The Only True Invasion

Mayor O’Connell’s ill-fated attempt to signal support for illegals in town hasn’t gone over well. First, there’s congressional Rep. Andy Ogles’ call for an investigation into whether the mayor interfered with ICE operations in the city. And second, with each passing day, it’s becoming more and more apparent that the progressives in the council have the mayor by the balls.

The mayor hasn’t taken to BlueSky to talk about the pending federal investigation yet, but Metro Council’s Immigrant Caucus has some thoughts, reserving much of its ire for Councilmember David Benton who joined Ogles at the presser on Monday morning.

“Councilmember Benton does not deserve to hold public office. His conduct and comments are unbecoming of an elected official,” their statement reads. “You are no longer fit to represent our community. Resign.”

Terry Vo – famous for referring to the closure of a Dollar General in her district as a “resource apartheid” – chairs the caucus, and so it is to her that we will credit the following gem from the release: “We remind [CM Benton], and the public, that the only true ‘invasion’ of this land occurred in 1492 with the arrival of European colonizers.”

All of the commotion around the federal government’s enforcement of immigration laws will make it very difficult for the license plate reader proposal to find traction with the council. The Banner agrees with this sentiment, authoring a piece making that point this morning. For the foreseeable future, it seems that LPRs will remain restricted to the wealthier parts of town. DAVIS HUNT

🖋️ Edited by Megan Podsiedlik.

🍪 Schwinn Takes Her Hand Out Of The Cookie Jar Former Tennessee Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn is still jockeying for a spot in the Trump administration. Though Schwinn was named as Trump’s pick for Deputy Secretary of Education before the president’s inauguration in January, the Senate has noticeably dragged its feet to confirm the appointment.

Hopes still high, Schwinn is now offering to drop some of her financial conflicts of interest to land the position. According to the Lookout, upon appointment, the former Tennessee official is promising to resign from multiple posts. These include positions at 38 Ventures LLC, BHA Strategy, Soliant Health LLC, TVG-MGT, Edmentum Inc., and Really Great Reading. Schwinn also says her two companies, Bexley Group LLC and PLSchwinn LLC, will stop conducting business.

🏳️‍🌈 Dueling DEI Boycott Campaigns You may recall local conservative activist Robby Starbucks’ sweeping crusade against woke companies last fall. Through a series of strategic social media campaigns, Starbuck managed to successfully coax companies like Tractor Supply, John Deere, Harley-Davidson, Brown-Forman, Lowe's, Ford Motor Company, Molson Coors, and Caterpillar Inc. to drop their DEI programs. 

Several retail corporations, such as Walmart, Target, and Home Depot, have been warning stakeholders of the legal backlash related to their DEI and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) policies. According to CNN, these types of companies have also been weighing the risks of cutting these programs, and for good reason.

A counter-boycott campaign has emerged as businesses continue to quietly sunset DEI programs and initiatives. Senior Pastor of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Georgia, Jamal-Harrison Bryant, coordinated a "Target Fast" during Lent that has extended into an indefinite Target boycott in response to the company's decision to end DEI practices. According to USA Today, the church leader has now set his sights on Dollar General and is planning an electronic protest of the company.

🚲 Bussing And Biking The Car People Out A number of public comments regarding the six-lane proposal in the East Bank were heard during Tuesday’s East Bank Development Authority meeting. Design Director for Civic Design Center, Eric Hoke, said the Nashville-based urban planning non-profit will not stand idly by as a “highway-like road design” is being proposed for the new development.

“Imagine East Bank envisions the area as a mixed-use neighborhood destination,” he said. “This could be a progressive, transit-oriented community where residents take the bus to work [and] stadium goers park elsewhere and walk and ride into the neighborhood.” Hoke went on to explain that the city can bring this vision into existence by utilizing infrastructure to socially engineer how people travel from point A to point B.

Likewise, Director of Walk Bike Nashville, Meredith Montgomery, echoed that a six-lane road in the East Bank would inevitably become the “next addition to our High Injury Network.” Instead, the two groups are hoping for a new design that incorporates fewer lanes for vehicles, guarded bike lanes, and ample walkways.

DEVELOPMENT

• Image released for Terry Black’s BBQ restaurant building eyed for Germantown (Post)
• Long-planned downtown project lands hotel (Post)

✹ THE UNBREAKABLE BOY MAKES GOOD

When Jesus Revolution became a surprise box-office hit in 2023, Franklin film studio Kingdom Story Company kicked off a run of bigscreen faith-based projects that challenged the reputation of a genre that had become a punchline even to the most devout. Founded on the profits from Jon and Andrew Erwin’s surprise 2018 blockbuster I Can Only Imagine that details the origins of the Christian rock hit, Kingdom has remained dedicated to high-quality productions and partnerships with name actors like Dennis Quaid, Hilary Swank, Anna Paquin, and Zachary Levi.

Yet, beyond the Erwins, Kingdom also owes much of its success to filmmaker Jon Gunn. Fresh off the acclaim that met his 2017 adaptation of the classic Christian book The Case for Christ, Gunn began working closely with the studio, serving as the co-writer for hits like Jesus Revolution, American Underdog, and I Still Believe and executive producing Prime’s new biblical series, House of David. 

After last year’s Ordinary Angels, Gunn returns to the director’s chair with The Unbreakable Boy, an adaptation of Scott LeRette’s memoir about raising a son with autism and a genetic brittle bone disease. As the film makes its streaming debut after its theatrical run last winter, Gunn sat down with The Pamphleteer to talk about his work with Kingdom and the challenges of adapting real-life stories.

THINGS TO DO

View our calendar for the week here and our weekly film rundown here.

📅 Visit our On The Radar list to find upcoming events around Nashville.

🎧 On Spotify: Pamphleteer's Picks, a playlist of our favorite bands in town this week.

👨🏻‍🌾 Check out our Nashville farmer's market guide.

TONIGHT

🎸 Music City Rodeo featuring Reba McEntire @ Bridgestone Amphitheater, 6:30p, $59, Info

🎸 Larkin Poe @ Ryman Auditorium, 7:30p, $37+, Info

🎸 Club Silencio: Music from the Films of David Lynch @ The Blue Room, 7p, $19.50, Info

🎷 Jack Silverman Quartet @ Vinyl Tap, 7p, Free, Info
+ Nashville jazz with a psychedelic rock twist

🍀 Live Irish Music @ McNamara’s Irish Pub, 6p, Free, Info

🎸 Kelly’s Heroes @ Robert’s Western World, 6:30p, Free, Info

🎸 Open Mic @ Fox & Locke, 6:30p, Free, Info
+ vet community here

📰 Check out the full newsletter archive here.

Areas of Concourse and Rendezvous

🌆 What HG Wells said about cities · Pardon me · Getting ahead of AI · Divvying up property tax · Repeat offender all-star · Much more!

The PamphleteerThe Pamphleteer

MNPS asks for even more money

🏫 Director Battle defends her budget proposal · MNPD asks for more money too · CMs scrutinize mayor’s budget · O’Connell in the big leagues · Week in streaming · Much more!

The PamphleteerThe Pamphleteer

What did I miss?

📰 Allegra Dru Milisitz talks Greg Gutfeld’s new show · Against the property tax increase · WeGo ridership falls · Underperforming green energy · Film rundown · Much more!

The PamphleteerThe Pamphleteer

Laced with good intentions...

👃 Naloxone vending machine goes live · Public safety concerns · Great Grant Thawing · Trans IDs ACLU suit · David Mamet’s new movie · Much more!

The PamphleteerThe Pamphleteer

Today's newsletter is brought to you by Megan Podsiedlik (Nashville), Jerod Hollyfield (Crowd Corner), Camelia Brennan (Local Noise), and Davis Hunt (everything else).