Despite some positive polls being released and shared by Senator Marsha Blackburn’s gubernatorial campaign team this week, Marsha (Marsha, Marsha) suffered a few bumps in the road lately. First, media outlets in Nashville uncovered emails between her office and NES during the devastating January ice storm that left hundreds of thousands of homes without power for as long as a week. Marsha’s team sought special treatment in restoring power to her own home while tens of thousands who lacked such special access were left, literally, out in the cold. it appears that others may have also received extra special attention, but they aren’t currently running for Governor.
The Senator is also dealing with a complaint that she has used Senate staff and campaign funds to aid her bid for Governor. The seeming coordination of Senate and Gubernatorial expenditures may be legal, barely, or not, but if it becomes a pattern of shady dealings it will not help her in the coming months.
There are also increasing questions being raised about the coordination between a PAC operated by her campaign consultant and long-time insider, Ward Baker, and her campaign, including purchases of large blocks of tickets intended to impact straw polls in Marsha’s favor, as was seen in Williamson County recently, along with dispatching PAC staffers to represent Marsha at political events.
To top things off, Marsha slipped out of DC just hours before a vote to restore payments to TSA workers that Democrats have been blocking and thereby creating needless chaos in airports for the last month for weary and increasingly angry travelers. Missing the vote for what more important priority? To make things worse, Marsha was observed using special treatment (and an escort trying to hide her from view) to avoid the long lines and missed flights being experienced by anybody not in the House or Senate.
Blackburn still has a significant and possibly insurmountable lead in the GOP Primary for Governor in August. However, unforced errors that create an “isn’t she special” image combined with an expected onslaught of campaign ads from Congressman John Rose (who has not been found to be avoiding lines at airports) sometime soon, are the kinds of things that can turn a “sure win” into a nail biter or possible upset.
CVS DROPS THE HAMMER ON THE LEGISLATURE. CVS claims that legislation affecting their vertical integration business model may force the closure of their pharmacies in Tennessee if it gets passed.
House Speaker Cam Sexton says “Poppycock” (or words to that effect) and questions the lobbying carpet bombing they are using to block the bill. There are reports that CVS is dumping over $1.5 million into its lobbying effort and another $7 million into paid media.
Sexton specifically disputes the CVS claim that this will counteract the benefits to consumers from TrumpRX savings on drug costs.
Senator Bobby Harshbarger is the sponsor of the Senate PBM bill and says that CVS is “fearmongering”. His mother is pursuing similar legislation at the federal level.
Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti has stepped in to warn CVS that their text blasts appear to exploit personal health information to target consumers, violating state law prohibiting unfair and deceptive business practices. If CVS does not immediately stop the political text messages, his office will “consider all available enforcement options.”
Some legislators are expressing happiness that the fight over CVS and drugs is a pleasant distraction from fighting over vouchers!
Steve Gill is editor and publisher of TriStar Daily.
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