Just a few years after boasting about how transgender surgeries were “huge money makers,” Vanderbilt University Medical Center will no longer perform the procedures.
The Nashville-based health care center confirmed to The Daily Wire that the surgeries, which include procedures like crafting pseudo-genitalia for gender-confused individuals and removing the breasts of women who identify as men, were being phased out for logistical reasons.
“Due to operational limitations and lack of surgical coverage, Vanderbilt Health will cease providing gender-affirming plastic surgeries for adults,” a spokesman for the hospital told The Daily Wire. “Vanderbilt Health continues to provide nonsurgical gender-affirming care for adults 19 years and older. Vanderbilt Health does not provide any gender-affirming care for patients younger than 19.”
Vanderbilt University Medical Center, also known as Vanderbilt Health, is a separate entity from Vanderbilt University.
The hospital’s transgender medical program first <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/huge-money-maker-video-reveals-vanderbilts-shocking-gender-care-threats-against-dissenting-doctors">faced criticism</a> in September 2022 when Daily Wire host Matt Walsh published videos highlighting comments from Dr. Shayne Sebold Taylor discussing how lucrative transgender surgeries were.
“It’s a lot of money,” said Taylor, the program’s director at the time. “These surgeries make a lot of money.”
Taylor discussed how “chest reconstruction” could bring in $40,000 per patient and described “female-to-male bottom surgeries” — where a fake penis is constructed by taking skin from the forearm, abdomen, and thigh — as “huge money makers.”
“These surgeries are labor intensive, there are a lot of follow-ups, they require a lot of our time, and they make money,” Taylor said. “They make money for the hospital.”
Vanderbilt Health&#8217;s transgender center opened in 2018, and Taylor <a href="https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/health/2018/08/21/vanderbilt-transgender-health-clinic-nashville-tennessee/1054571002/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> its purpose was “to coordinate” patients&#8217; “care wherever they are in the transition process.”
Taylor has since left VUMC and now runs a primary care center in Massachusetts and <a href="https://www.bluecanyonprimarycare.com/about">describes</a> herself as an expert in “general LGBTQ Health and Adolescent Medicine.”
The investigation from Walsh prompted a statewide probe from Republican officials who moved quickly to pass a ban on transgender procedures for kids. That ban was challenged by the ACLU, but was upheld in June 2025 by the Supreme Court.
Over two dozen states have passed laws to shield minors from transgender surgeries and hormonal procedures. The Trump administration has come down hard on hospitals that offer transgender procedures to kids, pulling federal funding and initiating investigations into hospitals across the country.
One <a href="https://wapp.capitol.tn.gov/apps/BillInfo/Default?BillNumber=HB2498&amp;GA=114">bill</a> currently making its way through the Tennessee legislature would prohibit dollars from TennCare, the state’s health funding program for impoverished people, from funding transgender procedures.

Four Surgeons discuss each Other Surgical Precision and Healthcare Expertise  before the Operation case

After Boasting About $40K Trans Surgeries, Vanderbilt Health Reverses Course

Nashville

Social Issues

Tennessee

Transgender

transgender surgery

U.S.

Lights! Camera! How-dee!
The city of Los Angeles is losing film and TV productions at an alarming rate. That opens up new opportunities for cities to prove that La La Land can hunker down just about anywhere.
Take Nashville, for instance. Other non-L.A. destinations have made their mark as production hubs — think Atlanta, Georgia, and Toronto. Now, it may be Nashville’s turn in the spotlight.
The Tennessee locale is known as a country music Mecca. More recently, it’s welcomed a growing group of filmmakers who clamor for its talented locals, rich cultural history and, yes, a lower price tag than the City of Angels.
Think “9-1-1: Nashville,” Showtime’s “George &amp; Tammy,” Nicole Kidman’s “Holland” and the upcoming “Scarpetta” (Prime Video), Netflix’s “Ruth &amp; Boaz,” and a film opening Feb. 20, “I Can Only Imagine 2.”
<div id="attachment_1047423" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1047423" class="size-large wp-image-1047423" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Nashville-911-864x576.jpg" alt="Ryan Murphy Television. User Error Productions. 20Th Television." width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Nashville-911-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Nashville-911-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Nashville-911-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Nashville-911-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Nashville-911-1800x1200.jpg 1800w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Nashville-911-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Nashville-911.jpg 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />Nashville 911. Ryan Murphy Television. User Error Productions. 20th Television.</div>
The sequel to the sleeper 2018 hit revisits how MercyMe became a Christian music sensation, and the struggles lead singer Bart Millard (John Michael Finley) had following his breakthrough hit.
Co-Founder of Kingdom Story Co. and co-director of the film Andrew Erwin, a pioneer in the faith-based film space, tells The Daily Wire why he tackled the sequel.
“It’s the movie that you didn’t know you needed,” he says. The first film appeared to wrap Bart Millard’s story up, but the singer and his fellow musician Tim Timmons — played by Milo Ventimiglia in the film — suffered subsequent tragedies that made a follow-up film make sense.
<div id="attachment_1047439" style="width: 875px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1047439" class="size-large wp-image-1047439" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Milo-Mercy-Me-865x576.jpg" alt="Photo by Jake Giles Netter/Lionsgate/Jake Giles Netter/Lionsgate - copyright 2026 Lionsgate" width="865" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Milo-Mercy-Me-865x576.jpg 865w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Milo-Mercy-Me-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Milo-Mercy-Me-768x511.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Milo-Mercy-Me-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Milo-Mercy-Me-1800x1200.jpg 1800w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Milo-Mercy-Me-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Milo-Mercy-Me.jpg 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 865px) 100vw, 865px" />Jake Giles Netter/copyright 2026 Lionsgate</div>
And Nashville has proven to be particularly welcoming to Christian artists. That wasn’t the case back in Los Angeles, Erwin said.
“There’s a group of us that started doing faith stories 15, 20 years ago, and we were all struggling to get our feet under us,” Erwin says. “We could literally end any dinner party in L.A. by saying we were faith film guys. They would instantly get a fake phone call and walk out of the meeting.”
Entertainment culture started to swing in their spiritual direction.
“Something has shifted in the past 10 years, particularly in the last five … there has been an appetite for hope. Stories of faith were considered cheesy. Now, they’re counter-culture, rebellious. It’s kind of punk rock.”
<div id="attachment_1047343" style="width: 394px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1047343" class="size-large wp-image-1047343" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2261337233-384x576.jpg" alt="NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - FEBRUARY 12: Andrew Erwin attends the &quot;I Can Only Imagine 2&quot; Nashville Premiere at The Fisher Center for the Performing Arts on February 12, 2026 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Jason Kempin/Getty Images)" width="384" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2261337233-384x576.jpg 384w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2261337233-200x300.jpg 200w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2261337233.jpg 683w" sizes=" (max-width: 384px) 100vw, 384px" />Jason Kempin/Getty Images</div>
What better place than Music City to sing from their storytelling hymnals?
“There’s been a real freedom here,” says Erwin, who even bumps into fellow filmmakers at church. “You don’t have to apologize for us being able to do things that we believe.”
“For whatever reason, a group of actors and writers and directors and producers are all finding (Nashville),” he continues. “I can’t give a reason why … we just feel like we’re supposed to be here.”
“I Can Only Imagine 2” filmed exclusively in Nashville, save a critical sequence shot at Colorado’s Red Rocks Amphitheater. The veteran filmmaker was initially hesitant to lean so heavily on Nashville, but the film’s team assuaged those fears.
“We had been worried if the crews were strong enough … it was the best crew I ever had … the most cheerful, the most team-oriented, the least amount of divas, blue collar, everything you aspire to,” he says.
He still wants the state to beef up its incentive programs to grow that crew base and keep it steadily employed.
Nashville has an Oscar-winning benefactor on its side: Kidman is eager to make movies closer to her <a href="https://www.realtor.com/news/celebrity-real-estate/nicole-kidman-keith-urban-kids-divorce-custody-home/">Tennessee home</a>. 
<div id="attachment_1047431" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1047431" class="size-large wp-image-1047431" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Kidman-holland-1024x425.jpg" alt="Photo by Courtesy of Prime/Courtesy of Prime - copyright Amazon Content Services LLC" width="1024" height="425" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Kidman-holland-1024x425.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Kidman-holland-300x125.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Kidman-holland-768x319.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Kidman-holland-1536x638.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Kidman-holland.jpg 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Courtesy of Prime/Courtesy of Prime &#8211; copyright Amazon Content Services LLC</div>
Plus, newer studio space is helping smooth this transition. <a href="https://www.nashvillescene.com/arts_culture/coverstory/nashville-film-industry/article_b76671a9-cee1-44e5-84cb-6f30cf4fa99a.html">Recent Nashville-area additions</a> include Vu Studios in West Nashville, Worldwide Stages in Spring Hill, and Skyway Studios.
Erick Goss, CEO of the Christian streaming platform Minno, says Nashville has a cultural advantage.
“People recognize there’s a real creative community here in Nashville [already] with Christian and country music, a real appreciation of the arts,” says Goss, who established his kid-focused company in the city seven years ago.
“It’s not like institutions have moved here, but talent has moved here,” Goss says. “It’s different than Seattle or L.A. There’s a real sense of pride and civic nature here … people love what Nashville stands for and want to be a part of it.”
Some pieces of the Hollywood-like puzzle are still missing, he says.
“There are really world-class storytellers here in Nashville. They don’t necessarily have access to capital in the way they need,” he says.
Goss brings a wealth of experience to Minno, including time spent at Amazon and in the U.S. Military. He praises Nashville as having the “highest caliber” of talent he’s seen. What’s missing? Major tech companies that can complement the city’s blossoming production.
<div id="attachment_1047341" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1047341" class="size-large wp-image-1047341" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2261145346-864x576.jpg" alt="NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - FEBRUARY 13: (L-R) Tim Timmons, Milo Ventimiglia, Bart Millard, John Michael Finley and Trace Adkins attend Lionsgate's &quot;I Can Only Imagine 2&quot; Night at The Grand Ole Opry on February 13, 2026 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Terry Wyatt/Getty Images for Lionsgate)" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2261145346-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2261145346-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2261145346-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2261145346.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />Terry Wyatt/Getty Images for Lionsgate</div>
“What company will aggregate and bring that talent together?” he asks. “We need more talented operators coming into the systems, creating companies that execute really well,” he says, noting that Erwin’s “I Can Only Imagine 2” arrives courtesy of his partnership with Lionsgate, an established film studio.
The key to creating the next L.A.-style production hub is simple, Goss says.
“Get the best projects, the best people, and the best money together. That’s happening. We’re beginning to see these things coalesce [in Nashville],” he says.
Erwin says it helps to believe in both the city and a Higher Power.
“There’s an emboldening that happens when you realize you’re not alone. I can really stay true to the stories I’ve felt called to tell and not have to apologize for it because there are a lot of others who believe what I believe,” Erwin says. “It’s been amazing to see people of faith just find Nashville.”
* * *
Christian Toto is an award-winning journalist, movie critic, and editor of <a href="https://www.hollywoodintoto.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HollywoodInToto.com</a>. He previously served as associate editor with Breitbart News’ Big Hollywood. Follow him at <a href="https://www.hollywoodintoto.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HollywoodInToto.com</a>.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.
This article has been updated for clarity.

Only Imagine

Hollywood Heads South: Music City’s Faith-Based Film Boom

Bible

Entertainment

Faith

Film

Hollywood

Movies

A Tennessee court has overturned a judge’s decision to block the release of writings by the transgender-identifying woman who killed three children and three adults during an attack on a Christian school in Nashville in March 2023.
The Tennessee Court of Appeals <a href="https://www.tncourts.gov/sites/default/files/OpinionsPDFVersion/Majority%20Opinion%20-%20%20M2024-01139-COA-R3-CV.pdf">said</a> Wednesday that the city of Nashville must allow inspection of the writings of The Covenant School attacker under public record laws. In August 2024, Davidson County Judge I’Ashea Myles <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/conservative-publisher-appeals-decision-to-block-release-of-covenant-attackers-writings?author=Leif+Le+Mahieu&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Conservative+Publisher+Appeals+Decision+To+Block+Release+Of+Covenant+Attacker%E2%80%99s+Writings">ruled</a> that copyright claims put on the writings preempted public records requests.
“Construing the [Tennessee Public Records Act] broadly to promote access to public records, as we are required, we conclude that under these particular circumstances, the only overt action Metro must take to meet its obligation is to allow Petitioners access to the records for personal inspection,” the judges wrote. “Simply put, so long as Metro maintains the records, it must allow Petitioners access … for personal inspection.”
The writings of the shooter include journal entries made in the months leading up to the March 27, 2023, attack. After the attack, the Nashville Police Department refused to release the writings, citing an ongoing investigation. A group of parents whose children attended The Covenant School also intervened to block the release of the writings, citing a copyright claim to the materials granted by the attacker’s parents.
The parents and the school also said that releasing the attacker’s writings would cause school safety concerns, a position that Myles agreed with in her ruling.
“This conclusion strains credulity, and we are neither willing nor able to make the blind logical leap the Covenant Intervenors ask of us,” the appeals court said, noting that many of the writings were made years before the attack.
The judges also said that there was no school shooter manifesto exemption to public records law because of fears about the writings inspiring future attacks.
“Respectfully, this argument is rooted in speculation about potential future events, not facts present in the record before us. This is a policy debate not contemplated by, or anywhere mentioned in” public records law, the judges said.
The parties who sued for access to the writings included Tennessee Star publisher Michael Patrick Leahy, the Tennessee Firearms Association, The Tennessean, and the National Police Association. Leahy was represented by the America First Legal Foundation.
“This unanimous ruling by the Tennessee Court of Appeals is a major victory for freedom of the press, the people of the State of Tennessee, and The Tennessee Star,” Leahy <a href="https://tennesseestar.com/covenant-school-shooting/court-of-appeals-gives-the-tennessee-star-major-victory-in-covenant-manifesto-case/tpappert/2026/02/04/">said</a> of the ruling. “It is in the public interest for all of these documents to be released to us expeditiously, as the Court of Appeals ruled.”
Despite these efforts, portions of the shooter’s writings have already been released through the FBI and through media reports, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/covenant-journal-revealed-my-imaginary-penis?author=Brent+Scher&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=COVENANT+JOURNAL+REVEALED%3A+Shooter+Said+Being+Female+Was+A+‘F***ing+Curse%2C’+That+She’d+‘Kill’+To+Have+Had+Puberty+Blockers">including</a> The Daily Wire. Ramblings of the shooter posted by the FBI in December 2025 <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-covenant-school-killer-hated-religion-and-white-people-fbi-files-reveal?author=Leif+Le+Mahieu&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=The+Covenant+School+Killer+Hated+‘Religion’+And+‘White+People%2C’+FBI+Files+Reveal">revealed</a> that she hated white people and religion.

3 children, 3 teachers fatally shot in US city of Nashville school shooting

Court Says Nashville Cannot Block Access To Covenant Shooter’s Writings

Courts

School Shooting

The Covenant School

Self-described antifascist anarchists advertised their plans to protest at the <a href="https://yaf.org/events/nashville/">Nashville Freedom Conference</a> later this week, which will feature Daily Wire hosts Michael Knowles, Reagan Conrad, and Cabot Phillips, along with Daily Wire White House Correspondent Mary Margaret Olohan.
A leftist Nashville group, which goes by the name 615 Antifascist, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/antifascist_615/">posted</a> a flyer on social media calling for people to &#8220;rally against transphobia&#8221; at the Nashville Freedom Conference on Saturday, February 7. The Freedom Conference, hosted by the Young America&#8217;s Foundation, is a two-day event that begins Friday and is expected to draw hundreds of young conservatives from across the country.
The anarchist group specifically called out Knowles, whom they accused of making &#8220;inflammatory&#8221; comments, &#8220;especially around transgender people.&#8221;
&#8220;I&#8217;ve been informed that Antifa intends to protest my speech on Friday. The last time they sent a goon to one of my speaking events, he ended up in federal prison,&#8221; Knowles said on Monday. &#8220;Looking forward to another opportunity to help correct America&#8217;s under-incarceration problem!&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
I&#8217;ve been informed that Antifa intends to protest my speech on Friday. The last time they sent a goon to one of my speaking events, he ended up in federal prison.
Looking forward to another opportunity to help correct America&#8217;s under-incarceration problem! <a href="https://t.co/nllaYT0aLX">pic.twitter.com/nllaYT0aLX</a>
— Michael Knowles (@michaeljknowles) <a href="https://twitter.com/michaeljknowles/status/2018402892525207641?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 2, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
It&#8217;s unclear if the group has any plans to also protest on Friday, when Knowles is scheduled to take the stage.
Knowles commented further on the leftist group&#8217;s protest plans during his show on Tuesday.
&#8220;There&#8217;s a Nashville antifa — even in Nashville. Nowhere is sacred, I guess. This is the &#8216;rally against transphobia.&#8217; They&#8217;re still on this; they&#8217;re still on the trans thing,&#8221; Knowles said. &#8220;They never give it up because it&#8217;s the apotheosis of liberalism, because the transgender ideology is the culmination of centuries of the liberal impulse for radical liberation from everything, including morality, social order, religion, God, and even the self.&#8221;
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Zohran Mamdani Freezes 16 New Yorkers To DEATH" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Utd803pNIpY?start=167&#038;feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Knowles is used to leftists and anarchists showing up to make a scene when he speaks, and in one instance, three years ago, a protest became violent.
In 2023, a leftist protester attempted to disrupt an event featuring Knowles at the University of Pittsburgh by setting off homemade smoke bombs and shooting a firework into a crowd of protesters and police officers, injuring one person. The protester, 37-year-old Brian DiPippa, was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/protester-who-shot-firework-explosive-at-police-during-michael-knowles-event-sentenced">sentenced</a> to five years in prison.
Knowles has enraged radical leftists for years over his strong stance against gender procedures. During a 2023 speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference, Knowles <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/knowles-at-cpac-there-is-no-meeting-halfway-between-truth-and-falsehood">argued</a> that &#8220;transgenderism must be eradicated from public life entirely — the whole preposterous ideology, at every level.&#8221;
The comment sparked a firestorm from leftists who falsely claimed that Knowles was arguing for the eradication of trans-identifying people.
The Nashville antifascist group said in its flyer that the Freedom Conference &#8220;will include leadership sessions, and a lineup of right-wing voices from media designed to &#8216;confront the Left&#8217;s narratives&#8217; and mobilize young conservatives across campuses and communities.&#8221; Other featured speakers at the event include CNN conservative contributor Scott Jennings, conservative activist Robby Starbuck, and pro-life activist Abby Johnson.
The anarchists told people to meet at a Lutheran church just a block away from the hotel in downtown Nashville where the conference is being held.
The antifascist group <a href="https://615antifascist.com/">says</a> it&#8217;s &#8220;a collective of anonymous individuals based in Nashville, Tennessee, united in the mission to combat Fascism in all its manifestations.&#8221; The group focuses on protesting the Trump administration&#8217;s policies and &#8220;rejecting oppressive social norms &#8230; such as racism, sexism, xenophobia, capitalism, and transphobia.&#8221;

Michael Knowles/antifascist protest

‘Antifascist’ Anarchists Plan To Protest Nashville Freedom Conference Headlined By Daily Wire

General

Leftism

Michael Knowles

Reagan Conrad

The Daily Wire

Young America's Foundation

Conservative leaders, lawmakers, and activists will gather in downtown Nashville on Friday as The Daily Wire and Young America’s Foundation launch the ‘Freedom at 250’ national tour, an event aimed at celebrating constitutional governance amid national unrest.
The rally, titled the “Freedom at 250: Its Defense Requires Action” tour kickoff, is expected to draw a capacity crowd of young conservatives and will feature remarks headlined by Tennessee Republican Governor Bill Lee and Daily Wire host Michael Knowles.
Organizers say they intend to emphasize support for constitutional government, the rule of law, and civic responsibility amid a wave of protests and unrest that has erupted in cities across the country in recent weeks. Young America’s Foundation President and former Wisconsin GOP Governor Scott Walker said the event is meant to serve as a response to what he described as “well‑funded left‑wing agitation,” citing recent protests in Minnesota that have disrupted federal immigration enforcement operations.
“As America approaches its 250th anniversary, this rally stands as a call to uphold the rule of law and the timeless principles our Founding Fathers fought to establish,” Walker said, adding that the Nashville event would highlight “ordered liberty, civic responsibility, and a nation grounded in law.”
Local left-wing activist groups have announced plans to stage a counter-protest, underscoring the sharp political divide surrounding the event.
Daily Wire host Michael Knowles, one of the headline speakers of the rally, said the gathering reflects a broader effort to equip young conservatives to confront what he characterized as ideological intimidation on college campuses and in public life. 
“The radical Left has stopped trying to win arguments and started relying on intimidation and outright violence,” Knowles said. “That’s why it matters that students are equipped with the intellectual tools they need to prevail in a hostile culture.”
Knowles referenced prior disruptions at his events by left-wing activists, saying he would continue to speak publicly despite threats of protest. 
The Nashville rally marks the first stop on a yearlong tour combining Young America’s Foundation’s campus outreach efforts with The Daily Wire’s media platform. Organizers say future events will focus on engaging young Americans on issues of constitutional governance, American history, and cultural influence.
In addition to Gov. Lee and former Gov. Walker, speakers scheduled to appear include Daily Wire White House Correspondent Mary Margaret Olohan; filmmaker and activist Robby Starbuck; former Green Beret Nick Freitas; and country music artist Lee Greenwood. Daily Wire Senior Editor Cabot Phillips will serve as emcee.
Ahead of the rally, Young America’s Foundation is also hosting a free student-activist training session aimed at equipping conservative students with organizing and advocacy skills.
The Nashville Freedom Rally will take place on Friday from 2:00 to 4:30 p.m. CT.

MixCollage-29-Nov-2023-04-02-PM-8528

The Daily Wire, Young America’s Foundation Set To Celebrate ‘Freedom At 250’ In Nashville On Friday

Lee Greenwood

Rally

Robby Starbuck

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — While Tennessee leads the nation in many ways, it often ranks as one of the unhealthiest states in the country. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Tennessee Republican leadership hope to address that issue within the boundaries of traditional American liberty. 
Kennedy stopped by the Tennessee state capitol on Wednesday for a meeting with Governor Bill Lee and other GOP leadership as part of his Take Back Your Health tour. During his speech, Kennedy spoke about various initiatives the Trump administration had launched to invest in rural health care, remove harmful additives from food, increase pricing transparency, and study the dramatic increase in autism. 
“President Trump told me that [he] wants to make the American public, every patient, the CEO of their own healthcare [so] that you can make good decisions and that you’ll have access to your own information,” Kennedy said. 
Kennedy’s speech was given in the old chambers of the Tennessee Supreme Court to a packed crowd of lawmakers and invited guests. He received a warm welcome from the crowd, but was met with a few hecklers outside the room who were upset about some of Kennedy’s positions on vaccines. 
<div id="attachment_1038869" style="width: 2570px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1038869" class="size-full wp-image-1038869" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/PXL_20260204_174719331.TS-000-scaled.jpg" alt="" width="2560" height="1928" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/PXL_20260204_174719331.TS-000-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/PXL_20260204_174719331.TS-000-300x226.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/PXL_20260204_174719331.TS-000-765x576.jpg 765w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/PXL_20260204_174719331.TS-000-768x578.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/PXL_20260204_174719331.TS-000-1536x1157.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/PXL_20260204_174719331.TS-000-2048x1542.jpg 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px" />Kennedy in Nashville: Daily Wire.</div>
Kennedy was introduced by state GOP leadership that included Lee and Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson (R-Franklin).
“Tennessee is leading the nation in many ways, and there’s a lot of things we can brag about. But when we’re doing that, you should also acknowledge areas where we need to do better. And one of those is with regards to our health outcomes,” Johnson said, noting that the Volunteer State had comparatively high rates of infant mortality, obesity, and diabetes 
According to HHS, Tennessee <a href="https://mchb.tvisdata.hrsa.gov/Narratives/Overview/fc0324d9-ccb8-42a7-b333-66546446cc61">ranks</a> 44th in the nation in terms of overall health due to drug overdoses, chronic health problems, smoking, physical inactivity, premature death, obesity, and preventable hospitalizations. 
Part of reversing this trend is eating better food, one of the reasons why Kennedy’s HHS <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/rfk-flips-the-food-pyramid-and-announces-massive-changes-to-dietary-guidelines">flipped</a> the food pyramid last month to recommend whole foods, prioritizing healthy fats and protein, and limiting or avoiding ultra-processed foods.
“Our job is not to tell Americans what to eat. It’s to tell them what’s good for them and to give them good information. If you want to drink a Coca-Cola or eat a Krispy Kreme donut, you live in America, you ought to be able to do that. But we’re going to tell you what the cost is. It seems cheap at the grocery store but the long term costs may not be worth it,” Kennedy said Wednesday. 
Kennedy said that the government spends about $405 million per day to subsidize meals through school lunch programs, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and other government programs. Kennedy said that raising the standard for the food paid for in these programs would &#8220;transform&#8221; the quality of the food the people were getting through the programs and help the farmers produce &#8220;real food.&#8221;
Rep. Bryan Terry, the chair of the Tennessee House Health Committee, told The Daily Wire that sometimes poor health outcomes were the result of bad choices. 
“In Tennessee, we’re not banning Big Gulps,” he said, noting that Tennesseans value individual liberty and that “sometimes that liberty that you have leads to bad choices.&#8221;
But that doesn’t mean the government will fund unhealthy decisions. In December, Lee led Tennessee to join a handful of other states that ban Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients from using the money given to them by the government to buy soda, energy drinks, and candy.

Presidential Candidate Robert F. Kennedy Delivers Remarks In Phoenix, Arizona

RFK Tells Tennessee Lawmakers Trump Will ‘Transform’ The Health Of The Nation

RFK Makes MAHA Stop In Tennessee, Says Trump Reforms Will 'Transform' The Nation

Department of Health and Human Services

Health

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Anti-ICE activists pressure businesses to “pick a side,” the House looks to vote on reopening the government, and thousands of Americans demand answers as the lights remain off after Winter Storm Fern.
It’s Tuesday, February 3, 2026, and this is the news you need to know to start your day. Today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">Left-Wing Activists Pressure Businesses To Dump ICE</h2>
Businesses that don’t even have ties to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-admin-deploying-body-cameras-to-every-federal-immigration-agent-in-minneapolis?author=Jennie+Taer&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Trump+Admin+%E2%80%98Deploying+Body+Cameras+To+Every%E2%80%99+Federal+Immigration+Agent+In+Minneapolis">ICE</a> are under pressure to take an explicit stance against the federal agency. Currently, Target is the main mark for demonstrators. Over the weekend – similar to the protest that included the storming of Cities Church in St. Paul – dozens of activists marched through Target stores all over Minneapolis. Left-wing activists want the company to publicly condemn ICE and <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/02/us/target-protests-immigration-minneapolis.html">ban</a> agents from conducting operations on Target property, or even entering stores. Activists even went to Target headquarters in Minneapolis on Monday and called out its new CEO, Michael Fiddelke, who officially stepped into the top job on Sunday.
<h2 style="text-align: center;">Government Shutdown Is On</h2>
Lawmakers on Capitol Hill have been working frantically to end the government shutdown before its effects are felt. President Donald Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-seeks-quick-end-to-shutdown-no-changes">says</a> he wants to move forward with the federal government spending package without any changes, as the government has remained shut down since last weekend. He wrote on Truth Social, quote: “There can be NO CHANGES at this time.” The president says that he wants the bill to be signed into law right away, and that he’s “working hard with Speaker Mike Johnson.”
<h2 style="text-align: center;">Outrage Over Nashville Storm Failures</h2>
The response to the crippling power outages from Winter Storm Fern has frustrated many communities across the country – including here in the Nashville area. It’s been more than a week, and more than 20,000 residents are still without power in the Music City in a situation declared “unacceptable.” The Nashville power outage fiasco has made national news as Reese Witherspoon, John Rich, and other celebrities have spoken out about their Tennessee neighbors living in the dark. The Nashville Electric Service’s lack of preparation is <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/nashville-electric-ceo-touted-tree-hugging-over-aggressive-trimming-months-before-massive-ice-storm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">most frustrating</a> to residents. Last summer, the CEO, Teresa Boyles-Aplin, focused on saving Nashville&#8217;s tree canopy instead of cutting down the trees that clearly were overtaking power lines. On top of that, Nashville started the power restoration with around 100 linemen – far too few for such a widespread outage. Other regional utilities had 500-600 linemen ready.

MW_260203

Morning Brief: Anti-ICE Activists Attack Target, Shutdown Scramble, & Nashville Storm Failures

Donald Trump

Government Shutdown

Immigration and Customs Enforcement

Morning Wire

Target

Nashville Democratic Mayor Freddie O&#8217;Connell blasted the city&#8217;s electric service over the weekend just days after praising its efforts to restore power to residents left in the cold.
O&#8217;Connell said that he met with Nashville Electric Service (NES) leaders on Sunday and told them that the agency&#8217;s response and messaging around widespread power outages has been &#8220;unacceptable.&#8221; Tens of thousands of Nashville residents have gone nine days without power following a massive ice storm that ripped down trees and power lines across the city. At least four deaths have been <a href="https://www.wsmv.com/2026/01/30/victims-suspected-winter-storm-related-deaths-across-nashville-identified/">linked</a> to the storm and ensuing power outage in Nashville.
&#8220;What I learned today is that NES is unequipped to communicate about a crisis,&#8221; O&#8217;Connell <a href="https://x.com/peytonTVkennedy/status/2018298760242033103">said</a> after the meeting. &#8220;Nashvillians can&#8217;t get the last week back—nights huddled under blankets, unplanned shelter or hotel stays, the uncertainty and fear of not knowing what&#8217;s happening and how long it will take to simply return home. And that&#8217;s why it&#8217;s so troubling that details NES leadership shared about their internal outlook—that they hadn&#8217;t previously shared with us—would&#8217;ve had a huge impact on the public guidance we gave from the beginning of the crisis. That is unacceptable.&#8221;
The mayor&#8217;s statement following the meeting marked a change in tune from when O&#8217;Connell defended the Nashville Electric Service last week as residents grew frustrated with the agency&#8217;s response.
&#8220;Let’s be clear about what this is — it is a historic ice storm. This is the largest single outage in NES history. We do not have these kinds of weather events all the time,&#8221; O&#8217;Connell said at a press conference last Tuesday.
On Thursday, O&#8217;Connell suggested that the Nashville Electric Service&#8217;s response was a &#8220;success.&#8221;
&#8220;The fact that this is their largest ever number of line crews out with line workers and vegetation support ever, I think that&#8217;s a sign of their success,&#8221; he <a href="https://fox17.com/news/local/nashville-mayor-freddie-oconnell-nes-power-outages-changes-tune-says-he-is-not-satisfied-tennessee-winter-storm">said</a>, according to Fox 17 Nashville. Later during Thursday&#8217;s briefing, O&#8217;Connell said he was &#8220;not satisfied&#8221; with the power restoration efforts.
The Nashville Electric Service is led by a CEO, but it also has a five-member board that is appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the city council. Two of the current NES board members have been <a href="https://nashvillebanner.com/2026/02/02/nashville-ice-storm-recovery-nes-criticism/">appointed</a> by O&#8217;Connell. The Daily Wire reached out to the mayor&#8217;s office and asked if O&#8217;Connell met with NES leaders before the storm hit on January 24 to discuss the city&#8217;s response.
The Nashville Electric Service has faced increased criticism as over 20,000 homes and businesses remain without power in the Music City on Monday. The agency deployed only 200 linemen at the beginning of the storm to repair downed lines, far below the total number of linemen that would eventually be needed. NES officials said over 1,000 linemen are now working on restoring power in the city.
&#8220;Progress has been made with power restored to 80% of our customers who had outages,&#8221; NES CEO Teresa Broyles-Aplin <a href="https://x.com/NESpower/status/2017753965769732192">said</a> on Saturday. &#8220;By Tuesday, 90% will be restored, and by Sunday, February 8, 99% of our customers will have power back.&#8221;
She added that extensive damage in some areas means it will take the electric service more time to get power restored.
Broyles-Aplin&#8217;s past <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/nashville-electric-ceo-touted-tree-hugging-over-aggressive-trimming-months-before-massive-ice-storm">comments</a> on tree maintenance have also come under scrutiny. Last August, the NES leader stressed the importance of saving Nashville&#8217;s tree &#8220;canopy&#8221; and avoiding aggressive trimming practices. Some Nashville tree service professionals argued that the Nashville Electric Service doesn&#8217;t do enough to keep trees away from power lines.
Tennessee Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn also <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/tennessee-senator-declares-war-on-woke-nashville-power-company-after-week-long-outage?author=Virginia+Kruta&amp;category=undefined&amp;elementPosition=7&amp;row=3&amp;rowHeadline=Latest+News&amp;rowType=Vertical+Carousel&amp;title=Tennessee+Senator+Declares+War+On+%E2%80%98Woke%E2%80%99+Nashville+Power+Company+After+Week-Long+Outage">ripped</a> the electric service for spending time focusing on diversity, equity, and inclusion.
&#8220;The Nashville Electric Service held 102 DEI-related training sessions by the end of 2024. They should’ve been using those resources to trim trees and bury utilities. This is what happens when companies put woke politics over the needs of the people they serve,&#8221; Blackburn said on Sunday.
Last week, the Tennessee Star <a href="https://tennesseestar.com/politics/letter-from-nashville-electric-service-ceo-shows-utility-company-held-102-dei-training-sessions-by-end-of-2024/tpappert/2026/01/29/">highlighted</a> a 2024 NES &#8220;community investment&#8221; <a href="https://www.nespower.com/-/media/project/nes/common/pdfs/annual-reports/2024/nes-esg-2024-report-interactive.pdf">report</a>, which stated, &#8220;To foster a culture of civility and belonging within our organization with the hopes of extending that dynamic beyond our walls, NES’ Human Relations Department implemented Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility, &amp; Belonging (DEIAB) trainings, hosting a total of 102 sessions in 2023 and the first quarter of 2024 for both organization-wide education and nuanced resources for leadership positions.&#8221;
Blackburn argued that while linemen are working hard to restore power to Nashville residents, leaders are botching the response.
&#8220;The linemen who are on the ground making repairs and working in the frigid temperatures to restore power are the unsung heroes of the response to this horrible winter storm,&#8221; Blackburn said. &#8220;So grateful for these men and women.&#8221;

Freddie O’Connell

Nashville’s Dem Mayor Slams Electric Service He Just Praised As City Hits 9 Days Without Power

Severe Weather

Winter storm

Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) is gunning for the Nashville Electric Service (NES) as thousands of Nashville residents remain without power — more than a week after Winter Storm Fern wreaked havoc on the area — and some may not see their power restored for another ten days.
Blackburn argued that NES had spent more time focusing on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives than on the kind of preparation that could have helped them manage a massive winter storm more efficiently.
&#8220;The Nashville Electric Service held 102 DEI-related training sessions by the end of 2024. They should’ve been using those resources to trim trees and bury utilities. This is what happens when companies put woke politics over the needs of the people they serve,&#8221; she <a href="https://x.com/MarshaBlackburn/status/2018009739926605839">posted</a> on Sunday.
Blackburn also sent a letter directly to NES demanding answers regarding the still unfolding situation in her home state — as well as a detailed plan explaining how the company planned to prevent anything similar from happening again.
&#8220;The failure to adequately prepare for Winter Storm Fern is precisely the reason line crews are working overtime and citizens are clearing limbs and debris at great risk to their own safety to help friends and neighbors,&#8221; Blackburn wrote in the letter. &#8220;This disruption (crew members in the field) are working to correct reflects a failure of leadership and planning, one that could have been mitigated with thoughtful preparation ahead of the storm. You owe your customers transparency, accountability, and a clear explanation of how this breakdown occurred and how you will prevent this from happening in the future.&#8221;
Blackburn gave NES a deadline of February 2 and laid out six key questions she wanted addressed. She posted the letter itself on X, adding, &#8220;By failing to properly prepare for Winter Storm Fern, @NESpower put Tennesseans in harm’s way. NES owes its customers transparency, accountability, and a clear explanation for why thousands of people remain without power. I’m demanding answers to ensure this can’t happen again.&#8221;
<ol>
<li>&#8220;According to reporting by The Tennessean, experienced linemen offered to aid with storm recovery, but Nashville Electric Service declined the offer, stating it already had sufficient resources. Why did NES turn down that offer for additional personnel during a widespread outage of this magnitude?&#8221;</li>
<li>&#8220;Given the lessons learned from past devastating storms, such as Nashville’s 1994 ice storm, why was NES not adequately prepared for Winter Storm Fern, despite ample warning and clear historical precedent?&#8221;</li>
<li>&#8220;Forecasts warned days in advance that this would be a generational severe weather event. Why were recovery operations and service restoration plans not fully prepared and mobilized ahead of time?&#8221;</li>
<li>&#8220;Why has there been such inconsistency in power restoration updates, with many customers being told their power has been restored when it has not, particularly given NES’s acknowledgment that it recently implemented a new outage notification and tracking system?&#8221;</li>
<li>&#8220;Residents in some areas have been told they may be without power for up to two weeks. How does NES consider that timeline acceptable, especially for residents who rely on electricity for life-sustaining medical equipment and other critical needs?&#8221;</li>
<li>&#8220;Due to extended outages, many residents had no choice but to seek temporary lodging. Will NES be reimbursing customers for expenses incurred during this period?&#8221;</li>
</ol>
NES responded to Blackburn&#8217;s letter on Saturday, and the Tennessee Senator posted that letter as well — and said that their answers were not good enough.
&#8220;@NESPower&#8217;s response to my letter is entirely insufficient. The company refused to take any accountability and is forcing Tennesseans to wait another week for full restoration of power. This is unacceptable. Whoever is responsible for this breakdown should be fired,&#8221; she said.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/NESpower?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NESpower</a>’s response to my letter is entirely insufficient. The company refused to take any accountability and is forcing Tennesseans to wait another week for full restoration of power.
This is unacceptable. Whoever is responsible for this breakdown should be fired. <a href="https://t.co/ptaDtZC9mi">pic.twitter.com/ptaDtZC9mi</a>
— Sen. Marsha Blackburn (@MarshaBlackburn) <a href="https://twitter.com/MarshaBlackburn/status/2017996925975609468?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 1, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
In the letter, NES explained that half of the people in their entire service area (about 230,000) had lost power when the storm first hit, and that power had been restored to all but 44,000 of them. The remaining homes without power, NES assured Blackburn, would be back online within another week.
But some individual cases may prove to be more difficult, as one local investigative reporter described a situation currently affecting a viewer who had written him: &#8220;Wow! From viewer regarding Nashville Electric Service issue: &#8216;We can’t report an outage at a single residence after others around us have been restored. We report it, and the system immediately responds that it has been restored. Neighbors have power, but we have not due to a line down in the back yard. If it doesn’t stay on the NES list as needing repair, we may never get power restored. We have been in our house for 6+ days without power, like the rest of Nashville. It’s 38-40 degrees in the house. We run a generator intermittently, and we are doing better than most. But to not be able to reliably report an outage is absurd.'&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Wow! From viewer regarding Nashville Electric Service issue: “We can’t report an outage at a single residence after others around us have been restored. We report it, and the system immediately responds that it has been restored. Neighbors have power, but we have not due to a… <a href="https://t.co/bH9E6k7JLm">pic.twitter.com/bH9E6k7JLm</a>
— Phil Williams (@PhilNvestigates) <a href="https://twitter.com/PhilNvestigates/status/2017399479444365402?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 31, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Blackburn made it clear on Sunday that she was frustrated with the leadership at NES, not the rank and file employees.
&#8220;The linemen who are on the ground making repairs and working in the frigid temperatures to restore power are the unsung heroes of the response to this horrible winter storm. So grateful for these men and women,&#8221; she said.

Marsha Blackburn

Tennessee Senator Declares War On ‘Woke’ Nashville Power Company After Week-Long Outage

Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI)

Electricity

Politics

Power

Wokeness

NASHVILLE—A man accused of raping a teen girl in Nashville on New Year’s Eve is an illegal alien from Egypt who entered the country through a diversity lottery program now paused by the Trump administration, The Daily Wire has learned. 
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) placed an immigration detainer on 31-year-old Mena Mohsen Farez Nmn Awad after he was arrested by law enforcement in Louisville, Kentucky, for allegedly raping a 16-year-old girl in Nashville. The girl said that she awoke in the early hours of December 31 to find Awad raping her. 
Awad, who has a lengthy <a href="https://sci.ccc.nashville.gov/Search/CriminalHistory?P_CASE_IDENTIFIER=MENA%5EAWAD%5E08221994%5E576023">criminal history</a>, entered the country in 2017 through the Diversity Lottery program. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-stops-diversity-program-that-allowed-brown-university-shooter-into-u-s">paused</a> the program in December and called on Congress to pass legislation to permanently shut it down. 
“Horrendous immigration policies allowed this monster into our country and made victims of children and families,” Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told The Daily Wire. “This child rapist was allowed into our country by the Diversity Lottery program. Secretary Noem paused the diversity lottery to ensure no more Americans are harmed by this disastrous program. ICE lodged an arrest detainer to ensure he is not released onto our streets to victimize more children.” 
The “diversity visa” program allowed up to 55,000 immigrants from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States into the country every year, according to the State Department. Awad lost his legal status after a previous criminal conviction. 
Awad is currently behind bars in the Davidson County Sheriff’s Office in Nashville. He is charged with aggravated rape, two counts of aggravated burglary, and one count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. 
According to the girl, she was sleeping in bed with her nephew when she woke up around 6:00 a.m. on December 31 to find Awad raping her. She repeatedly asked him to stop and was afraid because he had a handgun in his waistband, the police report <a href="https://www.wsmv.com/2026/01/22/child-rape-suspect-returned-nashville-officially-charged-following-arrest-kentucky/">obtained</a> by WSMV 4 showed.
Awad left the apartment, and police identified him as a homeless man who lived behind a market in southeast Nashville, the report said. Police in Louisville arrested him at a hotel on January 16 before he was extradited to Nashville. 
Court records show that Awad has a lengthy criminal background, including assault with a deadly weapon in 2018, convictions for domestic assault in 2020, driving without a license, and other driving violations in 2023. Awad had another domestic assault charge dismissed in 2023.

MixCollage-30-Jan-2026-03-09-PM-8240

ICE Takes Action Against Egyptian Illegal Immigrant Accused Of Raping Nashville Girl

Child rape

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

Kristi Noem

Trump Administration

As thousands of Nashville residents in Davidson County remain in the cold and dark without power as single-digit temperatures fast approach this weekend, many, including country star John Rich, are now wondering what went wrong. Friday will be day six without power for 71,000 Nashville Electric Service (NES) customers after Winter Storm Fern.
The singer, who cofounded the duo Big &amp; Rich, said what&#8217;s happening in Nashville is &#8220;very California.&#8221;
&#8220;This is incompetence on a level kind of like what you saw in California when they didn&#8217;t have enough water to put out the fires,&#8221; Rich said on <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/video/6388545727112">Fox News</a> Friday morning.
California had fire hydrants running dry during the devastating wildfires in 2025, the Los Angeles Times <a href="https://www.latimes.com/environment/story/2025-12-17/la-fires-water-system">reported</a>. For many, that failure fell squarely on California leadership.
NES CEO Teresa Broyles-Aplin said last August she was focused on saving Nashville&#8217;s tree &#8220;canopy&#8221; instead of trimming trees that were too close to power lines. Yet another example of leadership failure as Davidson County continues to have the highest power <a href="https://poweroutage.us/area/state/tennessee">outages</a> in the state.
RELATED: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/nashville-electric-ceo-touted-tree-hugging-over-aggressive-trimming-months-before-massive-ice-storm">Nashville Electric CEO Touted Tree-Hugging Over Aggressive Trimming Months Before Massive Ice Storm</a>
Rich made it clear during his interview that he is thankful to the lineman working to help restore power. His anger is directed at Nashville&#8217;s Democratic mayor, Freddie O&#8217;Connell.
&#8220;We have a mayor here in Nashville, a hard-core leftist guy, and they&#8217;ve decided that they aren&#8217;t going to do any interviews or press conferences through the weekend as the temperatures go down to four and five degrees,&#8221; Rich said.
&#8220;I&#8217;ve just reminded a lot of my Democrat friends &#8230; I said, well, &#8216;You get what you vote for here in Nashville. Maybe next time you put some people in office who actually think ahead.'&#8221;
NES said Friday morning that more than 1,000 linemen are working to restore power for more than 70,000 households still in the cold and dark. To put it in perspective, Duke Energy deployed 18,000 crew members to respond to power outages in <a href="https://wlos.com/news/local/winter-ice-storm-looms-duke-energy-deploys-18000-crews-100-trucks-asheville-western-north-carolina-safety-power-electricity-heating-technology-community-hurricane-helene-grid">North Carolina</a>, bringing in linemen from as far as Canada.
An anonymous member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers union told <a href="https://fox17.com/news/local/nashville-electric-service-accused-of-rejecting-help-amid-massive-power-outages-nes-winter-storm-middle-tennessee-union-memebers">Fox 17</a> in Nashville that, at a minimum, NES should have 2,000 crew members working to restore power.
NES was pressed on Thursday about the number of linemen working while other cities with fewer outages have larger crews.
&#8220;This storm is different,&#8221; NES Executive Vice President Brent Baker said. &#8220;This ice storm is significant. This is the most people NES has ever onboarded onto the system. This storm was bigger than what was even expected &#8230; Nashville was slammed. Poles were broken like toothpicks. Trees exploded, landing on top of our infrastructure, on top of the wires.&#8221;
The Daily Wire has reached out to NES for an estimate of when power will be restored.

Credit: Jason Kempin via Getty Images

Country Star Compares Nashville Power Outage Fiasco To California’s Awful Wildfire Response

Country Star Compares Nashville Power Outage Fiasco To California's Abysmal Wildfire Response

John Rich

Music

News

Winter Storm Fern

The top official at the Nashville Electric Service touted her effort to save Nashville&#8217;s tree &#8220;canopy&#8221; last August instead of aggressively trimming trees away from power lines. Nashville Electric Service CEO Teresa Broyles-Aplin&#8217;s past comments have now come under scrutiny after an ice storm wrecked Nashville, bringing trees down onto roads and power lines and resulting in the worst power outage in the city&#8217;s history.
The Tennessee Star <a href="https://tennesseestar.com/culture/woke-nes-ceo-on-tree-trimming-i-dont-want-us-out-destroying-the-canopy/khousler/2026/01/29/">reported</a> on Thursday that Broyles-Aplin, who took over as CEO of the electric service in 2022, touted her tree-hugging efforts during an August appearance on &#8220;<a href="https://www.newschannel5.com/plus/urban-league-live/nashville-electric-service">Urban League Live</a>&#8221; on NewsChannel 5 Nashville.
&#8220;We have customers sometimes that are concerned that we may be trimming aggressively and not taking into account the health of the trees, and that couldn&#8217;t be further from the truth,&#8221; she said. &#8220;We do species-specific trimming that is intended to ensure the health of the tree. &#8230; I think most people don&#8217;t realize that we go to that depth of effort, and we have arborists on our staff &#8230; that oversee the planning and the post-cutting inspections, so we take a lot of pride in making sure that we are cutting the trees in a healthy fashion.&#8221;
“We care about the [tree] canopy. We have to live here, too,” Broyles-Aplin said. “And so I don’t want us out destroying the canopy.&#8221;
The Daily Wire reached out to the Nashville Electric Service for comment.
While Broyles-Aplin assured people last August that the electric service takes extreme care in its trimming, some Nashville tree service owners told <a href="https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/local/davidson/2026/01/29/nes-nashville-power-outage-ice-tree-experts/88409270007/">The Tennesseean</a> that the Nashville Electric Service wasn&#8217;t properly keeping up with tree maintenance.
“If they maintained it better, there would be less power outages, at the end of the day,” said Lucas Crenshaw, but he also acknowledged that &#8220;you can only prepare so much.&#8221;
Meagan Cowles, another tree service owner, told the Nashville outlet, &#8220;I am very confident in my opinion to say that NES does not follow the proper cutting procedures to follow the standards.&#8221;
Tree cutting professionals told The Tennessean that the Nashville Electric Service should expand how far it cuts trees from power lines to ensure that falling trees don&#8217;t crash into the lines. They also suggested that homeowners should trim or cut trees on their property that could pose a risk to the power lines near their homes.
The Nashville Electric Service is the 11th largest public utilities agency in the country. The service&#8217;s five-member board is appointed by the mayor and confirmed by Nashville&#8217;s Metro Council. The Nashville Electric Service has been criticized over its preparedness and response to the winter storm that pounded the city with snow and ice last weekend. Tens of thousands of Nashville residents have gone without power for five days as the city also faces extremely cold temperatures.
Along with facing scrutiny over its tree trimming strategy, the agency has also been slammed by many residents who say there is a lack of manpower in the field to address the vast power outages. The Nashville Electric Service had around 200 linemen prepared to work on downed lines, and the agency has nearly quadrupled the number of linemen in the field since the weekend, relying on help from other states.
One lineman told <a href="https://fox17.com/news/local/nashville-electric-service-accused-of-rejecting-help-amid-massive-power-outages-nes-winter-storm-middle-tennessee-union-memebers">Fox 17 Nashville</a> that he doesn’t think Nashville has deployed enough workers to address the widespread outages, adding that the city needed &#8220;a minimum of 2,000&#8221; linemen. The lineman said he believes the electric company didn’t want to pay union wages for outside help.
Broyles-Aplin released a <a href="https://x.com/NESpower/status/2016901409342374389">statement</a> on Thursday morning addressing the ongoing power outages.
&#8220;Many of you are waking up to day #5 without power, which is a significant hardship. It’s our job at NES to keep the power on, and we will not stop until every household in Nashville has power again,&#8221; she said. &#8220;This storm was unprecedented for Nashville and our country, affecting almost half of the U.S. Its icy layers caused widespread damage across our service area to transmission lines, substations and distribution networks.&#8221;
Broyles-Aplin said that around 230,000 residents lost power at the peak of the outages, but it was around 230,000 homes and businesses without power at the peak. Since multiple people reside in many homes, the outages likely affected far more than 230,000 people.
&#8220;Today, we have less than 90,000 homes remaining without electricity. NES has brought in partners from around the country to engage additional available, qualified crews,&#8221; Broyles-Aplin added.
The utilities CEO said that some Nashville residents should be prepared for the power outages to continue &#8220;through the weekend or longer.&#8221; Temperatures are expected to plunge again in the Music City this weekend, with lows nearing 10 degrees.

Nashville Electric CEO Touted Tree-Hugging Over Aggressive Trimming Months Before Massive Ice Storm

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