When choosing his running mate, Truth vice presidential candidate M.G. Bailey knew his partner, Tony White, was someone with whom he could relate.
“I not only knew (Tony) could play video games, but knew he had a serious side as well.”
The two have been friends since Bailey’s freshman year. He met White as a resident assistant, and since then the two have shared down time and a desire to help students.
Bailey has never been a member of SGA, something he said singled himself out from the rest of the candidates.
“I think it gives me a fresh perspective on things,” he said. “Sometimes you need that, especially with government.”
The junior from Carthage is hoping students want the new SGA perspective to be his and White’s. Among the focuses of the party are increasing student diversity, something Bailey said is a university weakness but a strength of his party.
“Tony and I definitely bring together two different worlds,” Bailey said. “We should definitely reach out to more students.”
Bailey said placing an emphasis on minority and international student recruitment was key for UT’s future. He said the party would help make that recruitment easier.
“I know some inner-city schools; a lot of their students don’t go here,” he said. “They go to Tennessee State University or other predominately black schools … We want to change that.”
Another concern for the Truth party, Bailey said, was utilization of university resources.
“I guess the last one is I wish we’d utilize the resources we already have,” Bailey said. “We waste too many things. We waste services sometimes. I think if we just take care of what we have, everything will be OK.”
Bailey also said through the university’s problems, there still are several things that should make students proud. He said he will continue to keep those strengths in place if elected.
“Strengths of the university go many ways,” he said. “Our campus is a great campus. We have great faculty across the campus.
“I know some classes may not have adequate facilities, but I think overall we have a great campus.”
