Chairman of the Board Marty Dickens, Belmont President Bob Fisher
and Governor Phil Bredesen celebrate today’s announcement.
The Vince Gill Room erupted in cheers as Belmont President Bob Fisher announced, with a dramatic curtain parting, that the Curb Event Center would play host to the pivotal Town Hall Presidential Debate on Oct. 7, 2008. “It’s always about a song for me,” Fisher noted, “‘I’m walkin’ on sunshine and don’t it feel good.’ What a great day for Belmont, for Nashville and for the state of Tennessee.” (To view a student-produced video package of the campus press conference, click here.)
After being introduced by Dr. Fisher, Gov. Phil Bredesen offered his own congratulations. “I was particularly pleased to learn that the debate here will be the town hall debate. Tennessee is a perfect microcosm of America, and this state is right in the middle of mainstream American values and has been for a very long time.”
Nashville mayor Karl Dean, Congressman Jim Cooper and Curb Center namesake Mike Curb were also present to offer remarks. Cooper made reference to the historical context of today’s announcement, noting that seventh American president, Andrew Jackson, initiated quite a legacy by spending most of his career in Tennessee, while more recently former Vice President and Tennessee native son Al Gore won the state acclaim by securing a 2007 Nobel Peace Prize for his work with the environment. “And now this, the Presidential Town Hall Debate,” said Cooper. “It doesn’t get better than this. I’m so proud for Tennessee and for Belmont.”
For more information on the format of the debate and selection of debate sites, visit the Commission on Presidential Debates Web site.
For additional information on this event, media should contact Pamela Johnson in Belmont’s Office of Strategic Marketing and Special Initiatives at 615-460-6178 and johnsonp@mail.belmont.edu.
To view a student-produced video package of the campus press conference, click here.
Local media coverage links:
The Tennessean
Nashville City Paper
NewsChannel5
WKRN
WSMV
Fox 17
To read the press release announcing Belmont’s selection for the Town Hall Presidential Debate, click here.
A Web site for the 2008 Town Hall Presidential Debate at Belmont University is currently under construction.
