Daily Journal Endorsement: McCullough

Daily Journal - Editorial: Glenn McCullough - The race for the Republican nomination for the 1st Congressional District seat in the U.S. House offers voters a clear choice based on knowledge, experience, vision, and perspective needed to serve north Mississippi: Glenn L. McCullough, Jr. McCullough - first a successful private-sector businessman, then Appalachian Regional Commission director in Mississippi, then mayor of Tupelo, and then chairman of TVA - is a champion of economic growth, jobs creation, efficient government and ethical public service. He understands the critical nature of regional cooperation and initiative, giving him a unique perspective among the 1st District candidates. McCullough's two Republican opponents are good men, but their experience and qualifications don't match McCullough's reach. In 1999, McCullough resigned as mayor of Tupelo, where his vision and leadership jump-started the Fairpark District downtown redevelopment, to became the first Mississippian in almost 40 years confirmed to the Tennessee Valley Authority board of directors. In 2001, he became the first Mississippian named chairman of TVA, the nation's largest public utility. McCullough's term at TVA was marked by a pivotal economic development decision: creation of TVA-certified megasites for watershed industrial development. It is bearing fruit today across the 1st District, most strikingly in the Wellspring project at Blue Springs, where TVA certification was a key in luring Toyota. His north Mississippi focus began at ARC, where he cut his teeth on public service regionalism and its focus on public-private partnerships. McCullough has said he will continue living in Tupelo if elected, as he did during his TVA tenure, in order to remain involved with family, church and community - the values that are his anchor. Criticism of his perfectly legal use of a TVA airplane for trips from Knoxville to Tupelo rings hollow, especially since his 1st District opponents have all promised to stay close to their constituents by living at home and commuting to Washington on the taxpayers' dollar. McCullough is prepared to serve in the U.S. House by a career of local and regional leadership through consensus-building across political and geographic barriers. He is the best choice for the Republican nomination.