Marsha Blackburn

Nationalist

Republican

Senator

Tennessee

Current Position: Senator from Tennessee

Running For: Governor

Policy Positions

For expanding broadband internet access to rural communities to close the digital divide
Against municipal broadband; supported bills restricting municipalities from creating their own broadband networks and wrote legislation to prevent FCC from preempting state laws blocking municipal broadband

For cryptocurrency and Bitcoin adoption; opposes Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) on the grounds that they enable government surveillance of personal finances
Against online privacy protections for consumers; introduced measure to repeal FCC rule requiring broadband providers to obtain consumers' permission before sharing their browsing data
Against equal pay legislation; voted against the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act and the Paycheck Fairness Act in 2009
For increased regulation of technology companies to address alleged anti-conservative bias and anti-competitive behavior; introduced the Open App Markets Act and supported children's online safety legislation (KOSA and REPORT Act)

Against COVID-19 vaccine mandates for military service members; fought to reinstate service members fired over COVID vaccine requirements
Against the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare); opposed its passage, supported efforts to repeal it, and called the failure to repeal it 'a disgrace'

For expanding vocational education and public-private partnerships in higher education; supports strengthening Tennessee's 529 program
For school choice; supports statewide implementation of Tennessee's school choice law regardless of family income or zip code
Against universal pre-K and subsidized child care; likened Biden's proposal to communist policies of the Soviet Union

Against the scientific consensus on climate change; claimed there is 'no consensus' on the causes of climate change

Against teaching critical race theory and gender identity curriculum in schools; opposes what she characterizes as 'woke anti-American curriculum'
Against DEI programs in colleges and universities receiving federal funding; supports compliance with Trump executive orders banning DEI
Against transgender women competing in women's collegiate sports
For opposition to gender-neutral pronoun mandates and 'woke' curriculum in schools; opposes what she characterizes as woke anti-American curriculum
Against abortion rights; staunchly opposes abortion, sought to overturn Roe v. Wade, managed debate on a bill prohibiting abortions after 22 weeks' gestation, led investigation into Planned Parenthood, and ran ads claiming she 'stopped the sale of baby body parts'
Against same-sex marriage; voted for proposed constitutional amendments to ban it in 2004 and 2006, and called marriage 'a sacred institution between a man and a woman' after Obergefell v. Hodges
Against LGBT employment protections; voted against the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, co-signed an amicus brief arguing Title VII does not prohibit employment discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity, and voted against repealing Don't Ask Don't Tell
Against Griswold v. Connecticut; called the Supreme Court ruling protecting married couples' right to use contraceptives 'constitutionally unsound'

For closed primaries and implementing party registration requirements, requiring voters to declare party affiliation before election day to participate in primary elections
Against certification of 2020 presidential election results; announced intent to oppose certification citing false claims of widespread election fraud, though ultimately voted to certify after the January 6 Capitol attack

For protecting Tennessee farmland from foreign (specifically Chinese) ownership
For a U.S.-Mexico border wall and restrictive immigration policy; supported Trump's travel ban on citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries and his plan to expand the Mexico-United States barrier
For Taiwan independence; called Taiwan an 'independent nation' and 'country' during a 2022 visit, and supports further U.S.-Taiwan relations
For Israel; stated the U.S. has 'a moral obligation to defend Israel' during the 2023 Gaza war

For online safety regulations for children; supports state policies requiring independent audits of social media platforms and empowering parents to protect kids online; fought for the bipartisan Kids Online Safety Act
For the death penalty for convicted child rapists
For maintaining law enforcement funding; opposes 'defund the police' initiatives and supports removing Soros-funded district attorneys
Against cannabis legalization (both medical and recreational)
For gun rights; accepted over $1 million in NRA campaign donations, voted against the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, and emphasized Second Amendment protections in response to mass shootings
Against net neutrality; called it 'socialistic' and opposed FCC net neutrality rules