Rogers, Goins out at Department of Veterans Services

Former Republican state Reps. Courtney Rogers and Tilman Goins have resigned from their respective positions as commissioner and deputy commissioner of the state Department of Veterans Services, The Tennessean’s Natalie Allison reports.

NEW: Courtney Rogers, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Veterans Services, has resigned along with her deputy Tilman Goins. Rogers is the third member of Gov. Bill Lee's cabinet to resign in roughly the past month. https://t.co/4Tx1bXlyOi

— Natalie Allison (@natalie_allison) December 7, 2020

Gov. Bill Lee’s office did not say what caused the simultaneous resignations.

Rogers, a retired lieutenant colonel in the Air Force, was a tea party activist who benefited from a political storm surrounding her predecessor, then-Republican Caucus Chair Debra Maggart of Hendersonville, to win her first of three terms in 2012. Maggart had upset public school teachers and gun rights advocates, and Rogers ended up winning the race 57% to 43%.

The outcome sent shock waves through the legislative office complex in Nashville. But knocking off the No. 3 Republican in the House didn’t mean Rogers was fast-tracked for leadership. She mostly kept a low profile as a lawmaker, siding with groups like the Americans for Prosperity in opposing Gov. Bill Haslam’s gas tax hike and supporting various legislative initiatives to loosen gun restrictions.

UPDATE: Lee has announced Rogers’ interim successor:

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Today, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee announced Major General Tommy H. Baker as the interim commissioner for the Department of Veterans Services. Former commissioner Courtney Rogers will return to the private sector.

“Gen. Baker is a committed public servant and I thank him for his willingness to lead the Department of Veterans Services during this critical time for our state,” said Gov. Lee.

Gen. Baker previously served as the Deputy Adjutant General of the Tennessee National Guard (TNG) with the responsibility to assist the adjutant general in the oversight and administration of over 13,000 Soldiers and Airmen in the TNG. He enlisted in the Tennessee Army National Guard in Huntingdon, Tennessee in 1980 and was commissioned as an armor officer in 1985. He is a 1995 graduate of the University of Tennessee-Martin with a Bachelor’s Degree in Public Administration. He received his Masters Degree in Business Administration and Military Management from Touro University in 2003, and is a 2011 graduate of the United States Army War College with a Masters in Strategic Studies.