Shelby County District Attorney Bill Gibbons has announced he's dropping out of the GOP primary, leaving Mayor Bill Haslam, U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp, and Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey to fight on for the party's gubernatorial nomination.
With a fundraising deadline approaching Wednedsay, Gibbons said he couldn't finance the type of campaign he planned to run. He wanted $2.5 million for the race, a sum each of his contenders had found by mid-January.
Gibbons was a key critic of Haslam's refusal to disclose his earnings from Pilot Corp. With him gone, it's doubtful the issue will go away, but there will be one less ganging up on our well-to-do mayor.
Update:
With a fundraising deadline approaching Wednedsay, Gibbons said he couldn't finance the type of campaign he planned to run. He wanted $2.5 million for the race, a sum each of his contenders had found by mid-January.
Gibbons was a key critic of Haslam's refusal to disclose his earnings from Pilot Corp. With him gone, it's doubtful the issue will go away, but there will be one less ganging up on our well-to-do mayor.
Update:
And Haslam has returned the favor with the usual he's-a-great-guy bid for the failed candidate's supporters. In a statement released by his campaign, Haslam says: "Bill Gibbons is a highly respected public servant who has been an important candidate in the campaign for governor. His passion for Memphis and issues surrounding public safety and crime has added much to the campaign conversation and discussion. I appreciate his candidacy and I look forward to his continued leadership in West Tennessee and across the state."
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