The 9:01: U of M asks Blackburn to remove video
Good morning from Memphis, where Trader Joe’s and The Daily Memphian have (finally) launched. But first...
Even though the University of Memphis is forbidden to endorse candidates, its cheerleaders were chanting “Marsha, Marsha, Marsha!” this weekend.
Republican U.S. Senate candidate Marsha Blackburn on Saturday posted a Facebook video of herself at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium, surrounded by chanting U of M cheerleaders, with the caption “Tigers for Marsha Marsha Marsha!” She was in Memphis two days after her Democratic opponent, Phil Bredesen, hosted a forum in place of a debate she turned down. His supporters used hashtags like #WheresMarsha and #MemphisMatters to blast her for declining the debate, which was the only one proposed in Memphis and West Tennessee.
Blackburn, who also stopped in at Jerry’s Sno Cones in Cordova, is clearly trying to counteract the narrative from Bredesen’s campaign that she doesn’t care about Shelby County, home to the largest number of Democrats but also the largest number of Republicans of any county in the state.
Asked for comment Sunday, the U of M released a statement this morning saying that it had asked Blackburn’s campaign to take down the video:
The Athletics Office was notified that pictures of the University of Memphis Spirit Squads were posted on political social media sites. U of M Spirit Squads do not endorse any candidate(s) for political office in accordance with U of M policies. Political organizers were contacted to remove any and all posts suggesting endorsement by the University of Memphis.
A spokeswoman for Blackburn didn’t respond to a request for comment by 9:01 a.m.
Asking Blackburn to remove the video was the right course of action. The Tigers are not “for” Blackburn, any more than they’re “for” Bredesen. And if they are, the Tigers could be in violation of IRS rules against public universities endorsing candidates.
Late Saturday, the U of M had already caught flak for the video. One student, Brighid Banbury, in a letter to President David Rudd that was posted on Facebook late last night, pointed out that the IRS forbids public universities from endorsing candidates.
“Representative Blackburn has grossly manipulated the university and its students for her personal gain,” the letter reads, in part. “This offense does not solely affect the student body, but it also has an impact on the larger Memphis community. In order to remedy this, I propose that the University of Memphis publicly state that it does not endorse any candidate. Alternately, the university could offer other candidates equal opportunities.”
In addition to making its policy against endorsing candidates clear to the public, the U of M officials should make the policy clear to its staff, as well.
Additional reading: U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, RFla., was stumping for Blackburn in Tennessee this week.
Reach Ryan Poe at poe@commercialappeal.com and on Twitter at @ryanpoe.