Tennessee’s biggest drag show is the 6th District Republican primary

If you’re bummed that the most recent season of RuPaul’s Drag Race ended back in April and you’re looking for your next drag fix, check out the 6th Congressional District Republican primary. The leading candidates, former U.S. Rep. Van Hilleary and state Rep. Johnny Garrett’s ads will give you quite a show. 

Garrett posts a capable drag queen playing basketball to show his support of women’s sports, while Hilleary’s ad features an image of a deep-fake “woke” Garrett surrounded by a bevy of elegant AI queens.

I have so many questions.

The obvious question for both of them is this: do they realize that by including drag queens in their campaign ads, they have broadcast drag to more youth in Middle Tennessee than anyone? “Not around the kids” is one of the big anti-drag talking points, isn’t it? 

Now, they’ve probably even made more than a few adults drag-curious. Because these are commercials, they pop up unannounced, whether someone is looking for drag or not. Seeing drag, of course, doesn’t hurt anyone. But it’s sad to see it weaponized like this. 

Now let’s move to the individual critiques. What a lost opportunity for Hilleary! He used AI drag queens when there are perfectly good Tennessee queens who could have performed in his video.

How are we going to believe he’ll create jobs for Tennesseans when he won’t even hire them? And I have to say that if he is trying to sully the reputation of his opponent, that ad made Garrett look way cooler than he could have done on his own. That is to say nothing, of course, of the ethical issues involving deep-fakes and the environmental cost of AI. 

Moving on to Garrett’s ad, I’m guessing he paid the real-life drag performer in his commercial. If he did, I have to wonder whether he is the first congressional candidate in Tennessee to pay someone to do drag. I don’t know how that plays out with the Republican base, but it is noteworthy and merits further research for historical purposes, of course. And why not spend our time that way since we’re discussing this instead of measures like increasing the minimum wage?

As for the sports issue, I know Garrett’s point is to try to present himself as some big protector of women’s sports from the few trans athletes who have tried to compete when what we should be doing is finding a path for everyone to play.  

But how is he going to explain to women athletes that spokespersons for the Heritage Foundation, who will most likely try to influence Congress on these issues, are now suggesting that Title IX — the 1972 civil rights measure requiring equality in men’s and women’s sports, among other issues — is bad because they believe women’s sports might hurt fertility and make women less feminine and graceful? Is he really ready to carry the banner of women’s sports all the way?

I know, I know. It’s more fun to dream up drag sports skits and create AI Pride parades than it is to deal with the affordability issues Tennesseans are facing. But this gay man is asking these candidates to step out of Rainbow Land long enough to leave us alone and talk about the issues we all care about.