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Republican Congressman John Rose is being accused of being a “former Democrat” in a new political ad, as he and Sen. Marsha Blackburn duke it out to be the conservative choice in Tennessee’s governor’s race.
While Blackburn has consistently led Rose in polls and is the presumed frontrunner for governor, a political action committee with ties to the senator has been aggressively advertising against Rose in recent weeks, most recently challenging his party allegiance.
In the newest PAC ad, Rose is criticized for his company’s pro-Black Lives Matter social media post in 2020 and accused of being a “former Democrat.” The ad, which accuses the congressman of “wilting,” appears to reference a series of Democratic primary votes and donations from Rose in the early 2000s as a broader effort to question his legitimacy as a MAGA conservative.
Both candidates have spent the summer vying to be the most conservative candidate after President Donald Trump said he would not endorse either, despite their apparent relationships to the president.
Rose responded to the PAC’s claims on Wednesday with a campaign ad in which he calls Blackburn "desperate," and says both candidates are conservative Trump supporters, but dismisses the senator as a career politician.
“The governor’s race has gotten tight. How do you know? Because Marsha Blackburn is attacking me with crazy stuff,” Rose says as a clip from the PAC ad plays. “It’s all false, but that’s the Washington way.”
Rose’s public voting record shows that he voted as a Democrat in three primary elections between 2002 and 2004. Still, Rose’s record shows at least 10 elections in which he voted as a Republican and nine occasions when he voted in general elections without having to declare a party.
Analysis of Rose’s public political donation records show he made around 20 contributions to individual Democratic campaigns and the state’s House and Senate Democratic caucuses between 1998 and 2010, totalling $19,000. By comparison, Rose has given more than $460,000 to Republicans across more than 160 donations, including several contributions to Blackburn’s previous campaigns.
Asked about his voting and donation records, Rose’s campaign rebuffed the attack, blaming Blackburn.
“Marsha Blackburn and her campaign are desperate. Millions of dollars are being funneled down from Washington to Tennessee to attack conservative John Rose and his momentum. It is just what you would expect from a 34-year career politician like Senator Blackburn,” said Chris Devaney, Chairman of Rose’s campaign.
The ad is one of several funded by Tennessee Freedom Fund, a PAC formed this year that has spent millions in advertising in the Republican primary. The PAC is not legally associated with Blackburn’s campaign, but is registered to David McIntosh, a DC-based conservative who also runs the Club for Growth Action PAC, to which Blackburn’s senate campaign transferred $4.8 million during the latest reporting period.
Tennessee Freedom Fund has spent more than $2 million on ads in the governor’s race.
A spokesperson for Blackburn’s campaign declined to comment for this story.
Early voting is underway for the gubernatorial primary through Aug. 1, and Election Day is August 6. More information about how to vote and the candidates running for governor, Congress and other local offices are available in the Banner’s voter’s guide.
This article first appeared on Nashville Banner and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
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