I heard that Trump heard, Smokey was the fastest thing in Tennessee… and took that personally. Only on Rocky Top. 🍊🇺🇸 Go Vols!

Thank you Guvnah!

Rep. Hicks and I have been out knocking doors for Rep. Lankford in Clarksville, and I can tell you one thing, Michael could not be stronger!  BTW… if you ever find yourself over that way in Clarksville, go eat some wings at Mr. Billy’s. Trust me on this one. They are amazing!

I have thought a lot about the Clancy case, and I keep coming back to the same place. Three children are dead. Three innocent children whose lives were taken by the very person they should have been safest with. I can have compassion for someone who is struggling emotionally or mentally. I can believe that a person can be deeply troubled, overwhelmed, and in desperate need of help. But, compassion for someone’s struggles cannot require us to forget the victims. Emotional struggles cannot become a common defense for killing innocent people. If we as a society dissolve that line, we are opening a door that will certainly lead to more victims. Capital punishment was not the only option here. There is an enormous distance between executing someone and holding them criminally accountable for taking three innocent lives. Yet here we are with a hung jury, and I struggle deeply with the precedent and the message that sends. Somewhere along the way, the perpetrator has become the victim and society is asked to see her primarily as one who is suffering, while three children who can never speak for themselves risk becoming almost secondary to the story. I also cannot help but wonder what message we are sending to the next generation. Justice has to mean something. Personal responsibility/accountability has to mean something. The lives of innocent children have to mean something. Can’t we be compassionate toward mental and emotional suffering without abandoning accountability for the choices people make and the lives they destroy? I also cannot escape this thought: If those had been the jurors’ own children, I have a hard time believing that jury would have remained hung for very long. When you picture your own child in the place of those three little ones, the conversation changes very pretty dang fast. My heart can break for a mother who was clearly struggling while still breaking first for the three children who lost everything. Those two things are not mutually exclusive. Mercy matters. Compassion matters. Mental health matters. But so does justice. If emotional suffering becomes enough to excuse the intentional killing of innocent people, we we will have to accept that the consequences of that precedent will not end with this case. Three children lost their lives. Whatever else we discuss, they should never become the afterthought.

My friend @GlennJacobsTN wrapped up eight years of service as Mayor of Knox County, and I was privileged to be a part of the celebration honoring him. Glenn has been incredibly successful in life, but one of the things I’ve always admired most about him is that success has never changed who he is. No matter the title, the position, or the spotlight, he has never become too important to be reachable or too big to be relatable. He is genuinely a great friend and public servant.

That’s a shocker. Not 👎

Y’all could get @flocksafety cameras to be taken down yesterday if you told democrat ran cities Flock uses Data Centers to store info.

Back in 2019, I told a @Tennessean reporter that I could “think of 100 other people deserving to be honored in the State Capitol alcoves than one of the current ones." Since then, the Capitol Commission has removed a few of those figures, and those alcoves remain empty to this day. Even though I won’t be serving there next year, I’d love to see one of those spaces filled with someone who represents the very best of Tennessee: @DollyParton Few Tennesseans have lived out the heart, spirit, generosity, and story of our state to the world quite like Dolly, and the Capitol would look better with a statue commemorating her. Put Dolly in an alcove. abc3340.com/news/local/dolly…

The world mourns the loss of a Queen, but Dolly never wore a crown, because she never forgot where she came from. She belonged to Tennessee, but somehow she also belonged to everyone of us. She gave the world her music, her laughter, her bigheartedness, and a little piece of the Smoky Mountains everywhere she went. She showed us all that you can rise from almost nothing to the very top and still remain humble, kind, faithful, and proud of home. Today, Tennessee has lost our greatest daughter, and the world has lost a light that simply cannot be replaced. Long live the Queen!

If America says no to the infrastructure of AI, we’re eventually saying yes to China owning the future of it. I’m for guardrails, but the current political fad against AI and data centers achieves nothing. Progress won’t be thwarted. But, it can be pushed elsewhere.

If you’re a hater of “data centers,” then be consistent: don’t use AI, don’t stream movies or music, don’t livestream from your phone, and don’t rely on cloud-based services from your computer or TV. You can’t demand the digital world at your beck and call while opposing the very  infrastructure that makes it possible.

This is so horrible. Pray for this team and their families: wjhl.com/news/local/2-dead-s…

This is a big deal right here:

Well deserved my friend!

Exactly year ago, I said @MarshaBlackburn would become Tennessee’s first female governor. Today, she’s one step closer. Congratulations, Marsha, on a hard-fought primary win. Proud of you. And congratulations to my friends at @BakerGrpStrat for the outstanding job!

My niece is brilliant with social media and everything IT. Her website gives you the ability to “dress up” @SecRubio. Very entertaining! dressuprubio.com/

To those who consider themselves “abolitionists” when it comes to abortion: To my friends who believe mothers who seek abortions should be charged with a felony, may I respectfully offer a few thoughts from Scripture? I believe abortion ends an innocent human life. I have spent much of my adult life fighting to protect the unborn, and I will continue to do so. But I also believe that our pursuit of justice has to reflect the character of Christ. Justice and mercy do not compete in Scripture. They are companions. The prophet Micah tells us to “act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8). Paul reminds us that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). If every person born and unborn is made in the image of God, then our response to abortion should defend innocent life while also offering hope, restoration, and forgiveness to mothers. That is why I would never support felony charges against women who have abortions. I believe those who perform abortions and profit from ending innocent life should face serious legal consequences. But I believe the mother should be treated differently. In many cases she is frightened, pressured, deceived, abandoned, or convinced that abortion is her only option. She needs someone to tell her the truth before the abortion and someone to help restore her afterward; not a felony conviction that follows her for the rest of her life. If abortion has already taken one life, I do not believe the answer is to permanently and completely damage another with a criminal record. Justice should protect life while leaving room for repentance, redemption, and restoration. One of my favorite stories in Scripture is the woman caught in adultery. She was dragged before Jesus by a crowd determined to see her receive the harshest punishment the law allowed. She stood ashamed, humiliated, and broken. Jesus responded with words that have echoed through history: “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone.” One by one, her accusers walked away. Jesus did not excuse her sin. He confronted it. But He also restored her dignity, extended mercy, and called her to a new life: “Neither do I condemn you. Go, and sin no more.” The pattern of the Gospel is truth followed by grace, conviction followed by restoration. So I would simply ask those advocating felony charges against mothers: Could you be the one to close the jail cell? Could you look a frightened young woman in the eye and believe imprisoning her is the justice Christ calls us to pursue? Could you do so while remembering your own need for God’s mercy? Finally, I would encourage my fellow Christians and conservatives to choose our battles wisely. Our goal should not simply be to make statements that generate applause from those who already agree with us. Our goal should be to save lives and advance policies that actually protect the unborn while helping mothers choose life. Let’s invest our energy in supporting pregnancy resource centers, strengthening adoption and foster care, encouraging fathers to accept responsibility, and creating communities where women know they are not alone. Those are the kinds of efforts that save lives and change hearts. We should never stop defending the unborn. We should never stop speaking the truth about abortion. But we should also never stop extending mercy, hope, forgiveness, and restoration to mothers. Jesus never lowered God’s standard of righteousness, but neither did He close the door to redemption. Neither should we. The Gospel never asks us to choose between protecting the unborn and extending mercy to the broken. It calls us to do both. May we be known as people who stand firmly for life while reflecting the heart of Christ. Truth without mercy becomes condemnation. Mercy without truth becomes compromise. Jesus embodied both and so should we.

On the Tennessee Governor’s Race For the most part, I’ve been open about supporting @MarshaBlackburn and have intentionally avoided criticizing the other candidates. But after this week, I can’t stay silent any longer. Let’s be clear about who Monty Fritts is. I’ve seen many of my friends post that they’re planning to vote for Monty. Before you do, I want to offer a word of caution. I’ve known Monty for about four years, and I genuinely like him. I believe he’s a good and decent man. But there are some things you should know before casting your vote. Monty is an ideologue. During his time in the General Assembly, he has never demonstrated the ability to build consensus or effectively bring about substantial legislative change. More than anyone else in our Republican caucus, Monty has consistently voted with Tennessee Democrats. I’m not talking about the occasional disagreement with fellow Republicans that happens from time to time. I’m talking about a consistent pattern, in committee and on the House floor, where he has voted with Democrats against the Republican caucus hundreds of times. On numerous occasions, he has sided with Justin Jones, Justin Pearson, and Gloria Johnson, (Socialist Three) even when other Democrats did not. Time and again, I watched Monty align himself with that bloc rather than with his own party. Even putting all of that aside, his comments this week crossed a line that I won’t ignore. Monty said he would “ban pagan religions.” That statement reflects a view of government that is fundamentally at odds with our constitutional system. It suggests a belief that government should be guided by a particular religious doctrine rather than by the Constitution. While that idea may appeal to some Christians at first glance, history shows that mixing civil government with religious authority is beyond dangerous. The Founders understood this well. Many came from places where government and religion were intertwined, and they deliberately established a constitutional republic that protects both religious liberty and individual conscience. The First Amendment guarantees every American the freedom to worship God according to the dictates of their own conscience; or not to worship at all. Government has no authority to compel religious belief, nor does it have the authority to prohibit peaceful religious practice. Think about the precedent that would be set if government were allowed to ban one religion because those in power disapproved of it. What happens when someone with very different beliefs holds office? What if an atheist becomes governor? A Muslim? A Mormon? Or a Christian whose interpretation of Scripture differs from yours? The principle cuts both ways. Once government claims the power to decide which religions are acceptable, everyone’s liberty is at risk. I’m supporting Marsha, and I understand why some people may choose to support John. But I hope you’ll carefully consider the implications of supporting a candidate who appears willing to ignore constitutional protections to his own religious convictions. We may strongly disagree on matters of faith, theology, or philosophy. That’s part of living in a free society. But I will always fight to protect your right to self governance, to follow your own conscience, and to enjoy the religious liberty guaranteed by the Constitution. people.com/tennessee-governo…