Jacobs backs Blackburn for governor (again) and Farragut native steps up for USAID
Jacobs backs Blackburn for governor (again) and Farragut native steps up for USAID | The Key
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Morgan County possible tornado kills at least two
Two people are dead after a possible tornado struck Morgan County, Tennessee.
Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs endorsed U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn for governor in 2026. We reported it Jan. 14, and now he's solidifying his stance in a Knox News column.
Blackburn hasn't announced her candidacy, but Jacobs positioned himself as her friend and ally after considering a run himself. In a column for Knox News published Feb. 9, Jacobs laid out his support.
"She would be a conservative force as our governor," Jacobs wrote.
If Blackburn runs and wins, her U.S. Senate seat will be open and someone will be appointed to fill it.
Welcome to The Key, your weekly guide on how to have your say in the decisions that shape our community.
Knox County Commissioners zero in on state legislation
If you're interested in how state and local governments interact, this one's for you.
The Knox County Commission's legislative affairs committee will meet this week to review legislation filed in the General Assembly and figure out which bills will affect Knox County.
There's public forum for comments about the legislation.
Important date: The committee will meet at 3 p.m. Feb. 10 in the commission's conference room on the 6th floor of the City-County Building, 400 Main St.
What you can do: Sign up to speak!
Deadline: If you want to speak in front of the committee sign up on the commission's website, commission.knoxcountytn.gov, by emailing commission@knoxcounty.gov or by calling the commission office at 865-215-2534.
Study up: Take a look at all the bills filed in the legislature ahead if time. Visit the legislation tab on capitol.tn.gov, where you can search by bill number or topic.
Rural Metro has a new owner
A group that advises Jacobs and the Knox County Commission on all things fire and rescue will meet to discuss the sale of the county's private fire service provider, Rural Metro Fire, to Brindlee Fire Services
Brindlee Fire Services bought Rural Metro from Global Medical Response, but plans to retain Rural Metro's brand and workforce. The sale was completed in December.
Global Medical Response is the parent company of Knox County's ambulance provider, AMR.
Important date: The committee will meet at 3 p.m. Feb. 12 in the E-911 multipurpose room, 605 Bernard Ave.
Calling all history buffs!
University of Tennessee at Knoxville's Baker School of Public Policy and Public Affairs is hosting a lecture about the Tennessee Monkey Trial, which took place 100 years ago in Dayton, Tennessee. Old-time journalists blended facts and fiction, and the trial became the subject of bestselling books, Broadway plays and Hollywood movies.
Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Edward Larson will "separate history from folklore in relating the story of the Scopes trial then and thereafter," according to the university's website.
Important date: The lecture is from 5:30-6:30 p.m. Feb. 13 at the UT Student Union, 1502 Cumberland Ave.
Walking the walk
I mentioned a couple weeks ago I'd start shouting out people around Knoxville who are getting involved to make a difference.
Last week, I connected with Taylor Williamson. Taylor was born and raised in Knoxville (shout out to Farragut High School), and since then he's been traveling the world for the federal government doing health work. Specifically, he designs programs for developing governments to deliver life-saving products including vaccines.
Taylor told me his employer, U.S. Agency for International Development, monitors the spread of disease and brings that vital information back home.
That is until last week, when he was furloughed.
Now, he's organizing outreach for USAID Stop Work, a grassroots network of people who believe USAID has critical mission both in the United States and abroad. President Donald Trump plans to dismantle the agency, and workers are fighting back with lawsuits and communication to voters about their effort.
'When the apocalypse happens, how do you determine your role? You show up and you find something that needs to be done," he said about organizing his colleagues.
Hurricane Helene spotlight
Here are highlights of this past week's coverage of the aftermath from catastrophic flooding in East Tennessee. Knox News is committed to reporting on the recovery efforts in East Tennessee in the weeks, months and years to come. This week, there's new reporting from the USA TODAY Network.
Helene's path: Helene was one of the deadliest storms in recent history. How it devastated the Southeast
Precious memories: Watch woman reunited with late son's photos that were lost in Hurricane Helene
Allie Feinberg reports on politics for Knox News. Email: allie.feinberg@knoxnews.com.
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LD 958, which has bipartisan co-sponsors and received a favorable committee vote, would prohibit the state from exercising something called eminent domain on current trust and reservation land. 'This is an issue that small government conservatives and civil justice liberals can agree on,' bill sponsor House Minority Leader Billy Bob Faulkingham (R-Winter Harbor) told Maine Morning Star. However, others in his caucus spoke against the bill during floor debate, highlighting that their opposition to this issue is attached to their overall opposition to tribal sovereignty efforts. 'I cannot support this measure because I believe the issue is an issue to some degree less about eminent domain than it is about tribal sovereignty,' Rep. Ken Fredette (R-Newport) said. Fredette went on to compare the Wabanaki Nations to states and municipalities. Governor opposed to latest change to Settlement Act backed by Wabanaki Nations 'Our states are not absolute sovereign from our federal government,' Fredette said. 'Our towns are not absolute sovereign from the state in and the reality is that the tribes are not absolutely sovereign from the state of Maine.' Most other federally recognized tribes are already afforded protection against states being able to seize tribal land for public use. However, the Wabanaki Nations are not, due to repercussions from the 1980 Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act. This land settlement agreement has resulted in the tribes being treated more akin to municipalities than sovereign nations like other federally recognized tribes. Overhauling this act in its entirety is the Wabanaki Nations' broader goal for greater recognition of their sovereignty. 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LD 958 would amend the Settlement Act to prohibit the state from exercising eminent domain on trust and reservation land, which is protected under federal law, though fee land — or private property for which the owner owns the title — would still be subject to the state taking. The bill would also amend the 2023 Mi'kmaq Nation Restoration Act to make this change for the fourth Tribe of the Wabanaki Nations, the Mi'kmaq Nation, which wasn't included in the Settlement Act. 'I feel like this is a no brainer,' Executive Director of the Wabanaki Alliance Maulian Bryant told Maine Morning Star. 'We should have tribal land protected from state seizure, just like other tribes around the country.' Throughout committee consideration of the bill, it was amended to incorporate a proposed change from the Maine State Chamber of Commerce that the prohibition would only apply to current reservation and trust lands, and not land that may be put into trust in the future. 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