Image Credit: Jody Barrett for Tennessee / Facebook
The Tennessee Conservative [By Olivia Lupia] –
As early voting for the TN-7 special election primary continues to draw votes from 14 counties, constituents and GOP leaders in Hickman County are condemning persistent attacks against one candidate who appears to be receiving the brunt of negative ad campaigns.
Numerous voters and elected officials in Hickman County signed onto a letter denouncing several attack ads and mailers against conservative candidate and current state representative Jody Barrett as “dishonest” and “mudslinging” for implying Barrett is anti-Trump and disloyal to the conservative agenda, particularly for his vote against Gov. Bill Lee’s school voucher program last session.
They also suggest that the priorities of other candidates appear not to lie with the more rural areas of District 7:
“If campaigning is truly a job interview, how do candidates expect to earn our trust while speaking to voters in condescending and arrogant tones…or worse, ignoring us altogether. Our voices and values are not subject to your approval. A vote from rural District 7 carries the same weight as one from Davidson, Williamson, or Montgomery County.”
“Campaign events filled with cheap shots, name-dropping, and empty promises leave us unimpressed. Candidates who avoid speaking directly with voters, yet flood our mailboxes with misleading literature, reveal exactly where their priorities lie. Clearly, their priorities are not with us,” the letter reads.
The document also praises Barrett for consistently voting in the best interest of his constituents and not bending to pressure from party leaders, other state reps, the governor, lobbyists, or “threats from these dark money PACs”.
It states, “We notice who is willing to take difficult votes on our behalf even when it costs them politically-and who prefers the safety of popularity contests in Nashville or Washington. Constantly attacking our duly elected representative for honoring the will of his constituents sends a clear message: that you see our values as inferior, our priorities as misguided, and what’s best for us and our way of life as something you know better than we do.”
“Instead of competing to out-Southern, out-Republican, out-Veteran, or out-zealot one another, show us how you would actually serve our communities. If you can’t make the effort to meet us, hear us, and speak with us directly, then no amount of glossy mailers or empty rhetoric will change the message we’ve already received loud and clear.”
Signatures include those from county commissioners, the county mayor, county clerk, register of deeds, a trustee, and a public defender, along with citizens and voters.
Regarding the vote which has featured in the ads against him, Barrett told The Tennessee Conservative, “I have consistently stated that my vote against Governor Lee’s taxpayer funded school voucher plan was a vote consistent with the overwhelming majority of voters in my district. As time goes on and we see how the administration is implementing the program, I become more convinced day by day that my vote was indeed a vote for fiscal responsibility, transparency, limited government, and individual freedom and responsibility…all of which used to be the core tenants of the Republican Party in Tennessee.”
Barrett, who has earned the endorsement of conservative leaders like General Mike Flynn, singer John Rich, Camie Guenther-Green, and freedom-minded PACs like the House Freedom Fund, has also exposed that the organization behind several of the ads is headed by anti-Trump establishmentarians.
The School Freedom Fund, an offshoot of Club For Growth, poured millions of dollars into the 2024 Tennessee House races to ensure the election of candidates sure to support Lee’s voucher program, and is the primary “dark money” sponsor of the anti-Barrett ads, which label him a “RINO” and “fake Republican”.
The fund also alleges Barrett’s voting record aligns with Democrats, despite his earning a 100% conservative voting record from The Tennessee Legislative Scorecard and The Freedom Index.
Parent organization Club For Growth, a PAC dedicated to electing candidates who “share in the belief that prosperity and opportunity come from economic freedom,” is led by former Indiana Congressman David McIntosh.
The organization ran several attack ads against the Trump campaign in 2016 and 2023, and McIntosh called President Trump the “weakest candidate” in 2024.
McIntosh has also called Trump “challenged” when it comes to the truth, and accused him of “hating the idea of free trade” during the 2016 Presidential campaign.
Club For Growth and McIntosh actively worked to prevent Trump from becoming the GOP nominee saying, “We have to do everything not to make Trump the choice.”
“Ask yourself why someone who was opposed to Trump in ’16, ’20, AND ’24 is attacking the most conservative candidate in the TN 7th congressional race by accusing them of being anti-Trump?” wrote Barrett.
About the Author: Olivia Lupia is a political refugee from Colorado who now calls Tennessee home. A proud follower of Christ, she views all political happenings through a Biblical lens and aims to utilize her knowledge and experience to educate and equip others. Olivia is an outspoken conservative who has run for local office, managed campaigns, and been highly involved with state & local GOPs, state legislatures, and other grassroots organizations and movements. Olivia can be reached at olivia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
3 Responses
Great article and I hope all this NASTY PAC money advertising and spending, comes back to haunt the local and state politicians who support it BEHIND closed doors (you know who you are), from the Governor’s office to the leadership of both houses in the state senate. The citizens of the 7th District are NOT stupid…We see this type of nasty, mud slinging for what it is – garbage. And, it is reflective of the very ones who write, pass and sign laws in our state. Shame on you all.
Who is behind the attack ads and mailers? My bet is on Lee Reeves.
This is exactly what happened to Gary Humbolt running against Jack Johnson. Nasty, vile, misleading ads run by PAC. I’m guessing to help jack Johnson win reelection. Unfortunately, it was successful.