A Tennessee vice mayor blasted a resident in a scathing email — then doubled down when confronted about the “disrespectful” message during a heated city council meeting.
Gallatin resident Michael Zinser had been vocal about his opposition to fast-moving new developments in the town — about 30 miles outside Nashville — and fired off an email to the city council laying out his grievances, WKRN reported on Monday.
But Zinser said Vice Mayor Craig Hayes’ response was anything but professional, claiming Hayes disrespected and bashed him in the reply.
“You wrote in an email, and this is a quote: ‘Mike, why don’t you go back into the tree you crawled out of? Please take me off your email list. I don’t want to read your BS. Thanks, Craig,’” Zinser read aloud during a council meeting on Aug. 4.
“Sure did,” Hayes snapped back. “I sure did.”
Zinser — a resident in the community for nearly 50 years — said he found the response “unprofessional, disrespectful, and unbecoming of my elected representative,” and felt it necessary to address the matter during the council meeting.
He also appeared taken aback by Hayes’ blunt response and fired back, chastising the vice mayor in front of the room.
“Your message did not address the substance of anything I wrote,” Zinser told the board. “Instead, it substituted insults for a reasonable discussion.
“Such a response reflects poorly upon the office you hold and undermines a respectful civic discourse that citizens are entitled to expect. Public office does not place an official above criticism, disagreement, or expressions of support for a colleague.”
The disgruntled Volunteer State resident then questioned the leadership style of the city council.
“Citizens are not subjects who must remain silent unless their views please those in power,” he said. “We are free and independent citizens who speak, petition our government, and to instruct and criticize our representatives.
“Are the citizens of Gallatin mere subjects to be ruled by an elite group of elected officials and developers? Or, are we citizens whose government exists by the consent of ‘We the People.’ Your recent message, unfortunately, reinforces the concern behind that question,” he said.
Hayes, who has served on the Gallatin City Council for 30 years, retorted that Zinser had publicly accused him and the council of being “on the take,” and said during his lengthy time of public service he has “never taken a dime from anybody.”
“I would do that email again to you. I sure would,” Hayes said.
Hayes told WKRN the fiery email was prompted by Zinser’s constant accusations of corruption — and a more recent claim that he and the council had accepted money from the developer behind the now-scrapped marina project.
Zinser denied ever accusing Hayes or the city council of taking money, the outlet reported.
Gallatin has exploded in recent years — adding roughly 8,000 residents since 2020 to become one of the fastest-growing cities in Tennessee, according to the World Population Review.
The city’s population jumped from about 44,000 in the 2020 census to an estimated 52,000 by 2024 — a 26% surge in just four years.
Gallatin sits about 30 miles northeast of Nashville and has become a magnet for buyers who can’t afford to live closer to the city.
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