Free Republic

A Democratic strategist stunned a CNN panel into silence after claiming a new congressional map set to make a black Republican the odds-on favorite to win the election is racist. Democratic strategist Tezlyn Figaro made the argument on Thursday's NewsNight after journalist Lydia Moynihan pointed out how the redistricting bid will help the odds of GOP candidate Charlotte Bergmann, a black woman, in Tennessee. The new map made it through the state's general assembly hours before. Moynihan framed the situation as 'ironic', given that many critics have called the redraw racist. They say it dilutes the state's only black-majority district,...

Democratic Rep. Steve Cohen of Tennessee announced on Friday that he signed a document requesting not to be included on the ballot in Tennessee's 9th Congressional District. The congressman described the district determined by "new lines" as "nothing like the 9th district that I've represented." The Democratic primary in the district is scheduled to take place in August. Speaking after his announcement, Cohen described President Donald Trump as "the greatest threat to democracy, and to … decorum … and grace, that we've ever seen."

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Congressman Steve Cohen, who has represented Tennessee’s 9th Congressional District for more than 19 years, announced he is withdrawing from the race Friday morning. Cohen says his majority-Black district was gerrymandered into three Republican-leaning districts by the state General Assembly last week. The deadline to file to run in the redrawn District 9, as well as Districts 5 and 8 in the Memphis area, is noon Friday.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - A Tennessee judge has denied a request for a temporary restraining order in a lawsuit over the state's new congressional districts, court documents show. Judge William L. Campbell, Jr., the Chief U.S. District Judge for the Middle District of Tennessee, issued the order on Thursday. In it, Campbell said the reasons for the denial would be in a "forthcoming Memorandum." Additionally, Campbell's order also canceled a hearing set for May 20. The lawsuit was filed by multiple Tennessee Democrats, including the current representative for District 9, Steve Cohen, as well as the Tennessee Democratic Party following the...

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - All members of the House Democratic Caucus have been removed from their committees and subcommittees, according to a letter obtained by WSMV. The letter, signed by House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R) and addressed to Leader Camper, states that “members of the Democratic Caucus will receive individual letters removing them from all standing committees and subcommittees of the House, except where membership is required.” Sexton’s letter states that the committee removals are “due to actions taken” by the members during last week’s special session over redistricting across Tennessee. Those actions, Sexton said, “aimed at disrupting the democratic...

Federal authorities charged more than 25 alleged members and associates of Tren de Aragua (TdA), seizing more than 80 firearms, roughly 18 kilograms of drugs and more than $100,000 in cash as part of a sweeping crackdown on the violent transnational gang. President Donald Trump has helped unleash the full power of federal authorities by designating TdA a foreign terrorist organization last year. Now, more than 260 members and associates of TdA have been charged. "This FBI and our interagency partners continue to break violent gang networks all over America, and today’s massive takedown of 25 Tren de Aragua members...

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Tennessee lawmakers in the House of Representatives have passed the bill that will split Memphis along new congressional lines. Memphis will be split into three congressional districts per the new map, which passed in the Tennessee General Assembly’s special session on redistricting Thursday, May 7. Democrats in the state house have railed against the push to redraw congressional lines outside of the decennial census, calling the move a “grave, grave rollback of rights” for Black Tennesseans and especially for Memphians. The proposed new map, only released to the public about 24 hours before they passed the...

A Tennessee man who admitted shooting an 18-year-old student to death in 2023 while on the street after a previous shooting has pleaded guilty to a reduced charge. Shaquille Taylor pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the death of Jillian Ludwig, who was a freshman at Belmont University when she was killed. He also pleaded guilty to a charge of aggravated assault, according to WKRN-TV. He had been charged with first-degree murder. Taylor will face a 35-year sentence on the murder charge with no possibility of early release and three years on the assault charge, to be served consecutively. On...

A DoorDash driver shot and killed a suspect who shot and injured him during an attempted carjacking at Walgreens in Berry Hill Saturday afternoon, according to Metro Nashville Police Department Public Information Office Don Aaron. Officers responded to the Walgreens in the 2600 block of 8th Avenue South just before 1 p.m. for reports of a shooting. When officers arrived on scene, they found two gunshot victims. Aaron said the preliminary investigation into the shooting shows that a DoorDash delivery driver pulled into the Walgreens parking lot before walking to the Chick-fil-a next door to pick up an order. As...

Seattle could lose hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue as Starbucks expands operations in Tennessee, a local outlet estimates. Fox 13 Seattle reported Tuesday that the Emerald City "could lose up to $750 million in tax revenue in the coming years as Starbucks expands in Tennessee instead of Washington." In a press release Tuesday, Starbucks announced it will invest $100 million and bring 2,000 new jobs to Nashville. "Starbucks has major plans for its newest business location, where it will employ up to 2,000 people over the next several years to serve in a variety of corporate-related operations,"...

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - Law enforcement is investigating after the skeletal remains of three children were discovered in a wooded area of Hickory Hill. The FBI and TBI are assisting the Memphis Police Department with the investigation, which is underway in the area of Ridgeway Road and Winchester Road.

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee has signed a resolution designating June, which has been nationally recognized as Pride Month since 1999, as 'Nuclear Family Month' in the state. The amendment defines a nuclear family as consisting of one husband, one wife, and any biological, adopted, or fostered children, stating that this is 'God's design for familial structure.' LGBTQ+ advocates have criticized the move as exclusionary, arguing that the strongest families are grounded in love, not specific structures. Why it matters This decision by the Tennessee governor is seen as a direct challenge to the long-standing recognition of Pride Month, which celebrates...

The “American Bad Ass” rocker sent social media into a tailspin after posting footage of a military helicopter hovering just yards away from his Tennessee estate dubbed the “Southern White House.” But while the choppers provided the spectacle, Rock provided the sting, using the moment to deliver a brutal clap back at the Golden State on his X account over the weekend. “This is a level of respect that s— for brains Governor of California will never know,” Rock captioned the viral clip, taking a direct shot at Gavin Newsom. “God Bless America and all those who have made the...

CARROLL COUNTY, Tenn. (WZTV) — A school bus carrying students and staff from the Clarksville-Montgomery County School System was involved in a deadly crash in Carroll County while traveling to a field trip, authorities said. Officials said the bus, from Kenwood Middle School, was headed to Jackson when it was involved in a crash with another vehicle near the intersection of Highway 70 and Cedar Grove. The Tennessee Highway Patrol is leading the investigation. Families of everyone on board have been contacted, according to school officials, who said they do not yet have additional confirmed details about the crash.

A mother of three was found critically injured in a ditch after she was viciously mauled by a woman's dogs. LaKesha Newsom, 35, was airlifted to the Regional One Hospital in Memphis on March 3 after she was found partially-clothed in the shallow ditch, according to the Holly Springs Police Department. Officials said that Newsom was conscious and was able to inform them that she had been attacked by dogs. Harris, 54, has been charged with aggravated assault and manifesting extreme indifference to the value of human life and was being held at the Marshall County Sheriff's Department. In an...

The Tennessee Senate passed legislation Monday allowing patients to sue their doctor for “coercing” them into seeking gender reassignment some 30 years after treatment. Republican Sen. Adam Lowe of Calhoun passed Senate Bill 2031 24-5 although he was unable to provide evidence that physicians are persuading people to seek transgender care. Responding to questions from Democratic lawmakers, Lowe said the law would apply when someone is “de-transitioning” from previous gender treatment “under some sort of premise of wellness that they didn’t achieve.” He explained that a similar private cause of action exists in a Tennessee law enacted three years ago...

Law enforcement across Tennessee and Kentucky are looking for a man after his girlfriend was found dead in his Antioch apartment last weekend. On Friday, March 13, officials said Kentucky State Police found 26-year-old Kierra Timmons’ red Dodge Charger abandoned on an Interstate 24 bridge over the Cumberland River with the engine running, the door open, and the hazard flashers on. “La Vergne police came knocking on my door at 9:30, telling me they had found her car abandoned and couldn’t find her, and this was in Kentucky, so I tried to reach her, [but I] couldn’t get her,” Kierra’s...

A major shakeup of America’s immigration system is now on the table, as Rep. Andy Ogles (R-TN) rolls out legislation aimed at dismantling decades of globalist policy and restoring what he says should be a strictly “America First” standard. The proposal would represent one of the most sweeping immigration overhauls in modern U.S. history—targeting not just illegal immigration, but the very structure of the legal system itself. At the heart of the bill is a clear directive: immigration policy must serve the national interest—not foreign interests, not activist agendas, and not bureaucratic inertia. “All immigration to the United States shall...

Tennessee grandmother spent nearly six months behind bars in North Dakota, a state she had never even stepped foot in, after being wrongfully identified by AI facial recognition technology in a bank fraud investigation. The Grand Forks Herald reports that Angela Lipps, a 50-year-old mother of three... from Tennessee, found herself trapped in a nightmare that began last July when U.S. Marshals arrested her at gunpoint while she was babysitting four young children. Fargo police had used facial recognition software to identify her as the primary suspect in an organized bank fraud case, despite the fact that she had never...

Late Monday afternoon, the local Fox affiliate in Nashville posted a story on their X account about a local man, Lonnie D. Wayman, a U.S. Navy veteran, who had passed without any known family or friends. The post said that Wayman would be laid to rest with full military honors. And it encouraged the public to attend, hoping to ensure that Wayman would be honored and not laid to rest alone. I saw the post and quickly sent out my own, encouraging anyone I knew in Nashville to “do your thing,” be the people you always are, and show up...