tennesseestands

Geoengineering is a complicated issue. Some want to relegate the discussion to a conspiracy theory. Many want to debate the differences between chemtrails and contrails. But the fact is that weather modification has been around since the 1960's (or longer). During that same decade, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Maryland put laws on the books restricting the practice of weather modification by the spraying of aerosols in the atmosphere, and this ban was enforced by local sheriffs and state law enforcement officials. The fact is, this is not a new conversation. In recent years, Tennessee has now become the first state to take this step and ban geoengineering in our skies. However, the law lacks any real enforcement mechanism and responses from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) show a lack of enthusiasm, initiative, or any real interest in enforcing this new law. Some of this is due to the fact that much of what we are trying to address is novel and not well understood by local officials. Where do we go from here? Watch this interview with Danielle Goodrich and get ready to engage with us in 2025 as we push for enforcement of this legislation. You can also continue to contact the Governor's office. TDEC falls under the direction of the Governor's administration. If they really wanted to act, they could.

The new 2024 Republican Platform adopted in Milwaukee on July 8th now departs from a federal defense of life and a defense of biblical marriage. The former 58-page robust 2016 platform took a strong stance against the 2015 SCOTUS Obergefell ruling and sought to defend family values and marriage between one man and one woman. That is gone. It also previously pushed for a federal constitutional amendment to protect life in the womb and a declaration that an "unborn child has a fundamental right to life which cannot be infringed." That is also now gone. What we are left with in 2024 is a 16-page campaign speech absent of any moral authority.

Now in our 2nd year of managing the Tennessee Legislative Report Card, let's take a look at the features available to the public promoting transparency in the legislative process. To our knowledge, this is the only legislative scorecard in existence that gives such an exhaustive view of each legislator including vote scores, leadership grades, campaign finance reports, and the ability for citizens to rate and review their legislators. If you care about Tennessee politics, this is a must-use tool. Make sure to watch this demonstration to understand all of the tools available to you on this website including our Contributions Dashboard. This dashboard is the only tool available to Tennesseans that allows you access to all contribution data for every sitting member of the General Assembly simply at the click of a button. We've done the work of compiling all of the publicly accessible data from the state and putting it in an easy-to-access dashboard. Be sure to share this tool with family and friends. The Tennessee Legislative Report Card can be accessed at www.tnreportcard.org

By now, we are used to hearing stories on the transgender issue and how various states are passing legislation to protect children from this agenda. We also hear the horror stories from those who have mutilated their bodies and now live to regret that decision. But what you don't often hear in the political discourse is how to get to the heart of the matter, our identity. Carissa's story is one of redemption out of a long journey through the LGBT agenda that eventually led her to Jesus and renouncing the culture wars. There is no confusion in how God made us. We believe this is a story you will want to hear and share with others.

Thank you to Rep. Monty Fritts and Sen. Mark Pody for passing House Joint Resolution 803 in a call for churches in all 95 counties across the state to join in a time of prayer and repentance for our state in the month of July. We are asking for churches across the state to share this resolution with their congregations and partner in this effort. You can access the HJR 803 Packet here with all of the information that you'll need. https://tennesseestands.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/803-email-packet.pdf Please send this information to your pastor and church leadership and request that your church participate in this statewide effort in prayer.

Many have heard by now the infamous statement from Klaus Schwab of the World Economic Forum (WEF), "You will own nothing and be happy." This is the plan. And this is exactly what the elites want for our future. What you might not realize is how much of that philosophy is already at play in our everyday lives. Further, you may not recognize that incremental measures towards this ultimate goal of beneficial ownership are making their way through our Tennessee legislature every year. The big takeaway here is to understand that if you do not have absolute "control" over something, then in turn, you do not "own" it. With that in mind, it is important to resist any and all attempts by government to in some way obtain any amount of control over money, property, or any real asset that we might find in our possession. All such measures are indeed an erosion of individual liberty.

An ethics complaint has been filed against a conservative candidate for State Senate, Bobby Harshbarger. The complaint alleges that there is coordination between the campaign and the East Tennessee Conservatives PAC which has so far sent out texting campaigns regarding the voting record of the incumbent in the race, Senator Jon Lundberg. The irony is important to recognize. The complaint will be reviewed by Lauren Topping, who happens to be an attorney with the State of Tennessee and the wife of a campaign consultant working for Jon Lundberg. Talk about a case of the pot calling the kettle black. A similar complaint (52 pages worth) was filed in 2022 against Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson regarding his primary election campaign and coordination with other PACs. Despite a mountain of evidence, the TN Registry of Election Finance dismissed the complaint stating that it is perfectly legal in Tennessee for such coordination to occur. It will be interesting to see if the same determination is made when conservatives are facing the same accusations.

This story is nothing new here in Tennessee. The establishment is up to their same 'ole tricks using GOP bylaws as well as state law to protect incumbents from more conservative primary challengers. Nate Dressel is a husband, father, small business owner (Frontier Coffee Company), Army Green Beret, and Master Sgt. in the Tennessee National Guard. Nate is also a lifelong Republican. Yet, when challenged, Nate Dressel was removed from the Republican Primary ballot in his bid for District 10 TN State Representative. The system is broken and everyone knows it. Yet, those in power continue to work to protect...well, those in power. HB 636 sponsored by Rep. Jody Barrett would have partially resolved this issue and allowed Mr. Dressell to still run for office in the general election as an Independent. While that bill passed the House floor, it was killed by Senate leadership. Nate's only recourse at this point is to potentially run as a write-in candidate. These stories are important and we hope you are paying attention. Oftentimes as voters, we wonder, "Why is no one running for office?" The fact is, they are. But they are being taken off the ballot.

If you are looking for a robust breakdown of all the conservative wins and losses during the 2024 legislative session in Tennessee, this video is for you. It is by no means exhaustive, that would be a much longer video. However, it is a great overview of legislation being tracked by grassroots organizations across the state. Thank you to the Tennesseans from Memphis to Mountain City who sent over 300,000 emails to the General Assembly during this legislative session through our website at Tennessee Stands. Your voice matters. All in all, I would say that this was a successful year. We’ll never get everything that we want out of a legislative session. But on the big-ticket items, we won. School vouchers are dead. Digital currency regulations failed. Life was further protected in Tennessee. Geoengineering in our skies was banned. Religious exemptions for vaccines were secured. Allowing the state to have ownership in private companies failed. Private property rights were secured. Our schools will be more secure. Some of the key issues that must be addressed coming into 2025 are working to further secure our elections in Tennessee, issues surrounding state sovereignty and federal overreach, medical freedom, limiting the use of federal money, corporate welfare, shielding our state from the impacts of illegal immigration, strengthening our 2nd Amendment and reducing the impact of gun-free zones, and rooting out the progressive agenda in our public schools. We live in perilous times and the fights that are upon us today are not the fights of 20 or 50 years ago. May God grant us both the discernment and the courage to stand up for liberty and the future of our sons and daughters.

At the core of Tennessee Stands is a mission to get our fellow Tennesseans to see beyond the headlines on every issue that we face politically. Fancy taglines and the bits and pieces we might get from quick news hits and social media posts almost never give us a complete picture of what is really going in our government. It is easy to get caught up in the noise. If you follow us, then you have come to expect near-weekly written commentary or video content from Gary diving into current issues and legislative initiatives happening at the state level. Also, you can find us weekly on The Freedom Matters Podcast where Gary Humble and Kevin Kookogey continue the public discourse with expanded conservation with guests like Andy Roth, Catherine Austin Fitts, Steve Friend, Ken Cuccinelli, Daniel Horowitz, Steve Deace, and many others including our elected officials. We are excited to present this brand new format and introduce you to, The Conversation. The plan is to create monthly episodes where Gary Humble and John Pfaender (and maybe others) dive a little bit deeper into the fundamentals on what makes us grassroots conservatives tick. It is no longer enough to simply say to someone that you are a “conservative.” In fact, it seems that many people do not even recognize what that word is supposed to mean anymore. In this episode, we are digging in a bit deeper into the school choice discussion. Beyond the billboards telling you that you are getting $7,000 for your child’s education, how does the program really function? What are the fundamental distinctions between public and private schools? Is this truly a tax rebate or is this wealth redistribution? Could private schools face greater government constraints in the future? If this conversation has been a bit confusing for you, we hope this helps to clear it up. Our goal is to continue these conversations regularly and work to cut through the noise to bring clarity and hopefully, get us back to the basics. And like any good conversation, you just never know exactly where it will end up. So, stay tuned!

In K-12 Subcommittee, HB1183 (the Governor's school choice bill) passed with a roll call vote of 6-2, but it's not that simple. There was an extra member of the committee, Speaker Pro Tempore Pat Marsh. The chairman of the committee allowed Rep. Marsh to sit and vote in the committee hearing as the Speaker's designee. The problem is that the House Permanent Rules only allow the Speaker or Speaker Pro Tempore to vote in a Standing (or Full) Committee and not a subcommittee. Further, this is not addressed by Mason's Manual of Legislative Procedure which governs this process in the absence of a rule. Why is the House allowing Speaker Cameron Sexton to unconstitutionally make up his own rules of order to pack the vote in a subcommittee because they feared the bill might fail?

Paul Vaughn of Hickman County was recently convicted of violating the FACE Act for ministering at an abortion clinic back in 2021 and is now facing up to 11 years in federal prison for that crime. To get more details and fully understand what is at stake, please listen to Episode 110 of The Freedom Matters Podcast, Facing Time, with Special Guest: Paul Vaughn. https://freedommatters.co/110-facing-time-with-special-guest-paul-vaughn/ We believe that the outcome of this trial has ramifications well beyond just Paul Vaughn and his ministry concerning abortion. But this is a signal from the federal government that they will no longer tolerate those who publicly espouse a Christian worldview. We are indeed living under a two-tiered justice system and what is happening to Paul could happen to anyone of faith. Further, this is a moment where the state of Tennessee including the Governor, the Attorney General, and the General Assembly have an opportunity, a duty, to step in and interpose itself on behalf of the rights of a fellow Tennessean, constitutionally secured rights that are being stripped away by a weaponized federal justice system. Please be sure to listen to this episode and then contact our leaders to act. https://www.tn.gov/governor/contact-us.html https://www.tn.gov/attorneygeneral/contact-us.html https://wapp.capitol.tn.gov/Apps/fml2022/search.aspx

Complex global issues dealing with central bank digital currency, conservation easements, school choice, UN Agenda 2030 policies, Biden 30x30 agenda policies, and a host of others are quickly and methodically finding their way through the Tennessee General Assembly. One such bill is HB 1890 (William Lamberth) / SB 2099 (Jack Johnson) which is a move by Governor Bill Lee's office to create an "agricultural easement" program under the TN Dept of Agriculture. The stated purpose is to help Tennessee small farmers preserve their farmland. However, national examples of these easement programs reveal that with tax subsidies comes the loss of private property rights when a farmer cedes the control of his land to the government. This is a complicated issue. Conservation is not necessarily a bad thing. We agree that steps should be taken to preserve our agricultural lands and secure our food supply into the future. But accomplishing that goal by ceding control of those lands to the state does not seem to be in the best interest of the people. Please take the time to listen to this interview and get a glimpse into how these globalist policies are making their way into Tennessee. We oppose this legislation and would ask that you contact your state legislators to communicate the same. Want to know more about conservation easements and the threat of Natural Asset Companies (NACs)? Make sure to visit www.americanstewards.us

Do not be deceived. For the second year now, Tennesseans have been advocating for the Restoring State Sovereignty Through Nullification Act sponsored by Rep. Bud Hulsey and Sen. Janice Bowling. This bill would put a process in place by which a Bill of Nullification could be brought directly to the floor for a roll call vote at the petition of registered voters and/or county legislative bodies. That is important because it creates a mechanism by which the General Assembly can be brought to action by the people. This bill gives Tennessee a process to stand up against unconstitutional federal overreach and declare the sovereign rights of citizens of this state which shall not be threatened by an out-of-control federal administration or court. But as we've come to expect, RINOs like to get credit for doing "something" while actually doing nothing. So, Sen. Adam Lowe has filed SB 2058, the Tennessee State Sovereignty Act of 2024. Want to know how this bill purports to stand up to the federal government? It creates a committee, a committee led by the Speakers of the General Assembly who appoints the members of every other committee in the House and Senate. Conservatives want to know that our legislature has what it takes to meaningfully stand up to federal overreach. If they reject the Restoring State Sovereignty Through Nullification Act and instead choose to move forward with the Tennessee State Sovereignty Act of 2024, then we will know that they lack both the will and the courage to stand.

We saw the warning signs last year with the passage of the Money Transmission Modernization Act which redefined "money" in our law to include currency adopted by foreign governments and even currency agreed upon by two or more international governments. You can thank Senator Jack Johnson for that one. Now we are contending with SB479 / HB640 which would adopt the 2022 UCC Amendments creating regulations for digital currencies and the introduction of "controllable electronic records" into Tennessee law. The Uniform Law Commission is working to push these regulations throughout all 50 states. So far, only 11 states have adopted these amendments. And states like Texas and Florida are NOT on that list. But it seems that Tennessee is always looking to "lead the nation." So, why not lead the nation in creating pathways to adopting a central bank digital currency in our state? That makes sense, right? While these UCC amendments, of course, do not "create" a currency, they set the regulatory scheme for the use and transaction of such a currency. We oppose this bill and any measure that would create regulatory schemes for digital transactions such as CBDC.

National pundits continue to parrot the talking points for school choice stating that no regulations are going to follow the money. But, they can cite no historical examples where regulations do not follow government funding. In an interview with the Pampleteer in Nashville, Corey DeAngelis, a self-professed school choice evangelist, acknowledges that school choice is in fact an entitlement program and compares the program to food stamps. He goes on to make the argument that the more people become dependent on government funding for the private education of their children, the more powerful they will become collectively to push back against future government encroachments. Again, please cite a historical example where people take money from the government for any purpose and then become more powerful. In fact, the opposite is true. Those throughout history who as a people have become more dependent on their government have become subjects of the same. As in most instances we face in the legislature, GOP leadership is in lockstep on pushing universal school choice throughout Tennessee. And many Tennesseans are excited about the short-term prospects. But we are asking Tennesseans to think about the long-term consequences of funding private structures with public dollars. We fear that in time, there will be no difference between the public and private structures. And what was once a safety net for many families shielding their children from public indoctrination camps will be no longer.

As the 2024 legislative session convenes here in Tennessee, the House had an opportunity, by amending its rules, to introduce more transparency into the process. Rep. Bryan Richey submitted an amendment that would require a roll call vote in every committee hearing as bills make their way to the House floor. But the rules committee rejected the plan. So, we are left with the voice vote procedure in the House which puts the passage of a bill squarely in the hands of one individual, the committee chairman. This is not how representative government should work.

This week, Governor Bill Lee introduced his plan for school vouchers, aka school choice, aka education freedom. For many, the plan sounds great. Parents get to take their tax dollars out of failing public schools and direct those funds to private schools or homeschool costs. The problem, of course, is that what might seem like a great plan on the surface oftentimes comes with unseen entanglements and negative consequences. We have a couple of questions. (1) Why are Tennesseans not being told that federal law requires education saving accounts to fund private school education for illegal immigrants? (2) Why are leftist billionaires funding PACs and 501c4 organizations that promote school choice programs across the country? Admittedly because we have not seen any bill language yet for this proposal, we have a few more questions than answers. But we believe that the questions themselves should be alarming considering that the answers we are finding in other states lead us to believe that once again, Bill Lee is selling us a false bill of goods. This ESA proposal seems to direct tax dollars into the private sector all while still funding the same failing public school system that we want to see held accountable. Additionally, the threat of future government regulations following that money into private schools and home schools is ominous.

We applaud the General Assembly's efforts in protecting children and banning the practice of child mutilation in the state of Tennessee. And we are thankful that for now, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld a state legislature's sovereign power to enact such laws. This is how elected representation should work. However, upon looking beyond the surface and a bit deeper into the court's decision, we find it very concerning that all of this is predicated on the FDA and its silence on this issue. In other words, the moment the FDA may approve surgeries and puberty blockers as a legitimate form of medical care for transgender patients, then we are back to square one. And perhaps at that point, the court might rethink its "states rights" stance on allowing this legislation to stand. This court decision, while a temporary win to protect children, is built on a foundation of sand. Instead of proclaiming the created order and declaring the truth of our humanity in the way we are created, men and women, the court simply finds no compulsion to act because the FDA has not yet "lent their credibility" to these types of treatments. This should be concerning.

It is a regular occurrence to be cast in a negative light on the Matt Murphy Show here on "conservative" talk radio in Nashville. And lately, the rhetoric has been turned up due to a relationship with the TN Faith and Freedom Coalition, an organization based in Williamson County that by all accounts is the new cheerleading squad for Senator Jack Johnson. On the regular, 99.7 WTN celebrates the "conservative" exploits of some of our favorites like Gov Bill Lee, House Speaker Cameron Sexton, and Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson. And in kind, casting aspersions on Tennessee Stands painting us as a fringe conspiracy group. Guests of the show have gone so far as to call our organization a cult. And yesterday on the show, we were painted as Marxists by Aaron Gulbransen of the TN Faith and Freedom Coalition. The accusations levied are at best childish and shameful. At worst, they are defamatory and libel. I usually don't respond to public attacks because it is not worth the effort and a distraction from the work we do every day. But I am going to break out of that norm and issue this statement.

About 5 months ago, I told you about Governor Bill Lee's hire for our new Commissioner of Education, Lizzette Reynolds. If you haven't watched that report in full, I highly suggest you do so. (see link below) https://rumble.com/v2lodqu-who-is-your-new-tn-commissioner-of-education-lizzette-gonzales-reynolds.html In that report, I went through some of Reynolds' history with various organizations that are focused on things like equity and ridding our education system of racism. I posited that Reynolds would be highly motivated to continue that work here in Tennessee. True to form, Reynolds' first major hire is our new State Turnaround Superintendent, Bren Elliott from Washington D.C. schools. Dr. Elliott's crowning achievement (in her own words) is her work of making D.C. a "less racist" school district. And you have no one else to thank for this chicanery but Governor Bill Lee.

Sevier County has an upcoming drag performance open to minors. This is illegal in the state of Tennessee. Local parents and pastors are standing up for children. But so far, the local district attorney and other local law enforcement refuse to act. The law banning these activities was indeed ruled unconstitutional and enjoined by a West Tennessee federal court. BUT, the law has ONLY been enjoined in SHELBY COUNTY. The law is enforceable in all 94 remaining counties in the state. We need men of courage to stand up and do the right thing. We need elected officials to enforce the laws on the books. And we need not defer our actions because of a fear of the courts.

Tennesseans across the state have advocated loudly that voters do not want this special session. Primarily, we do not want restrictions on our 2nd Amendment rights and we do not want to debate complex topics like mental health in the abbreviated course of 3 days. Fortunately, it seems that our advocacy has taken hold and the General Assembly will recess after having done very little. To our knowledge, the Senate is set to pass only 3 bills having to do with tax abatements on gun safes, TBI reporting requirements, and reports on autopsies. Things are still in process and can change on a dime. But right now, this seems to be the general sentiment. Yesterday on the first day of session, motions were made in both the House and Senate to immediately adjourn but failed. It has come to our attention that especially in the House, failure came at the hands of Speaker Cameron Sexton and Leader William Lamberth due to their efforts to intimidate and coerce by threatening members of the House of Representatives by removing chairmanships, committee positions, and killing other pieces of legislation if members were found voting to adjourn the special session. Additionally, we asked you to take action by contacting your senator to express support for her resolution to adjourn session today on August 22, SJR 7101. Thank you for doing that. Unfortunately, though the resolution was indeed filed, Senate leadership did not allow for the bill to be calendared and gave no opportunity for it to be heard on the Senate floor. But all is not lost. We leave you with this inspirational speech that Senator Janice Bowling gave on the Senate floor yesterday. She had the courage to stand up and say out loud what so many others are thinking.

As part of the Governor's call for a special session on red flag laws, Bill Lee is asking the legislature to consider the following... "Directs TennCare to seek a waiver from the federal government to allow federal matching funds for Medicaid to cover services for mental illness and substance use disorders at institutions of mental diseases." This "waiver" would mean that the state of Tennessee is going to propose addressing our mental health crisis by funding these programs with federal money and thereby bringing these treatments under more federal regulation and scrutiny. What is even more nefarious about all of this is that these waivers for federal money all stem from the 2016 CURES Act signed into law as a final act of the Obama Administration which pumped billions into Fauci's NIH, reduced regulatory burden for the FDA and pharmaceutical development for novel diseases, and made adjustments to the FDA's emergency use authorization. That same bill contains the regulatory landscape that Republicans put in place to address gun violence by way of mental health. This is a trojan horse. More federal money equals more federal regulation and more federal control over the liberties of the people of Tennessee. Legislators in Tennessee must give a resounding NO to this proposal. CMS Letter SMD # 18--011 on Medicaid Waivers https://www.medicaid.gov/sites/default/files/federal-policy-guidance/downloads/smd18011.pdf 2016 21st Century CURES Act https://www.congress.gov/114/plaws/publ255/PLAW-114publ255.pdf Medicaid IMD Exclusion https://medicaiddirectors.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/IMD-NAMD-Federal-Policy-Briefs.pdf Biden Executive Order 14075 https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2022/06/15/executive-order-on-advancing-equality-for-lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgender-queer-and-intersex-individuals/

On June 3, 2023, Joe Cocchini was arrested by City of Franklin Police for the crime of criminal trespassing...in a public park. Many people attended the pride event that day in Franklin, TN with an aim to talk with people, pray with people, and simply act as a watchman to ensure that activities occurring in a public place were not contrary to state law or what was agreed upon in discussions with the city council. Some were denied entry for carrying a Bible. Some were asked to leave because they "made people feel uncomfortable." But Joe was arrested by police because he was lawfully and respectfully occupying a public place. Now, Joe faces criminal charges for praying. Tennessee Stands is paying for his defense and we need your help. Please go to www.tennesseestands.org/helpjoe and help us post a legal defense to this attack on religious liberty and free speech.