Sen. Mae Beavers Archives - Tennessee Star

Mae Beavers Wins Gubernatorial Straw Poll At Rep. Andy Holt’s 2nd Annual Hogfest

September 27, 2017September 27, 2017 Laura Baigert

DRESDEN, Tennessee – Following his 2nd Annual Hogfest and Turkey Shoot fundraiser held Saturday at the Holt Family Farm in Dresden, Representative Andy Holt released the results of the gubernatorial straw poll today on his Facebook page, which showed Sen. Mae Beavers took 44 percent of the votes. According to the Facebook post, the straw poll was done “to determine the following question: ‘If the 2018 Election for Tennessee Governor were held today, I would vote for.’” The post went on to say, And the straw poll results are as follows: 44% – Mae Beavers 25% – Bill Lee 24% – Beth Harwell 6% – Diane Black 1% – Karl Dean 0% – Randy Boyd 0% – Craig Fitzhugh During the event, Holt announced that he extended an invitation to the event to all the candidates, but just three – Mae Beavers, Beth Harwell and Bill Lee – actually attended. In his comments, Holt said of the gubernatorial candidates, “Only three took the time this evening to be with us. I hope you take that into consideration when you cast your vote.” More than 100 attendees traveled from around the state to the rural Holt Family Farm, several of whom…

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Randy Boyd Only Gubernatorial Candidate Not Represented at Knox County GOP Forum

September 22, 2017September 22, 2017 Laura Baigert

KNOXVILLE, Tennessee – At the Knox County Republican Party Gubernatorial Candidate Forum held Monday evening at the Knoxville Expo Center, five of the six candidates were represented. Sen. Mae Beavers, Speaker Beth Harwell and Kay White appeared in person, while Congressman Diane Black and Bill Lee had surrogates. Randy Boyd was the only candidate not represented and no public explanation was offered for the absence. Knox County GOP Chair Buddy Burkhardt told The Tennessee Star that Boyd had a “prior commitment” and Lee had a fund raiser. Burkhardt also told The Star that he would only be involved in such an event if it was organized to provide all candidates an equal opportunity. Scheduled from 5 to 7 p.m., the event started with about 30 minutes of the candidates mingling with attendees followed by comments one at a time at the on-stage podium. The remainder of the event was to be another period of one-on-one time with the candidates, but the event quickly broke up after the formal comments segment. Brief stump speeches were made to an audience of approximately 100, the majority of whom were elected officials, candidates or campaign staff and volunteers, including State Representatives Martin Daniel, Roger…

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Mae Beavers Tells The Beacon Center She Will Drain the Swamp: ‘We May Need An Inspector General in Every Department in Tennessee’

August 29, 2017August 29, 2017 Wendy Wilson

State Senator Mae Beavers (R-Mt. Juliet) told the Beacon Center of Tennessee on Friday she supports President Trump’s efforts to drain the swamp in Washington, D.C., and intends to do the same thing in Nashville if elected governor. “We may need an inspector general in every department in Tennessee. I’m talking about draining the swamp, and if there’s anybody worthy of being rehired, we’ll rehire them, but I think we’ve got a lot of problems that need to be solved,” Beavers said. “I know what I want to do day one, and I have the record to prove I will do those things,” she noted. “I’m the most conservative [candidate] in the race. I have the track record. I have the voting record to back up everything that I’m saying,” Beavers added. Voted “most bashful” in high school, Beavers never imagined herself entering politics. But then one day her husband, frustrated with local politics, came home from work and announced, “I am so fed up. We’ve got to get involved. One of us has to run for office and I don’t have time.” Beavers was going to school at night, so her husband managed to find enough time to knock…

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Gubernatorial Candidate Mae Beavers Says Tennessee GOP ‘Losing Its Way in Nashville’

August 24, 2017August 23, 2017 Wendy Wilson

Tennessee Star

MT. JULIET, Tennessee — In traveling across the state to campaign for governor, Mae Beavers has encountered “an increasing anxiety” about Republicans not governing based on conservative principles, she told reporters Wednesday. Despite the dominance of Tennessee Republicans in the governor’s office and both chambers of the state legislature, the GOP is “losing its way in Nashville,” Beavers said. Beavers was at Mt. Juliet City Hall Wednesday afternoon to announce that she will not serve the remainder of her term as state senator so that she can give full attention to her gubernatorial campaign. Beavers (R-Mt. Juliet) used the opportunity to also talk about the “discontent” and “skepticism” in the state about Republicans campaigning as conservatives but then going against conservative principles once in office. “Many citizens feel they’re strangers in their own state, that their values, their way of life, their history and heritage and home are under assault,” said Beavers, a strong supporter of President Trump who has said in the past that she hopes to pull off an underdog win just like he did. “But I can tell you that there’s also a mighty wind of cheerful determination to hold the line on taxes and regulations,…

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BREAKING: Tennessee State Senator Mae Beavers to Resign Legislative Seat to Focus on Campaign for Governor

August 23, 2017August 23, 2017 Wendy Wilson

MT. JULIET, Tennessee — State Senator Mae Beavers announced Wednesday that she will resign her seat in the state legislature to focus on her campaign for governor of Tennessee. Beavers (R-Mt. Juliet) said that she will deliver her letter of resignation to Gov. Bill Haslam and Lt. Gov. Randy McNally on Wednesday, August 30. The resignation will be effective Friday, September 1 at noon. Beavers made her announcement at Mt. Juliet City Hall Wednesday afternoon. In a press release, which was given earlier in the day exclusively to The Tennessee Star, Beavers said she has “mixed emotions” about resigning but said she believed it to be the best decision for her and for her constituents. By resigning now, a special election can be held later this year to ensure that Beavers’ 17th District has a “fully focused representative in place the day that session begins,” the press release said. “I have always taken my duties in the state legislature extremely seriously, and I have concluded that it is simply not possible for anyone to run a statewide grassroots campaign while effectively serving during legislative session,” Beavers said in the release. Beavers is known for her tenacious socially and fiscally…

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Gubernatorial Candidates Beavers and Black Consistently Support Bills to Curb Illegal Immigration, But a Key Bill Sets Them Apart

August 8, 2017August 8, 2017 Chris Alto

Tennessee Star

On the issue of illegal immigration, gubernatorial candidates Mae Beavers and Diane Black both consistently vote for bills intended to curb illegal immigration. However, in 2001, a Democrat controlled legislature passed HB983, a bill which allowed driver’s licenses to be issued to someone without a social security number enabling illegal aliens to obtain a Tennessee drivers license. It was estimated that more than 180,000 licenses were issued after the law was passed. Beavers voted against HB983 while Black voted for it. Black doesn’t deny voting for the bill, but explained it as “an unintended consequence of a bill that was supposed to allow legal immigrants to get licenses and co-sponsored legislation to repeal it.” Just months after Tennessee’s legislative session concluded, the 9/11 terrorist attack occurred and the question of easy access to state driver’s licenses was highlighted by the FBI raising the same question in state legislatures around the country, including Tennessee. This prompted a bill at the start of Tennessee’s next legislative session to fully repeal the illegal alien driver’s license bill. Even though the bill was not passed, both Beavers and Black signed on as co-sponsors and both voted for it. In 2004, the Tennessee General Assembly and the Governor’s office…

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State Rep. Bryan Terry and State Rep. Dawn White Host Rutherford County GOP ‘Empowering Women’ Event

July 11, 2017July 11, 2017 Wendy Wilson

MURFREESBORO, Tennessee — In high school, Mae Beavers was voted “most bashful” by her classmates. She never envisioned becoming active in politics and those who knew her couldn’t have imagined it, either, Beavers related Monday at the fourth annual “Empowering Women” event sponsored by the Rutherford County GOP. The hosts of Monday’s event were State Representatives Dawn White and Bryan Terry, both Murfreesboro Republicans. The longtime conservative state legislator, who is now a gubernatorial candidate, shared her story to encourage other women to get involved in politics, echoing the theme of the evening. “We’ve got some leadership issues in this state,” said State Senator Beavers (R-Mt. Juliet) in her brief presentation. Monday’s event, held at the SportsCom, featured several speakers who spoke about various ways women can make a difference. “Not everybody can run for office, but what you can do is get behind people who need you,” said keynote speaker Rebecca Ann Burke, Tennessee Republican Party state executive committee woman for Senate District 23. Known for her enthusiastic efforts to help other conservatives get elected, Burke recently campaigned for Karen Handel in her Georgia congressional race. “They’re saying Karen Handel’s race was won in the last two weeks by…

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Speaker Beth Harwell Keynote Speaker at Grainger County GOP Lincoln Day Dinner

June 27, 2017June 26, 2017 Laura Baigert

Tennessee Star

RUTLEDGE, Tennessee – The Grainger County Republican Party had an impressive turnout of about 150 people at their Lincoln Day Dinner on Saturday, June 24 held in the nicely decorated Grainger County High School cafeteria, that featured Speaker Beth Harwell (R-Nashville) as the keynote speaker. Harwell was introduced by Sen. Frank Nicely (R-Strawberry Plains) during the Legislative Welcome by him and Rep. Jerry Sexton (R-Bean Station). Nicely’s comments were limited to “making everyone mad” as he put it, by saying that if she decides to run, he would be supporting Beth Harwell for governor. Speaker Harwell spoke on the three pillars of the Republican Party: That Government is best which lives within its means; that government is best which governs least; and, that government is best which is closest to the people. While she provided examples of where she thinks Tennessee has succeeded in those areas, the politically engaged would have plenty of material to critique in terms of Harwell omitting the recent fuel tax and fee increases of the IMPROVE Act, the backstory as to who supported or tried to subvert the legislative advances she cited, and how much work remains to fully live up to the three pillars. The agenda also…

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Mae Beavers at Grainger County GOP Lincoln Day Dinner: ‘Illegals Are Costing Us Somewhere Between $400 to $600 Million A Year’

June 26, 2017June 25, 2017 Laura Baigert

RUTLEDGE, Tennessee — In her remarks as a gubernatorial candidate at the Grainger County Republican Party Lincoln Day Dinner Saturday night, Sen. Mae Beavers (R-Mt. Juliet) relayed her strong voting record against special privileges for illegal aliens, and reported that, “Illegals are costing us somewhere between $400 to $600 million a year for education, for food stamps, for housing, for all those things that we have to pick up after Catholic Charities and other organizations bring them in here.” Beavers shared that Donald Trump’s stance on illegal immigration was one of the main reasons she decided to support him for president. She went on to be an at-large delegate for Trump, garnering more votes than any other delegate, and was later elected by the Tennessee delegation as the state’s delegation chair, an honor usually reserved for the governor of the state. In light of the recent controversy over two Metro Nashville/Davidson County ordinances that would make Nashville the most liberal sanctuary city in the United States Beavers noted that she voted for the 2009 bill that made sanctuary cities illegal in Tennessee. “That’s been in the news the past few days with Nashville and Nashville’s Mayor pushing sanctuary cities,” Beavers…

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Marsha Blackburn: ‘People Not Believing Evening News Is A Really Good Thing,’ Credits The Tennessee Star For Being ‘Reliable’

June 24, 2017June 24, 2017 Laura Baigert

WOODBURY, Tennessee — U.S. Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn (R-TN-7), speaking to a group of 125 at the Cannon County Reagan Day Dinner held at the Rustic Elegance Event Center in Woodbury Friday evening, said that the American people don’t believe what they hear on the evening news, and that’s “a really good thing.” Blackburn was introduced by one-time fellow Tennessee House colleague, gubernatorial candidate and State Senator for the district Mae Beavers (R-Mt. Juliet), who later spoke about her campaign platform, as did fellow candidate and Franklin businessman Bill Lee. Representatives Mark Pody (R-Lebanon) and Judd Matheny (R-Tullahoma), also gave brief remarks at the event. Referencing a survey of 3,000 people, Blackburn said 70 percent said “no” to the question of whether they believe what they hear from the evening news. She blamed that on the fact that they are simply not reliable, in contrast to a reliable news outlet “like The Tennessee Star.” After pointing out that if the evening news is not believable, the next question is who do they believe. Blackburn gave a message of optimism in pointing out that the answer is “Y-O-U.” “They believe their well-informed friends and neighbors. People they trust and know. Not Fox,…

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Despite Washington Shootings, Republican Leadership Not Requesting Review of Security at Tennessee’s Legislative Facilities

June 19, 2017June 18, 2017 Laura Baigert

Despite the horrific attack in suburban Washington D.C. on Republican legislators, regular protests at Tennessee’s legislative plaza and death threats made against at least two Tennessee legislators, there have been no requests by legislative leadership for additional review of security procedures, in general, or the Cordell Hull Building, specifically, as the legislature prepares to move there from Legislative Plaza/War Memorial Building later this year. The Tennessee Star requests for comment from Lt. Gov. Randy McNally (R-Oak Ridge) and Speaker Beth Harwell (R-Nashville) as to whether they had requested a security review in light of these events, were referred to their respective communications person, and, in turn, referred to Connie Ridley, Director, Office of Legislative Administration. Ms. Ridley’s response began with reassurance, “The General Assembly takes the security of members, staff and the general public seriously,” but continued generically, We review our policies and procedures and make updates as appropriate on an ongoing basis. As you might expect, a thorough evaluation of all our security policies and procedures is a large part of the ongoing transition process to our new facility. There has been cause for concern at the current facility, starting with a change this year to the security policy where…

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State Senate Candidate Mark Pody Calls The IMPROVE Act ‘Washington Politics’

June 15, 2017June 14, 2017 Laura Baigert

MOUNT JULIET, Tennessee — At his first public speaking engagement since announcing, in an exclusive interview with The Tennessee Star, his candidacy for the State Senate seat Mae Beavers (R-Mt. Juliet) will be leaving to run for the Republican nomination for governor in 2018, Rep. Mark Pody (R-Lebanon) called the IMPROVE Act “Washington politics” for the way numerous issues were combined in one bill without an “up or down” vote on each individually. At the Americans For Prosperity Town Hall held in Mt. Juliet on Monday evening with Field Director Shawn Hatmaker and attended by more than 30 people to honor and appreciate Rep. Pody and Sen. Beavers for their vote against the gas tax increasing IMPROVE Act, Rep. Pody’s comments on the recently concluded legislative session focused largely on the IMPROVE Act. Using four different colored packs of sweeteners and sugar, Rep. Pody gave a visual demonstration of the IMPROVE Act when he ripped the packets open and poured them out together, alluding to the separate and unrelated issues in the bill (HB534), saying “They all came out white,” and they then had to “Vote on that, whether there was some good or some bad. That’s what DC does.” “As…

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Gubernatorial Candidate Mae Beavers on the Gas Tax Increasing IMPROVE Act: ‘The Joke Is On The People Who Put the Plan Together’

June 14, 2017June 13, 2017 Laura Baigert

MOUNT JULIET, Tennessee — Gubernatorial candidate Sen. Mae Beavers at an Americans For Prosperity Town Hall meeting Monday evening honoring her and Rep. Mark Pody for voting against the gas tax, said “I think the joke is on the people who put the plan together.” Sen. Beavers was referring to the IMPROVE Act, 4 cent gas and 6 cent diesel tax increases set to go into effect July 1 and then an additional 1 cent and 2 cents, respectively, on July 1, 2018, just before the state primaries are held on August 2, 2018. Given the results of the recent Tennessee Star poll where 48.1 percent of likely Republican primary voters responded that they were more likely to support a gubernatorial candidate who promises to repeal, Sen. Beavers may be right about the impact to State House and Senate incumbents who voted for the gas tax. Sen. Beavers is the only one of three declared gubernatorial candidates who is making the repeal of the gas tax a major topic of her campaign platform. “Most of you know, I was around for the state income tax fight, and this was completely different,” said Beavers of the IMPROVE Act. “It seems like…

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Both Shrewd And Sweet, Mae Beavers Has Adoring Fans In Her Bid For Governor

June 4, 2017June 4, 2017 Wendy Wilson

Tennessee Star

MT. JULIET, Tennessee–State Sen. Mae Beavers may be nicknamed the Iron Lady, but she’s not without her soft side. “She and her husband are sweet, loving, caring people,” said Mike Dunn, who attended her rally Saturday afternoon at which the Mt. Juliet Republican formally announced that she will run for Tennessee governor. Dunn told The Tennessee Star that he has known the Beavers for years and used to attend church with them. He was at Saturday’s event at Mt. Juliet’s Charlie Daniels Park with his two sons, 12-year-old Brennan and 11-year-old Jackson. Dunn also likes it that Beavers is tough-minded and won’t back down from positions she believes in. “She’s never afraid to go against the grain,” he said. Beavers gave a speech at the rally in which she said she would fight to repeal the gas tax and strengthen vetting for refugees coming into the state. She also said she would push to maintain school bathrooms based on biological sex and support pro-life causes and the definition of marriage as one man and one woman per the Tennessee Constitution. Supporters waved American flags and snacked on refreshments that included Mae Sugar Cookies shaped in the letter M. Her three…

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Soon-to-Announce Gubernatorial Candidate Mae Beavers Tells WWTN Audience ‘We’re In It To Win’

May 30, 2017May 29, 2017 Laura Baigert

Tennessee Star

In an interview with WTN 99.7’s Pamela Furr, who was standing in for Ralph Bristol on Memorial Day, State Senator Mae Beavers (R-Mt. Juliet), demonstrating resolve to her pending gubernatorial campaign said on two occasions, “We’re in it to win.” Saturday evening, after hosting the monthly Wilson County Conservative Republicans meeting and attending a Memorial Day service at The Stone Church in Alexandria, Sen. Beavers issued a press release stating she plans to announce her campaign for governor on June 3. Due to a scheduling conflict in her district, Sen. Beavers was not able to attend the Rutherford County Republican Party Reagan Day Dinner last Thursday, where four other stated or expected candidates for governor participated in a forum, U.S. Rep. Diane Black (District 6), Governor Haslam’s former state Economic and Community Development Commissioner Randy Boyd, state Senator Mark Green R-Clarksville) and businessman Bill Lee. The full transcript of the interview can be found below. Pamela Furr: You prayerfully decided to do it. Sen. Mae Beavers: Well, Pamela, you know I think that when we pray about something, I think we’ve got to commit it to the Lord and just put our faith in Him, and I think he’ll…

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Seven Republican Candidates For Governor To Speak At Rutherford County Event

May 18, 2017May 18, 2017 Wendy Wilson

Republican candidates for Tennessee governor will speak at this year’s Reagan Day Dinner sponsored by the Rutherford County GOP. The lineup for the May 25 event will include seven “announced and expected Republican gubernatorial candidates,” according to promotional material. They include businessmen Randy Boyd and Bill Lee, Congresswoman Diane Black, State Senators Mark Green (R-Clarksville), Mark Norris (R-Collierville) and Mae Beavers (R-Mt. Juliet), and Speaker of the State House of Representatives Beth Harwell (R-Nashville). Only Boyd and Lee have announced to date. Part of the mission of local chapters of the Republican Party is to inform voters about candidates running for office, said Donna Barrett, chair of the Rutherford County GOP. “What better way than to have the candidates present at functions where we can personally hear where they stand on issues?” Barrett told The Tennessee Star. On the most important state issues in 2017, the gas tax increase included in the IMPROVE Act passed by the Tennessee General Assembly and signed by Gov. Haslam, the seven announced and expected Republican gubernatorial candidates hold positions that range from support to opposition to no comment so far. State Senator Mark Norris and Speaker of the House Beth Harwell voted yes…

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