Shane Reeves’ initial mail pieces and television spots in the special election for the 14th District State Senate seat vacated by former State Senator Jim Tracy (R-Shelbyville) highlight his support for Presidential Donald Trump and his anti-Establishment agenda. However, an examination of Reeves’ record finds scant evidence of support for President Trump either during the Tennessee Presidential primary election or during last year’s general election.
While Reeves has a record of supporting moderate candidates in Tennessee and nationally with campaign contributions, including Tennessee Senators Bob Corker and Lamar Alexander, and 2012 Presidential nominee Mitt Romney, there is no record at the Federal Election Commission of Reeves making any contribution to President Donald Trump in 2016.
Reeves has also made a contribution to, and endorsed, self described “moderate” Republican candidate for Governor Randy Boyd.
As reported by The Tennessee Star in November 2016, then ECD Commissioner Randy Boyd directed a million dollar “fast track” grant to Reeves’ company. Then, once Boyd left ECD to pursue his campaign for Governor, Reeves donated $5000 to Boyd through his PAC — and endorsed him during a campaign stop in Murfreesboro.
The Boyd-Reeves connection is particularly relevant to Reeves’ campaign claim of support for President Trump and his agenda because of Boyd’s solid record of opposition to Trump. During the 2016 campaign Boyd “disavowed” Trump.
Randy Boyd, like Shane Reeves, also refused to donate money to Donald Trump’s campaign, though Boyd went further and said supporting Trump would be “anathema” to him. Boyd and Reeves both stopped short of being as anti-Trump as Governor Bill Haslam, who indicated that he would not even vote for Trump as the Republican nominee. However, Boyd recently hosted a fundraiser with Jeb Bush who, along with his family members, continues to revel in their anti-Trump status.
Reeves’ close ties to Boyd may also undercut his “conservative” tag, which is often repeated but not substantiated in any of his campaign ads. Boyd made a $250,000 donation to Conexion Americas in 2016, a group associated with La Raza, whose co-founder helped organize the anti-Trump #INDIVISIBLE campaign. Nevertheless, Reeves claims to support “real immigration reform,” though he fails to explain what he means by that.
Reeves also claims to support “tax cuts” in a recent mail piece, yet he has balked at supporting repeal of the gasoline tax passed in 2017. Boyd, too, has refused to support repeal of the gasoline tax increase.
Reeves turned down an opportunity to interview with The Tennessee Star in early November and share his views on the issues likely to emerge during the campaign.
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Political observers have been struck by how his recent mail piece appears to be directed at Democrat voters due to the intentionally “blue” color scheme. “Because the Democrats don’t have a contested election for this primary, with only one candidate in their field, Reeves strategy appears to be intended to attract crossover Democrat votes into the Republican primary,” one noted campaign consultant not involved with either the Reeves or Joe Carr campaign pointed out. “With a low turnout special election in January, a few hundred crossover Democrat votes could swing the primary election to the more moderate Reeves and block the more staunchly conservative Carr from winning the seat.”
In fact, Reeves’ recent campaign fundraising events seem to support that analysis, with several notable Democrats listed among those supporting Reeves.
Early voting in the Republican primary starts Friday, January 5, with the primary election day set for January 25.
Reeves faces former State Rep. Joe Carr (R-Lascassas) in the Republican primary.
The winner will face the Democratic nominee in a general election to be held in March.
FACTS
1) Joe Carr was elected as a statewide Cruz delegate to the GOP Convention receiving more statewide votes than any other Cruz delegate in Tennessee
2) Joe raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the Trump Campaign after Cruz bowed out
3) Joe helped raise money for the Lift the Vote Campaign to educate Christians on their choices in the November Election
4) Shane Reeves endorsed Lamar Alexander in 2014, always supported Corker and now has given the Randy Boyd Campaign a $5000 contribution after receiving a $1million taxpayer funded ECD grant.
Anybody else notice the mailer where it says he “I support eliminating bureaucracy, tax cuts…” So he wants to eliminate tax cuts?
Carr did not either. https://www.fec.gov/data/receipts/?two_year_transaction_period=2016&data_type=processed&committee_id=C00580100&contributor_name=Joe+Carr&min_date=01%2F01%2F2015&max_date=12%2F31%2F2016
Bless your very, very middle of the road heart Misty, perhaps I can help. Joe Carr ran as a Ted Cruz delegate to the Republican National Convention, a position that was consistent with Joe’s record as an outspoken conservative activist.
Now we learn that I wasn’t entirely correct when I said that Shane has absolutely no political record, rather thanks to the efforts of the Tennessee Star we learn that he does have a teeny-tiny political record, viz. close connection to the most liberal elements of the Republican Party. Gambling in Casablanca, tepid conservative/centrist Shane running to stop the election of conservative Joe Carr, I’m shocked, SHOCKED!
Stuie, I am not in the middle of the road. But when a story is published on a candidate casting a negative light on him by not making contributions to Trump it should be cited that his opponent did not either.
So Joe ran in another race? And lost? As a delegate for Cruz? Well he is good at one thing, failed campaigns. He will have another one at the end of the month.
Way back when I had a girl friend who I used to call, as an endearment, “Wrong Again” for obvious reasons. What brings this to mind is that you are not “exactly right” so I will once again help. As a matter of fact, Joe ran successfully as a Cruz delegate and was easily elected.
If its not terminal middle of the roadism or flat-out liberalism, there is something in your psyche that causes you to pay an inordinate amount of attention to the unimportant. For example, the gist of the article is that Four ‘Conservative’ per 30 Seconds (or Six per 60) Shane Reeves is attempting to misrepresent himself to the voters as a conservative when in fact the few feeble indicators of his political philosophy show him to be a rather consistent tepid conservative/centrist. I would think that your well developed ability to register rightful indignation should cause you condemn Reeves for misrepresentation rather than to continuously pick on the next State Senator from the 14th District, Joe Carr.
Stui, your attachment to “wrong again” relationships in personal and political are unfortunate. If anyone needs help it would be you. Your myopic view of candidates are leading to a dangerous path, such as Bannon’s.