With early voters heading to the polls, ad wars in the U.S. Senate race are heating up.
Incumbent U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn has largely ignored her opponent, state Rep. Gloria Johnson, D-Knoxville, instead touting her efforts to fight proposed income taxes in Tennessee two decades ago, highlighting her work to exclude transgender athletes from women’s sports, and taking aim at the Chinese Communist Party.
Meanwhile, Johnson has attacked Blackburn as out of touch with Tennesseans, and beholden to special interests.
Here’s a look at their most recent ads:
Blackburn takes a swing at China
In a new ad launched the morning early voting began, Blackburn takes aim at the People’s Republic of China.
“Some say I’m too tough, that I should be more delicate. But you know what? It’s time to break some China,” Blackburn says in the ad, picking up red plates emblazoned with the Chinese flag and shattering them on the floor.
Blackburn has been an outspoken critic of the Chinese Communist Party throughout her time in office, proposing legislation to shut down Confucius Institutes at American universities, and a bipartisan measure to direct the U.S. attorney general to annually report on federal efforts to combat Chinese espionage inside the United States. She made a formal visit to Taiwan in 2022 to meet with Taiwanese leadership.
“China stole our jobs and sent us a virus. They’re buying up our land and spying on us,” she says. “I’m Marsha Blackburn and I approve this message because we’re going to have to break a lot more of China to save America.”
Blackburn falsely claims Chinese own Tennessee farmland
Blackburn’s latest ad falsely claims that Chinese communist entities are buying up Tennessee farmland. The ad, which features an appearance from state Rep. Rusty Grills, R-Newbern in his capacity as a “Tennessee Farmer,” claims that “Chinese communists are buying up land all over America.”
“It’s happening right here in Tennessee, and Marsha Blackburn won’t stand for it,” the ad states.
But while Chinese companies do own a small fraction of American farmland, there is no record of any Chinese citizen, business or entity that owns land in Tennessee.
Foreign entities account for just over 3% of privately held agricultural land in the U.S., according to the latest available USDA records. Of that, China ranks 18th, with Chinese entities holding an estimated 380,000 acres of land nationwide. A registry of foreign-owned property maintained by the U.S. Department of Agriculture lists 387 foreign entities that own land in Tennessee, totaling 457,441 acres — the vast majority of which are held by Canadian and European countries. No Chinese individuals or entities are listed.
Tennessee lawmakers recently passed a bill requiring any sanctioned foreign entity to register land ownership with the Tennessee Secretary of State. No property has been registered with that office.
Johnson calls Blackburn out of touch
Johnson has used her airtime to attack Blackburn as out of touch with Tennessee residents, in contrast with herself.
“What does Marsha Blackburn know about us? Tennesseans grinding every day to get ahead. Not much – she’s in D.C. taking $2 million from insurance and drug companies. Voting against lowering our costs for things like insulin,” Johnson says in one ad.
In 2022, Blackburn and U.S. Sen. Bill Hagerty both voted against a measure to waive parliamentary rules and allow the Senate to cap the cost of insulin for people on private insurance at $35. Seven Republicans supported the measure, which fell short by 3 votes.
“I’m Gloria Johnson, a teacher, not a politician,” Johnson says. “I own a gun, and have common sense. I fought those big companies and cut taxes for us. My home is Tennessee ― not D.C.”
Johnson has served in the Tennessee House of Representatives for eight years, and was a special education teacher for 27 years.
While she has voted for Republican-led tax cuts, including sales tax holidays, and proposed wage increases, Johnson has never proposed legislation to enact a tax cut. No bill proposed by Johnson has become law.
Blackburn touts fight against state income tax
In another ad, Blackburn allies tout her work to stop state income tax proposals by Republican Gov. Don Sundquist. State Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson, R-Franklin, and former state Rep. Mae Beavers – both members at the time – recall Blackburn’s role in the fight against Sundquist’s state income tax proposal, which sparked protests of thousands at the state Capitol.
“People started organizing, and the leader in that effort was Marsha Blackburn,” Johnson says on the ad, calling Blackburn a “voice of reason” on the issue. “When she believes in something, she’s going to fight for that tooth and nail.”
Blackburn was a proponent of horn-blowing tax protestors who drove outside the Capitol in 1999-2001 when income tax proposals came up – a strong proponent of cutting government spending rather than raising taxes.
“Marsha Blackburn was the one who stopped the income tax,” anti-tax advocate and Nashville Tea Party founder Ben Cunningham says on the ad.
But she also had critics on both sides at the time. In July 2001, Blackburn directed her secretary to email talk radio hosts Steve Gill and Phil Valentine with the message “WE NEED TROOPS,” helping ignite a “loud, window-breaking mob” that “stormed the Capitol” in protest of the plan, according to reports at the time.
One Republican colleague at the time, then-Rep. David Fowler of Signal Mountain, criticized her recruitment of protestors, which Democrats claimed at the time contributed to violence at the Capitol.
“To be honest, sometimes we are hesitant to tell Marsha what we may be doing for fear that for future political advantage, she’ll do something that defeats our efforts,” Fowler said in July 2001.
The anti-income tax effort succeeded. And months later, Blackburn announced her bid for Congress.
Johnson pledges to stop greedy corporations
In another ad, Johnson tacitly accuses Blackburn of being beholden to corporations that back her campaign.
“For 30 years, I was a teacher, not a politician. When prices go up, I feel it too,” Johnson says. “So I’ll stop greedy corporations that buy our politicians, then overcharge us.”
Vivian Jones covers state government and politics for The Tennessean. Reach her at vjones@tennessean.com or on X at @Vivian_E_Jones.
