Scott Hughes for State Senate: Our first 2012 endorsement!
Scott Hughes for State Senate District 2
We’ve scoured the state looking for the best race to trade-in a liberal incumbent for a strong conservative, and we think we’ve found it in Senate District 2, which is composed of Blount and Sevier Counties and the cities of Maryville, Sevierville and Gatlinburg. This race is urgent because it is a tough primary with voting starting in less than two months. It is likely the only primary in which we’ll endorse because we want to concentrate the money and efforts of our pro-liberty donors like you to make sure we win.
Scott Hughes is a conservative Republican who has become a favorite of Tea Parties across the state in his effort to unseat special-interest incumbent Doug Overbey, an attorney who frequently finds himself on the wrong side of limited-government, conservative legislation.
Scott is a full-fledged conservative who has vowed to protect life and Tennessee’s sovereignty under the Constitution. He has a strong team of grassroots leaders and campaign veterans with backing from many in the local Republican Party like former State Senator Raymond Finney, Tennessee’s NRC Committeewoman Peggy Lambert and his treasurer State Representative Bo Henry. Because there is no Democrat opponent in the general election, this primary battle is for all the marbles.
Scott is a family man who has been a pro-life leader for more than a decade. He and his wife of 14 years, Raychel, have adopted four children, Tyler, Ansley, Blake and Gavin. Scott is best known for his eight years running Hope Resource Center, the largest crisis pregnancy center in East Tennessee, before taking his current job as CFO of the Fuse Church in Knoxville.
Scott’s opponent has earned the ire of conservatives across the state. Recently Overbey managed to kill the “Constitutional Sheriff” bill supported by most Tea Parties, sided with the unions in favor of collective bargaining, voted against school vouchers, and voted against term limits. Overbey’s greatest accomplishment is his ability to obtain special interest money with 83 special interest PAC donations in the last half of 2011 alone, and dozens more donations from businesses and their owners seeking his favor. Despite this, Overbey is still one of the most vulnerable Republicans in the state due to his liberal record, and Scott and his team have been very successful in raising funds to counter Overbey’s special interest bank account.
We need to put an end to Overbey’s obstruction of conservative legislation and put a great conservative like Scott Hughes in his place. Scott needs your help! Donate today.
Susan Lynn returns as Chairman of TCF
Susan Lynn has become known as a lion of conservatism and states’ rights through her leadership in the Tennessee House of Representatives. We are proud to welcome her back as our Chairman in 2012 as we seek out more candidates who share our same profound beliefs in the U.S. Constitution and the principles of liberty, limited government, free markets, and fiscal responsibility.
We also wish her luck on her own election bid for State Representative of District 57. To avoid any appearance of conflict, the Tennessee Conservatives Fund will not have any involvement in that race.
Redistricting & Filing Deadlines
Now that 2012 Redistricting is complete, and the filing deadline for 2012 state-level races has passed… our candidate search is heating up. If you know of a constitutionalist who is seeking the State House or State Senate and opposing a liberal incumbent, please leave a comment with the details so we can investigate.
View the new State and Federal districts on the website of the Tennessee General Assembly
New Website
The Tennessee Conservatives Fund is gearing up for the 2012 elections and is getting a new look. Watch here for updates as redistricting wraps up and candidates start to enter races!
A Candidate to Watch in Tennessee: Zach Poskevich
OCTOBER 13, 2011 — Here is a candidate that has popped onto our radar that we think you should get to know.
Zach Poskevich is the real deal – a die hard Constitutionalist as well as a strong Christian and Conservative. Zach is an Army veteran, family man and current resident of Hendersonville, and he is not willing to compromise on his beliefs. In 
a recent appearance, while referring to the $2 Trillion debt limit increase, Zach wisely stated that Republicans need to stop compromising on their principles today in the hopes that they’ll be able to stand on their principles tomorrow.
Zach Poskevich is running for the U.S. Senate in the Republican Primary against Bob Corker. Zach is making all the right moves in touring the state and building his campaign, but knows it will be tough to beat an entrenched, well-financed incumbent Republican who has lulled a lot of people into believing he is conservative.
Corker’s votes and the legislation he has worked behind the scenes suggest he is a politician-in-conservative-clothing. Just this morning, while Senator Corker was being interviewed by Nashville SuperTalk 99.7′s Michael DelGiorno, he not only defended wealth redistribution by means-testing Social Security, but when DelGiorno disagreed with Corker’s approach Corker then accused DelGiorno of wanting to live off the government in his old age. In the boldest action I’ve ever heard on the radio, DelGiorno hung up on him. Who would’ve thought our Republican Senator would start pushing typical “your greedy” liberal accusations to bolster his bad ideas?
Corker has also voted for or at one time supported the original TARP bailout, ending required Senate approval of dozens of presidential appointees, financial regulatory reform (which became Frank-Dodd), renewing the START Treaty, raising the debt ceiling (again and again and again), and more.
Although it is unlikely the Tennessee Conservatives Fund will be involved with federal races in this election cycle, we still think it is worth your time to get to know Zach Poskevich.
Please help us grow our efforts by sharing our emails with your friends or making a contribution.
Major Victory for the Forces of Liberty on November 2, 2010!
NOVEMBER 3, 2010 — Last night was a major victory for the forces of liberty and the restoration of our Constitutional form of government. If you took time to campaign, donate, talk to your friends, make phone calls, or just forward emails… thank you.
Now is the time to congratulate yourself and to thank those around you who have also given much, but we must also prepare for the coming battles in the months and years ahead. A single election will not be enough to save our nation – not by a long shot. We must support and elect Constitution-loving conservatives over and over and over again.
Although the Tennessee Conservatives Fund was only founded five short weeks ago, we directed strong attention, volunteers, and contributions to all eight of the candidates we supported. In the future, with your help, our impact will be much larger.
Our future mission will be to seek out those candidates for state and federal offices who have a deep understanding and commitment to the U.S. Constitution, men and women who will stand up for the rights of individuals and the States as protected by the Tenth Amendment.
Make an investment today for the future of our nation.
TCF Endorses Scott DesJarlais for Congress Against Davis
Scott DesJarlais
OCTOBER 18, 2010 — When Dr. Eric Stamper founded the Tennessee Conservatives Fund he was interested in supporting strong conservative candidates, but with Dr. Scott DesJarlais running for Congress, Stamper finds he is able to endorse both a conservative and a fellow physician. Stamper is an optometric physician outside Nashville while DesJarlais is a family physician in Marion County. They share a deep disapproval of the federal health insurance bill and the tactics used to pass the bill over the loud objections of the majority of Americans. Said Stamper, “It’s no surprise there are numerous physicians running for office this year, such as Rand Paul in Kentucky, because every private practice doctor knows this healthcare bill will be the end of high quality, private practice medical care in America. It will immediately cause healthcare costs to skyrocket and healthcare access to decrease. The bill must be fully repealed, and it is conservatives like Dr. DesJarlais that can make that happen.”
Scott DesJarlais is running for office in Tennessee’s 4th Congressional District against incumbent Democrat Lincoln Davis. DesJarlais has been endorsed by the Tennessee Conservatives Fund (TCF), a tea party‐supported PAC that was founded by Stamper and now Chaired by State Representative Susan Lynn. DesJarlais is a pro‐life, pro‐gun and pro‐marriage social and fiscal conservative. He has stated that he is running in this race “because of the direction the Democrats have put us on. Never before have we as Americans felt as misrepresented by our government as we do right now. We are less free, we are less prosperous, and we definitely feel we are working for the government, instead of our government working for us.”
Desjarlais’ opponent, incumbent Lincoln Davis, advertises that he is a conservative, but TCF Chair Susan Lynn says that Davis’ voting record contradicts that claim. Davis’ recent votes include passage of the initial stimulus legislation, “Cash for Clunkers”, and the auto company bailouts, drawing the ire of such watchdog groups as Citizens against Government Waste, while attracting high ratings from labor groups such as the AFL‐CIO, SEIU, and various public employee unions. Additionally, Mr. Davis has voted to remove restrictions that prevent government‐funded abortions, and has opposed legislation banning late‐term abortions.
Tennessee Conservatives Fund Backs Mike Sparks for State Representative
Mike Sparks
OCTOBER 12, 2010 — Mike Sparks, a small businessman, Rutherford County Commissioner, and current candidate for State Representative in the 49th District, has earned the support of the Tennessee Conservatives Fund (TCF), which is a recently established, tea party‐supported political action committee being chaired by well‐known constitutional conservative State Representative, Susan Lynn.
The 49th District race has attracted the interest of the TCF thanks to Mr. Sparks solid conservative background and because Sparks’ opponent, incumbent Kent Coleman, has accumulated one of the most liberal voting records among current House members since obtaining his seat in 2002. Coleman has voted against a bill that would provide for charter school expansion, has earned a grade of “F” from the National Rifle Association Political Victory Fund, and voted in support of the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child, which pro‐family groups say would give the United Nations highly intrusive and unconstitutional powers over American families.
The idea for the establishment of the TCF originated with Dr. Eric Stamper, a Hendersonville Optometrist and cofounder of the tea party group Sumner United for Responsible Government (SURG). It is modeled after the highly successful Senate Conservatives Fund, which has helped many conservatives win Senate primaries over better funded “establishment” candidates. Says Stamper, “There are some really great races throughout the state, but unless you reside or work in that immediate area, you probably haven’t even heard of most of the candidates. We hope to drive attention, and thereby, financial support and volunteers to these great races.” Chairwoman and current State Representative Lynn says, “Our goals are to elect strong constitutional conservatives to replace liberal incumbents by building awareness and momentum in a selected number of races.”
