Reason #142 I'm So Proud To Live In East Tennessee

Woman Horrified by Commissioner's Response to Letter

"I felt most elected officials wanted to know what their constituents think and how they feel, so I wrote a letter which I sent to all 17 county commissioners," says Shirlee Grabko, Union County taxpayer.

Shirlee Grabko was thrilled when one actually responded to her concerns, until she opened the envelope.

'You need to take you letter and wipe you ass with it," Shirlee reads the letter she received from County Commissioner Charlie Cox.'

Yes, this from an elected county official in Union County, just one county to the north of Knoxville.

The news showed "Commissioner" Cox, hightailing it out of his wrecker business to go pick up a truck - undoubtedly headed for cement blocks in someone's front yard.

Oh, there's more:

"Mr. Cox isn't exactly a model citizen here in Union County, these delinquent tax receipts go back 16 years. We did the math, he owes more than $12,000.

'I've got my taxes paid, I paid 'em this morning, they're paid as far as that's concerned,' snaps Cox.

'They are still unpaid,' says Doris Seymour, Union County Clerk & Master.

...

After our visit this morning, Union County's Clerk and Master reported Charlie Cox showed up this afternoon, he paid off two thousand dollars of his back taxes but still owes about $10,000.

The county is threatening to take his business and home if Cox doesn't pay up."

Load up the repo men, boys. If anyone deserved to be in trouble it's this loser.

It's a black eye on our region when yokels like this guy manage to get elected to public office, regardless of how rural your county is.

But I don't get this:

"'I'm a citizen, I'm a taxpayer and a volunteer to this county,' says Shirlee, 'eventually, I'd like to see people like this off the commission.'

She'll have to wait at least two years, that's the next time Charlie Cox is up for re-election."

Assuming Union County has similar rules to Knoxville or Knox County, she might look into a recall vote. That would get him out very quickly. Ms. Grabko seemed, on camera, to be a very intelligent and capable person that could lead something like that.

And if "Commissioner" Cox has enough support in the community to withstand a recall after this episode, the county is in deeper trouble than it seems.