Two weeks ago, when Matt Kuhn, on the strength of
votes from his fellow Democrats, was appointed to fill a District 4 vacancy on
the Shelby County Commission, someone suggested that the appointment be made
unanimous. That drew an objection from commissioner Wyatt Bunker, who also
represents District 4, a sprawling area that takes in the suburban-rural rim of
Shelby County and is heavily Republican in sentiment.
Bunker had been among a holdout minority of
Republicans who had supported former commissioner Tommy Hart through the
contentious eight ballots that it took before Kuhn was able to amass a majority.
And Bunker declined to permit a vote of acclamation because, as he made clear,
he thought appointing a Democrat was grossly unfair to the voters of District 4,
amounting to a disenfranchisement. Those voters had, after all, voted
overwhelmingly for Republican David Lillard, who had vacated his seat to become
state Treasurer. And the GOP coloration of the district had been evident in
election after election.
And even after Kuhn had taken the oath and been
seated, Bunker, who at present represents Position 2 in District 4, let it be
known that he would run in 2010 for Position 3, Kuhn’s new seat, if the Democrat
chose to seek election in his own right.
So how have the Democratic newbie and the
Republican diehard gotten along since Kuhn took his seat? Actually, quite
swimmingly, as the two demonstrated Wednesday during committee meetings in which
they provided verbal backup to each other and voted along similar lines. They
frequently consulted with each other throughout the morning. Afterward, Kuhn
praised Bunker for his general participation in things and Bunker offered Kuhn
props for the latter’s conduct in chairing the commission’s committee on
delinquent tax property.
Both commissioners made it clear that they
expected to work together in harmony on most matters for the benefit of their
constituents in District 4. “Our differences are based purely on political views.
I do consider him a friend, and I think the more I get to work with him, the
more I’m going to like him. I’d hate to have to run against him,” volunteered
Bunker. “I look to Wyatt as a person who’s representing the interests of
District 4 very well, For the good of District 4 we’ll do many things together.
You might be surprised by the number of things we agree on,” responded Kuhn.
The two commissioners’ common purpose was
symbolized further by the co;incidence that both happened to wear
similar-looking hounds-tooth blazers on Wednesday. As far as that hypothetical
reelection battle goes, Kuhn said upon accepting the appointment that he
regarded it as an interim position only, and he repeated that assertion
Wednesday.
Oh, there remain differences. Both commissioners
were asked about the desirability of reverting to non-partisan elections, which
were the case before the advent of partisan countywide primaries in the early
’90s, at the GOP’s initiative . Kuhn said he’d prefer that, Bunker said he’d
resist going back to the old way, even though the Democrats, for demographic
reasons, are likely to command a majority on the commission from now on out. “I
think party politics is how we hold things accountable,” he said.
And, upon reflection, Kuhn said, “I agree with
that.”
The sense of general comity between the two got so
strong that, when they were asked to see if they could actually wear each
other’s hounds-truth coats, they complied and made the effort – Bunker making
over his J.C. Penney three-button jacket to Kuhn and trying on Kuhn’s two-button
Oscar de la Renta.
The exchange seemed to go over okay, until —
“It’s too tight in the chest and shoulders,”
Bunker complained.
You see? There’s only so much you can do to
minimize partisan differences.
