A relatively quiet race to succeed Governor Bill Lee is about to ignite over the next three months, heading to the August 6 GOP Primary. Senator Marsha Blackburn and Congressman John Rose each have the funding ready to dominate the airwaves over the next 90 days, while Rep. Monty Fritts will slowly succumb to the reality that money matters in politics, whether he wishes to acknowledge that fact or not.
Rose is set to launch a statewide Tennessee True Tour on May 2. He is also expected to start a major media campaign at the same time. He currently lags far behind Blackburn in almost every poll to date, largely due to a huge name-recognition deficit. His team believes that if his voters learn more about who he is, his credentials, and what he stands for, the gap will narrow dramatically, forcing Blackburn to engage more on the campaign trail. Team Blackburn is counting on simply retaining their lead through the primary date.
Blackburn was quick to pounce on the Supreme Court ruling in Louisiana v. Callais, calling for Tennessee to hold a special session to gerrymander the 9th congressional district, held by Democrat Steve Cohen, to a more winnable GOP-leaning voter base. Republicans currently hold eight of the nine districts in the state.
Rose wasn’t far behind in making the same call to action.
Will Governor Bill Lee and the Tennessee legislative leadership jump into action? The clock is ticking. Republicans could pick up as many as 14 to 19 seats by adjusting the districts in the south, but primary dates are quickly approaching and the opportunities for gains in the midterm may be slipping away.
Upcoming Primary Dates:
Louisiana — May 16
Alabama — May 19
Georgia — May 19
South Carolina — June 9
Missouri — August 4
Tennessee — August 6
Florida — August 18
Primary has passed:
North Carolina
Texas
Mississippi
BEAVERS TAKES NOT SO VEILED SHOT AT BLACKBURN. Former State Senator Mae Beavers posted on social media last week a clear and angry reference to Blackburn’s campaign tactics, although she did not mention the Senator by name. Beavers noted that she had received an anti-Rose “push poll” that she deemed despicable and “so full of lies“ that she hung up. She called out the unnamed candidate for certifying the “fraudulent election” of Biden in 2020 after pledging to support Trump and his challenge to that vote result after the January 6 Capitol riot.
Beavers has also reportedly been miffed at the fact that Blackburn and her allies have been falsely claiming, or at least implying, that Marsha (Marsha,Marsha) single-handedly stopped the state income tax in Tennessee 25 years ago this July. Beavers, Blackburn and then State Senator Diane Black (the so-called Killer Bs) were all critical in stopping the repeated efforts of Republicans Governor Don Sundquist and Democrat legislators led by Speaker Jimmy Naifeh to force an income tax down the throats of Tennesseans. Tens of thousands of horn honkers, talk radio hosts like the late Phil Valentine (among others), activists like Tea Party Leader Ben Cunningham, and others stopped it, not just Blackburn by herself. In fact some of Blackburn’s endorsers (and donors) were either supportive of the Sundquist plan or, hiding on the sidelines waiting to see how things turned out before committing themselves one way or the other.
Many Tennessee voters who weren’t even in the state 25 years ago when this battle was fought may not know exactly why Tennessee doesn’t have a state income tax, even though many have come here because of that fact. However, thousands involved in Tennessee politics today got their start successfully joining in circling and honking at the capital in protest of the Sundquist/Naifeh scheme.
The Rose campaign is already starting to point out that this fits a consistent pattern of Blackburn overstating her political achievements, while also seeking special treatment. Can they make those themes stick?
Steve Gill is editor and publisher of TriStar Daily, who also played a part in the anti-income tax protests 25 years ago.
Author
