Among the ranks of the Republican Party, there’s a rhetorical playbook chock-full of glib one-liners and myopic phrases to justify its anti-social, anti-democratic agenda. One such talking point, repeated to the point of being rendered meaningless, has become an identifying feature of right-wing politics: the advocacy of so-called “family values.”
At all levels of power within the GOP, in both Washington, D.C. and Tennessee, this allegedly family-centered platform manifests itself in various ways — intransigent opposition to abortion, legal restrictions against gender-affirming care for trans youth, broader intolerance of the LGTBQ+ community and more.
All of this, the right would argue, should be construed as a good-faith effort to preserve traditional “family values,” as a commendable push to stave off an overreaching woke left.
Even underneath tamer political rhetoric among local Tennessee lawmakers, there is an overarching stated motive behind the larger right-wing agenda to promote the general well-being of the nuclear family unit.
“Serving my community has been one of the greatest privileges of my life,” state Rep. Esther Helton-Haynes, R-East Ridge, said in December when announcing her reelection campaign. “I remain focused on solving problems, supporting families and ensuring our state remains a great place to live, work and raise a family.”