Singer Harris touts Dean in new TV ad
Democrat Karl Dean’s gubernatorial campaign is running two new TV spots, one narrated by award-winning singer and songwriter Emmylou Harris, who describes the former Nashville mayor as as “far from flashy” but someone who “knows how to lead.”
A second 30-second spot, narrated by Memphis pastor Linwood Dillard Jr. with Citadel of Deliverance Church of God in Christ, also touts Dean’s low-key approach to leadership.
The ad featuring Harris, a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, is airing in East and Middle Tennessee. The Linwood spot is airing in the Memphis media market.
Dean is vying with Republican nominee Bill Lee in the Nov. 6 election to succeed term-limited Republican Gov. Bill Haslam. An NBC/Marist poll released this week shows Lee leading Dean 53 percent to 40 percent among likely voters.
In the “Again” ad, Harris asks: “What makes a good governor? Because Tennessee has had some good ones. They’re usually successful mayors, and modest, but with records of transforming their cities — like this mayor. He led Nashville through the Great Recession and the Great Flood, helping create over 70,000 jobs.
“Far from flashy, shy even, but he knows how to lead,” Harris says of Dean. “We can elect a great governor — again.”
Dillard’s spot, “What Kind,” alludes to Dean’s past as a public defender and asks, “What kind of lawyer chooses to work for those who have no money to defend themselves? What kind of mayor lifts a city from the Great Flood but gives the credit to others? What kind of leader recruits major companies to his city and still rode the bus to work?”
Dillard answers that it’s “one who would rather listen than talk — and then leads with ideas, strength and decency. That’s the kind of governor we can have.”
Lee has an ad seeking to expand his reach to independents and Democrats. He calls running for public office before “an interesting experience” and says he’s learned “politics isn’t the solution, it’s generally the problem.”
“People are the solution,” Lee continues. “So, whatever your party, or if you’ve just given up on politics altogether, I hope to earn your support. Tennessee is a great state, but you and I, we can make it even better.”