Remembering Former Tenn. Gov. Sundquist

"Just where do I start?" was my initial reaction on Monday morning, upon hearing the news that Don Sundquist died at age 87.

From his 1971 election as national chair of the Young Republicans on a good-as-Goldwater platform to his stint as campaign manager for the more moderate Tennessean Sen. Howard Baker in his bid for the Republican presidential nomination in 1980, to his dozen years as stalwart conservative congressman and then ending eight years as governor of the Volunteer State by promoting a hated state income tax, Sundquist lived as full a life as any politician could.

Born in Moline, Illinois, Sundquist worked his way through Augustana College in Rock Island and earned a business degree.

Following a stint in the U.S. Navy, he joined the Josten's company, which manufactured class rings and yearbooks. After working in company plants in Illinois and Minnesota, Sundquist settled in Tennessee. There, he became interested in Republican politics and organized volunteers for the presidential campaign of his first political hero — Arizona Sen. Barry Goldwater — in 1964.

When the 35-year-old Sundquist captured the helm of the YRs at their Phoenix convention, he defeated Nevadan, and future Republican National chair, Frank Fahrenkopf by a margin of 2-to-1.

Moderate YRs such as Tom Klunzinger of Michigan worked the floor for Sundquist primarily because he made himself accessible and listened to everyone. But the new president also made clear he was a conservative in the mold of Goldwater and California's up-and-coming Gov. Ronald Reagan.

Ending his YR leadership in 1973, Sundquist was elected Republican chair of Shelby County in Tennessee in 1975 and launched his own printing and graphic arts firm in Memphis.

Although he was to the right of Howard Baker and particularly opposed the Senate GOP leader's support of the Panama Canal treaties, Sundquist nonetheless agreed to be his campaign manager because he believed in supporting a Tennessean.

Baker's candidacy faded fast, and Sundquist switched to his early favorite — Reagan.

Sundquist's good nature and willingness to embrace people from opposing factions paid off when he ran for the 7th District House seat fellow Republican Robin Beard gave up to run for the Senate in 1982.

State Rep. Ralph Duncan, an evangelical minister and TV host, strongly considered the race. But after meeting with Sundquist and realizing that Republicans had to be united to keep Beard's seat, Duncan opted not to run and strongly backed eventual nominee Sundquist.

Democrats had settled on State Public Service Commissioner Bob Clement, son of the late but still loved Gov. Frank Clement, and all signs were that it was going to be a Democratic year.

Sundquist's years of volunteering for other Republicans led to hundreds of precinct walkers and phone bank callers for his own candidacy. He vividly contrasted his own background in private business and politics as an avocation with Clement's adult life in elective or appointive office.

Following a strong performance in their televised debate, Sundquist edged Clement by 1000 votes out of more than 145,000 cast.

With a lifetime rating of 86% by the American Conservative Union, the Tennessean was a stalwart backer of Reagan's agenda and supported George H.W. Bush as his successor (although he eventually denounced Bush's reversal of his "no new taxes" pledge).

Clearly restless by 1990, Sundquist called me to say he was running against Michigan Rep. Guy Vander Jagt, chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee for more than a decade.

"Something's really wrong when there are less Republican House members now than when Guy became the campaign chair," Sundquist said, adding that outside consultants close to Vander Jagt were getting lucrative contracts "and they're clearly not doing the job."

But he eventually failed to dislodge the incumbent.

Sundquist won the governorship of his state in 1994, handily defeating Nashville's Democrat Mayor Phil Bredesen.

Almost immediately, he unveiled a "tough love" plan for welfare reform known as "Families First." It became law in 1996 and reduced welfare rolls from 70,000 to 30,000.

More dramatically, Sundquist shut down the state's corruption-riddled Public Service Commission with a Tennessee Regulatory Authority whose members were already elected officials and served stacked terms.

Reelected in a landslide, Sundquist started his second term with a decidedly conservative agenda of reform. He called for repealing the state sales taxes on groceries and its franchise and excise taxes. He also unveiled a revolutionary plan to privatize the state prison system, but the state legislature balked.

In 1999, like other governors, Sundquist was faced with the high cost of his state's healthcare program and the need to expand Medicaid. In a stunning move, he endorsed a state income tax — historically, a "death wish" for Republicans.

While the governor insisted it came with the elimination of other taxes, his own party's legislators would have none of it. Led by conservative State Sen. Marsha Blackburn, protests swarmed the Capitol grounds and the income tax died quickly.

Sundquist, by popular demand, was missing from rallies for other Republicans such as 2000 presidential nominee George W. Bush and, in fact, kept away from GOP events for many years.

"But when I ran for the Senate [in 2018], Don reached out and supported me, and I was glad to have his support," Blackburn told Newsmax in 2019. "That's the kind of person he was — putting aside past differences and reaching out to former opponents. I was delighted to have him in my corner."

Former State GOP Chair Chip Saltsman also remembered Sundquist upon hearing news of his death.

"When I heard Don died, I preferred to focus on all the good he did rather than what we disagreed over," he told Newsmax. "Like eliminating a corrupt, out-of-control Public Service Commission and passing historic welfare reform. For me, his greatest legacy was including young leaders from across the state to work in state government. His belief in the next generation is still paying dividends, as those young people are now business leaders, community leaders and in elected office. His legacy will live on through that next generation of Tennesseans that learn those lessons of passion and hard work from Don Sundquist."

John Gizzi is chief political columnist and White House correspondent for Newsmax. For more of his reports, Go Here Now.