Tennessee state leaders announced Friday morning that the state will partner with Turning Point USA, a conservative nonprofit founded by the late Charlie Kirk.
Those state officials announced at an event at the Tennessee State Capitol that there would be Club America chapters, student-led organizations affiliated with Turning Point USA, at every high school in the state.
U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., who is running for Tennessee governor, and state Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson, R-Franklin, spoke at the event announcing the partnership. No media was invited, but a 30-minute video was posted on Rumble, a social media platform that’s particularly popular with right-wing creators.
Gov. Bill Lee appeared in a video that was played at the event.
“I am encouraged to see significant interest from Tennessee students in starting Club America chapters, an effort that will give students an opportunity to respectfully engage in the issues that shape our country,” Lee said.
Lee’s office did not return a request for comment asking about the terms of the partnership, specifically if schools would be required to have club chapters and how the state would work with schools to implement them, where money to fund the partnership would come from, or how much it might cost.
“I’m proud to be here on behalf of Gov. Lee to make this very, very special announcement,” Johnson said at the event. “Today, we are announcing that the state of Tennessee is forming a partnership with Turning Point USA, with a shared goal of establishing Turning Point chapters at every high school, every college, every university campus in our great state, in honor of Charlie Kirk.”
Turning Point USA, based in Arizona, endorsed Blackburn for governor Dec. 5. The senator posted a video Wednesday about the endorsement.
“One of the things that I so appreciated, having conversations with Charlie Kirk about, was the importance of robust, respectful, bipartisan debate,” Blackburn said at the Capitol event. “Our nation has stayed free and strong for 250 years. Now, what has underpinned that? It has been the ability of people to come to the public square, to talk about their point of view and to listen to the person who had the counterpoint and the opposing view.”
Riley Gaines, a former college swimmer and opponent of transgender athletes in women’s sports, first talked about the partnership between the state and the conservative nonprofit in November at an event at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, as reported by the Chattanooga Times Free Press.
A spokesperson from Lee’s office and Turning Point USA did not respond to questions about the partnership when asked in November.
Gaines, a Turning Point USA contributor who also attended Friday’s event, said she hopes other red states like Tennessee will establish partnerships with Turning Point USA. This week, Texas announced a similar partnership. Florida has one as well.
Tennessee really going to elect Blackburn for governor aren't they?
She's been so terrible for so long even I know her name and don't live there.