Inside Politics - NewsChannel 5 Plus Nashville

Political Strategist Tucker Karnes, Public Affairs for Cooley Public Strategies breaks down the highly contested TN-07 Congressional Race.  Karnes joins host Ben Hall to analyze the dramatic numbers from the special election comparing them to the November 5, 2024 race between Democrat Megan Barry and Republican Mark Green.  With Megan Barry pulling in over 120,000 votes just a year earli...

The fiercely competitive TN-07 Congressional race with Democrat Aftyn Behn and Republican Matt Van Epps is underway. But 4 other names will be on the ballot for the General Election, December 2nd. We continue our coverage by introducing you to 3 of the 4 Independent candidates who want your vote to represent District 7 in Washington. Teresa "Terri" Christi, Jon Thorp and Bobby Dodge join host Ben...

In January 2025, Club for Growth a Washington D.C.-based political action committee issued a stark warning to all State Republicans to support Governor Bill Lee's School Freedom Act. State Representative Jody Barrett who represents Dickson, Hickman and Lewis Counties chose to stand by his constituents and voted "no". Barrett says he is pro-school choice, but "I just didn't like this particular pla...

District 15 State Senator Paul Bailey (R) sent out a press release urging Governor Lee to fund SNAP benefits for Tennesseans after the federal government shutdown, which halted payments November 1st, affecting more than 690,000 Tennesseans - including 20,635 constituents in district 15.   Bailey's concerns stem from a firsthand look at the crisis during an October visit to a local food bank,...

Republican Primary Winner Matt Van Epps will face Democrat Aftyn Behn December 2nd in the General Election for U.S. Representative for the TN-07 Congressional District. Matt Van Epps returns to Inside Politics to answer more question from host Ben Hall. Van Epps says his experience in the military and small business while still serving National Guard helped him win the primary. Van Epps says his g...

Democratic Primary Winner Rep. Aftyn Behn will face Republican Matt Van Epps Dec. 2nd in the General Election for U.S. Representative for theTN-07 Congressional District.  Aftyn Behn returns to Inside Politics to answer more questions from host Ben Hall.  Behn touts her campaign as "grassroots energy and not taking Corporate PAC money."  She considers herself an angry social worker...

As Chief Development Officer Bob Mendes wraps up his political career in Nashville government, he's taking stock of the key projects that have reshaped Music City over the past decade and a half. The numbers tell a compelling story: the Nashville area generates an approximate 40% of Tennessee's income—a fact that hasn't gone unnoticed by state lawmakers creating ongoing tension between state...

Nashville’s Chief of Police, John Drake, grew up in Nashville and became a patrol officer in 1988. He has watched how the job has evolved—from the types of crimes patrol officers investigate to the tools they use to make arrests. Drake says his main priorities are reducing crime while maintaining public trust and protecting citizens’ rights. He also weighs in on using the Nationa...

With the federal government grinding to a halt, Republican Senators and President Trump have not reached a funding deal with Senate Democrats over Healthcare premium subsidies being extended. Congressman John Rose of TN-06 gives us his opinion why the Federal government shutdown occurred. Host Ben Hall also questions him about releasing the Epstein files and his reaction to President Trump saying...

With President Trump ordering the National Guard to Memphis to solve the crime problem, questions about how to best use this resource and who will be in charge arise. Representative Antonio Parkinson for Dist. 98 Shelby County gives insight to who is involved with making decisions, what military presence will look like in the city and how the Guard will be used.  Plus, Representative Parkinso...

Inside Politics concludes a 5 week project to introduce you to the candidates who would like to be your U.S. Representative for TN-07. We offered all Democrat and Republican candidates the opportunity to sit down with Ben Hall for an interview before the Primary election. By random drawing after the interviews were completed, we present the final two candidate’s interviews on Friday, Septemb...

Inside Politics continues a 5 week project to introduce you to the candidates who would like to be your U.S. Representative for TN-07. We offered all Democrat and Republican candidates the opportunity to sit down with Ben Hall for an interview before the Primary election. By random drawing after the interviews were completed, we present the next 3 candidate’s interviews on Friday, September...

Inside Politics continues a 5 week project to introduce you to the candidates who would like to be your U.S. Representative for TN-07. We offered all Democrat and Republican candidates the opportunity to sit down with Ben Hall for an interview before the Primary election. By random drawing after the interviews were completed, we present the next 3 candidate’s interviews on Friday, September...

Inside Politics continues a 5 week project to introduce you to the candidates who would like to be your U.S. Representative for TN-07. We offered all Democrat and Republican candidates the opportunity to sit down with Ben Hall for an interview before the Special Election Primary. By random drawing after the interviews were completed, we present the first 3 candidate's interviews on Friday, August...

Inside Politics begins a 5 week project to introduce you to the candidates who would like to be your U.S. Representative for TN-07. We offered all Democrat and Republican candidates the opportunity to sit down with Ben Hall for an interview before the Special Election Primary. By random drawing after the interviews were completed, we present the first 3 candidate's interviews on Friday, August 22....

Congressman John Rose, US Representative for TN Dist. 6 is our guest.  After 6 1/2 years at the capitol hill, he is running for governor in 2026.  Inside Politics host Ben Hall asks him about his campaign strategy and how the entrance of Marsha Blackburn will affect the race.  Rose says that the job of governor is like being the CEO of the state of Tennessee.  He says his exper...

What are the state comptroller duties and how do they affect the state or a city's budget? How is he involved with state universities and big private industry projects? Jason Mumpower is Tennessee's Comptroller of the Treasury and is our guest on this episode of Inside Politics. He voted in favor to lease The Boring Company state land for free underneath SR41 Murfreesboro Pike. He talks about the...

On this episode of Inside Politics, Tennessee Democratic Party Chair Rachel Campbell joins host Ben Hall as they review the 4 Democratic candidates for the District 7 primary election October 7th and what their plan is to win the congressional seat December 2nd in the general election. Campbell also discusses the Elon Musk Tesla Tunnel that she calls a decision made "behind closed doors...without...

On this episode of Inside Politics, host Ben Hall welcomes Tennessee State Rep. for House District 59, Caleb Hemmer, to respond to several topics that were discussed on last week's episode with Speaker Cameron Sexton. Topics include the 7th Congressional District race, school vouchers and Nashville's relationship with the legislature. Inside Politics is now a podcast!   Just search "Inside Po...

On this Inside Politics , Tennessee Speaker of the House Cameron Sexton answers various questions candidly about The East Bank Development . Cameron Sexton serves on the East Bank Authority.  With state investments like the Titan's stadium and TPAC, he is concerned about costs and the lack of decision making power of the East Bank Authority vs. Metro government's control.  Sexton asked:&...

Tennessee Congressman Mark Green announced at the end of June that he will be stepping down as U.S. Representative for District 7 just six months into his second term. What happens next for constituents? This has left candidates scrambling to get paperwork filed to throw their hat in the ring for both Republicans and Democrats. Who is considering a bid for the seat? Host Ben Hall invites GOP Chair...

How can you push for gun safety reform in Tennessee?  SaferTN.org was developed during the days after the Covenant School shooting in Nashville March 27, 2023 as a pro-second amendment, bi-partisan non-profit gun safety organization.  Safer TN board member Todd Cruse and Host Ben Hall discuss how Safer TN helps get gun safety legislation through capitol hill.  Cruse shares concernin...

Although President Trump campaigned on the slogan "America First", he ordered bombing of Iranian nuclear facilities as a preventative attack on Iran intervening in the Israel/Iran conflict. What will be the consequences? Did we prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons? How will the rest of the world respond the next time this problem occurs?  Did the president ignore the Constitution with...

In 2020 Tennessee's DCS was under Federal court oversight due to a lawsuit filed by Brian A.  The oversight ended in 2017. Tennessee was mandated to overhaul it's foster care system and implement measures to improve child welfare outcomes.  Now in 2025, new complaints of multiple and unstable placement of children, sub-standard living conditions, overdue stays at assessment centers, high...

Top stories this week, then April Calvin, Director of Office of Homeless Services is our guest.  She is here to talk about the results from the Point in Time Count that occurred January 23, 2025.  We saw an increase of 4.1% since January 2024, but unsheltered population decreased by 17%.  Other metrics were discussed as well as some controversy with community partners.   S...