law either. Neither is her daughter making a living off her campaigns, no matter how much her daughter charged for her business.

But these factors are indicative of a pattern that people in this congressional district would be wise to discourage. You cannot serve two masters -- making money and representing the people. Service requires sacrifice and conduct above question, not allowing family members to get a taste of campaign money and lobbying in Washington.

That may sound unreasonable. But that's the responsibility one must take on in representing the people, or every elected official starts rationalizing away their questionable conduct or that of their loved ones. Then the problems of integrity in Washington become too entrenched with both political parties.

Tennessee House Speaker Jimmy Naifeh, a Democrat, has a wife who makes a living lobbying the General Assembly. That's wrong, even if it is not against the law. And I've written volumes in calling him out. So have Republicans.

Again, none of these things Blackburn has done is against the law. But it is indicative of conduct that can easily grow into something worse when you leave a lawmaker in office too long. They are only human beings. It is impossible to resist the corruption of the system.

Conversely, Leatherwood in the state Senate showed himself as someone who purposely kept himself apart of the system. That didn't make him a lot of friends among powerful Republican colleagues, many of who are still in the General Assembly. But his first duty was to the people he represented, not his political party.

Then Leatherwood left quickly before becoming too much of a part of the system at the General Assembly. His conservative credentials are quite apparent. I've derived my opinion on Leatherwood largely from reporting of John Rodgers with the City Paper. He is one of the best political reporters in the state at a still young age.

Yes, I obivously disagree on some big issues with Leatherwood. But I believe Blackburn's conduct is a warning sign, of someone too long in Washington. It is up to us as voters to open our eyes and sometimes save politicians from themselves.

That's my opinion. It also represents my reasoning behind my vote tomorrow as a citizen of this congressional district and a resident of Brentwood who has watched Blackburn career closely, praised it in the past, but now cannot overlook these warning signs.