Donald Trump touts endorsement wins in Tennessee, calls Gov. Bill Lee a RINO
By: Melissa Brown
Former President Donald Trump touted his endorsement wins in Tennessee and called Gov. Bill Lee a “RINO,” a Republican in Name Only, after the two endorsed competing candidates in a heated state Senate race.
Trump took the swing at Lee in a social media post when namechecking Bobby Harshbarger, the Kingsport pharmacist who toppled incumbent state Sen. Jon Lundberg, R-Bristol, the powerful chair of the Senate Education Committee.
Harshbarger, the son of U.S. Rep. Diana Harshbarger, had nabbed a Trump endorsement in the race while Lee backed Lundberg, one of the more influential senators at the General Assembly and a key ally in his quest to establish a statewide school voucher program.
“I went 10 for 10 on endorsements tonight in the Great State of Tennessee, including Bobby Harshbarger, running against a strong, long-term incumbent supported by RINO Governor Bill Lee. A Great Day for Tennessee — now on to a Complete and Total Victory in November. MAGA 2024,” Trump posted on Truth Social following the election.
The comment highlights Trump’s willingness to lash out, even at allies. Lee, a deeply conservative Republican who chairs the Republican Governors Association, has backed Trump, though he declined to weigh into the presidential primary this year before Trump was confirmed as the nominee. Lee even traveled to Milwaukee in July to help kick off the Republican National Convention.
“I certainly respect President Trump’s decisions to weigh in to races,” Lee told The Tennessean in Milwaukee when asked if he wished Trump hadn’t waded into a local race. “That being said, I’m grateful for Jon Lundberg’s work and what he’s done to work with us. I’ll continue to do everything I can to make sure he gets reelected.”
The Senate District 4 race was heated from the start.
Harshbarger is the subject of a complaint with the Tennessee Registry of Election Finance alleging coordination with political action committee East Tennessee Conservatives PAC, which sent text messages attacking Lundberg. The PAC shares a treasurer with Congresswoman Harshbarger’s campaign.
Meanwhile, Senate leadership dumped money into Lundberg’s campaign, eager to shore up support for the longtime incumbent and powerful education chair. Lundberg, who carried Lee’s school voucher bill in the upper chamber earlier this year, was also backed by pro-voucher groups.
Harshbarger does not support vouchers.
Lundberg at the time brushed off the Trump endorsement, saying his rival “called his mom to bail out his failing campaign,” the Tennessee Journal reported.
The East Tennessee Senate race was illustrative of ongoing trends in Republican politics in the Volunteer State, as GOP candidates race their competitors to the right on the political spectrum, bolstering ultra-conservative bona fides while attempting to paint their opponents as weak on conservative issues, RINOs or “woke.”
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