Democratic congressional hopeful Aftyn Behn’s resurfaced podcast clip where she bluntly says she “hates” Nashville should shock every voter in Tennessee who values hometown pride and common sense representation. This isn’t a private aside — it’s a public confession that the very city she now wants to represent is something she disparages to strangers, and Americans should be rightly outraged.
In the 2020 recording Behn sneered at bachelorettes, pedal taverns and country music, telling listeners she hates “all of the things that make Nashville apparently an ‘it’ city.” That’s not nuance or policy debate; it’s contempt dressed up as edgy commentary, and it exposes the real cultural gulf between nationalized coastal progressivism and everyday Tennesseans.
Worse timing couldn’t be imagined: the clip has bubbled up in the final stretch before the December 2 special election for Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District, where Behn is squaring off against Republican Matt Van Epps. This is a solidly red district that backed President Trump by large margins, and voters deserve to know whether the Democrat on the ballot actually respects the people and places she claims to serve.
The national left has been grooming Behn as a rising progressive star — even dubbing her the “AOC of Tennessee” — while her own past writings accused Tennessee and its legislature of racism, which only fuels the perception she is out of step with mainstream Tennessee values. Patriots should be skeptical of candidates who signal more loyalty to partisan brand-building than to the families and traditions of their state.
Fox & Friends Weekend rightly highlighted the clip and reacted with disbelief, pressing the question every voter should ask: how can someone who openly derides a community effectively represent it in Washington? The hosts’ blunt take reflected what many Americans are thinking — enough with elites who mock our culture, then expect our votes.
Republicans and conservative groups have jumped on the comments, and national GOP operation money is pouring in to make sure the House majority isn’t jeopardized by a Democrat who disdains a key part of her district. This episode is a reminder that elections still turn on character and cultural respect, not hollow progressive labels and national press clout.
Hardworking Tennesseans don’t need lectures from self-styled coastal progressives who sneer at the music, patriotism and business that make this state great. In the end, voters should send a clear message: representation means respect, and anyone who says they hate the place they want to govern doesn’t deserve to be in Congress.
