Wednesday evening, conservative online news operation TriStar Daily posted what it described as U.S. Congressman Andy Ogles’, TN-R, “new ad in (the) Tennessee congressional race.”¶
The video, now hitting television screens in Tennessee, prominently features President Donald Trump and portrays the 5th District congressman as fighting alongside him to defend conservative values and cut wasteful spending.¶
“Trusted by conservatives, Andy Ogles is fighting to keep Tennessee safe and free,” the narrator said in the ad.¶
Who Authorized the Funding
What voters may not realize, unless they read the text on the screen at the end, is that they paid for the ad. The video includes a “paid for by official funds authorized by the House of Representatives” disclaimer indicating that the funds used to produce it come from the Members’ Representational Allowance (MRA), which is typically used to operate each congressman’s office or to communicate with constituents. Congressmen are prohibited from using MRA for campaign-related ads that ask for contributions or attack opponents.¶
Despite the TriStar Daily’s description of Ogles’ ad as being a “congressional race” ad, the Tennessee Firefly confirmed on Monday that the House Authorized Communications Standards Commission has approved it. The Tennessean reported that Ogles intends to spend nearly $60,000 running the ad on television in Middle Tennessee before the June 6 communication blackout period begins for these funds.¶
How Redistricting Impacts Communication
The House Clerk’s website lists more than 80 taxpayer-funded constituent communications since Ogles took office in 2023, and the dollar amount for the first two years’ worth of those communications exceeded that of every other Tennessee congressman, according to Tennessean reporting.¶
Until now, those records show that Ogles has only utilized emails, texts, regular mail, and phone calls to communicate with constituents this term. Those forms of communication would not allow the congressman to reach new voters in the redrawn House District 5 directly, but a television ad will reach most of the district’s new counties.¶
Ogles will face former Tennessee Commissioner of Agriculture Charlie Hatcher in the August Republican primary for the House seat.¶
The Tennessee Firefly reached out to Congressman Ogles’ office for comment on Friday and has yet to receive a response.¶
