MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The following statement is issued today by Bill Gibbons, Shelby County District Attorney General:
“I am a candidate for governor and will seek the Republican nomination in the August 2010 primary.
“As governor, I will place priority on two issues – crime and schools – that pose big challenges to our state and that we must address if we are to achieve a better future for Tennessee.
“Through safer communities and better schools, Tennessee will be positioned as a state where people want to live, raise their families, work and retire. And we will be a state where existing businesses want to remain and expand and new businesses want to locate.
“The very first sentence of the very first section of our state constitution notes that state government exists to provide for the peace and safety of the people. As our next governor, I will take the leading in making changes to fix Tennessee’s criminal justice system because I believe we must not surrender a single street, neighborhood or community to crime.
“Tennessee has the second highest violent crime rate in the nation, and it is a statewide problem. Over the past ten years, we have not shared in the national downward trend in violent crime. Law enforcement throughout Tennessee is doing a good job with the tools we have, but Tennessee’s criminal justice system has deep flaws. As district attorney in our state’s largest jurisdiction, I see those flaws up close, every day. We must change the system.
We must do a better job of holding serious offenders accountable by keeping them off our streets and in prison where they belong. At the same time we must address the underlying problem of drug addiction that drives so much of our crime. We must address behavior among juveniles such as truancy that too often results in even more serious consequences. And we must make sure that our state law enforcement agencies, such as the Highway Patrol, develop and maintain a level of professionalism their employees and the citizens of Tennessee deserve.
“The other major challenge facing our next governor is our schools. In 2010, we will move to more rigorous standardized testing of our public school students. It will be a wake-up call for our state. We must make sure our young people have the skills and values necessary to compete in a global economy. We cannot simply pour more money into doing the same thing and expect significantly different results.
“My wife Julia and I are products of public schools, as are our two children. I was blessed to go to an excellent public high school in my hometown of Memphis, and my children were fortunate to go to exceptional public schools from kindergarten through high school. But I know many of our public schools today simply aren’t where they need to be in preparing our children for the future. As our next governor, I will change the status quo in our public schools and encourage innovation, instill high expectations of students, and demand and reward excellence in teaching.
“By making real progress on crime and public schools, Tennessee will be better positioned for the economic growth and employment opportunities so critical to the vibrancy of our communities. My administration will be focused on attracting high-quality jobs in every county, and our success in doing so relies very much on safety and better schools.
“I’ve spent my professional and personal life preparing to tackle these challenges, and I’m ready to do the job. I intend to make my campaign a conversation with Tennesseans about the real issues we’re facing today. I will be specific – about the direction I think we need to take, and the changes we will make – to ensure we do have safer communities, better schools, and more and better jobs. I’m looking forward to having this conversation all across our state.
“That process begins today as I enter the race and form a campaign committee. Germantown CPA Bill Watkins, who has served as chairman of the Shelby County Republican Party, as a member of the Tennessee Board of Regents, and as treasurer of dozens of campaigns for Republican candidates, has agreed to serve as treasurer of my campaign.”
