A Tennessee state lawmaker resigned on Monday after she was indicted on wire fraud charges.
According to the Tennessean, Republican Rep. Robin Smith, one of three House members raided by the FBI 14 months ago, resigned after being indicted on wire fraud charges that she took “kickbacks” from an illicit campaign vendor.
Smith faces one count of honest services wire fraud.
“I want you to know that serving the great people of this district, and indeed, all of Tennessee, has truly been an honor. I have resigned with the deepest of humility and out of respect for the role of public service,” Smith said in her resignation letter.
Prosecutors allege Smith, former House Speaker and current Rep. Glen Casada and his former chief of staff Cade Cothren worked to set up a consulting and mail services firm for lawmakers in competitive primary races called Phoenix Solutions in 2019. The trio reportedly hid the fact that its operator was Cothren as he engineered kickbacks to the two lawmakers.
The lawmakers told General Assembly members that an “experienced political consultant” named Matthew Phoenix ran the firm since it would not be approved or hired as a vendor otherwise if Cothren’s identity was exposed. However prosecutors say the firm did not exist.
The indictment did not identify Casada or Cothren by name, saying instead “Individual 1 was a member of the Tennessee House, first elected in 2003. Individual 1 served as Speaker of the Tennessee House from in or around January 2019 until in or around August 2019.” Further, “Individual 2 was a businessman and former Chief of Staff to Individual 1 when Individual 1 was Tennessee House Speaker.”
The lawmakers received kickbacks from Cothren to perform official acts “including pressuring the Tennessee House Speaker’s Office to approve Phoenix Solutions as a Mailer Program vendor and disburse state funds to Phoenix Solutions,” according to the indictment.
Smith received nearly $30,000 from Phoenix Solutions, which she deposited into the bank account of her own consulting firm.
Casada resigned as Speaker in 2019 after lewd and racist text messages between him and Cothren were leaked to the media. He remains in the House as state rep until this term ends later this year. He does not plan to run for re-election. Cothren resigned as his chief of staff following the controversy.
