Sarah Grace Taylor
@sarahgracetaylor.bsky.social
Back home covering TN state government for the new Nashville Banner. Previously at POLITICO, Seattle Times, Chattanooga TFP.
Jerri Green may be within single digits of Marsha Blackburn for TN governor, according to a new poll. But Green’s campaign also shared some misleading takes from the poll. 🧵 nashvillebanner.com/2026/09/18/j...
New poll says Jerri has closed on Marsha Blackburn - Nashville Banner
A new poll shows Democrat Jerri Green closing the gap on Republican Marsha Blackburn in the Tennessee governor's race. A PAC that supports Green funded the poll.
nashvillebanner.com
Hot tub salesman Dave Hatley says he wants to fix Tennessee’s economy as governor, despite his own history of bank fraud, bankruptcy and tax debt. Republican Marsha Blackburn is attacking him despite his unlikely odds. ✍️ @sarahgracetaylor.bsky.social
Independent David Hatley talks about his run for governor - Nashville Banner
Independent David Hatley touts his business background and self-funds his campaign for governor, has a history that leaves him open to attacks.
nashvillebanner.com
It's Disability Voting Rights Week! In 2024, for @motherjones.com, I reported on accessibility issues for churches being common polling locations. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
Churches don't have to be accessible. That's a voting rights problem.
In 2024, millions of people will vote at religious sites. What if you're disabled?
motherjones.com
In states with abortion bans, medical providers are hesitating or flat-out refusing to terminate ectopic pregnancies, lawsuits allege. “I genuinely thought I was going to die,” said Kyleigh Thurman, who couldn’t get care in Texas.
Ectopic Pregnancy Deaths Have Nearly Doubled. It’s Worse in States With Abortion Bans.
With prompt and appropriate medical care, experts say, people shouldn’t die from an ectopic pregnancy. Women in Texas and Oklahoma have sued over delays in care, which, coupled with our new analysis, ...
propublica.org
Here’s what Blackburn’s opponents — none of whom are socialists, btw — said about her refusing to debate, again. @nashvillebanner.bsky.social nashvillebanner.com/2026/09/11/m...
Opponents blast Marsha Blackburn's refusal to debate - Nashville Banner
Sen. Marsha Blackburn said she will not debate Democratic nominee Jerri Green, drawing a strong response from Green as well as independent candidates.
nashvillebanner.com
Nobody covering metro like @stelliott.bsky.social
Stephen Elliott@stelliott.bsky.social · last wk.It all started with the breaking story that the FBI had executed a search warrant involving a Metro employee back in July. We identified that employee as John Honeysucker, a well-known senior official at Metro Water.
In a declaration filed in federal court by the ACLU, Memphis resident Hunter Demster says agents from the Memphis Safe Task Force harass him for taping their activities and that they are abusing Tennessee's "Halo" or buffer law. @tennesseelookout.com is part of a coalition challenging the law.
ACLU claims Memphis Safe Task Force harassing plaintiff • Tennessee Lookout
Memphis Safe Task Force agents continue to intimidate people who record their activities, says the American Civil Liberties Union in a lawsuit
tennesseelookout.com
Marsha Blackburn says if she's elected governor she wants TN to execute more people more quickly and use the electric chair. But the design of the state's death penalty machine means she can't make that happen on her own. Me and @sarahgracetaylor.bsky.social: nashvillebanner.com/2026/09/10/m...
Blackburn wants to alter Tennessee's death penalty approach - Nashville Banner
Gubernatorial candidate Marsha Blackburn wants expedited executions and an electric chair option, if elected, but the office does not have such authority.
nashvillebanner.com
Wanted to know if what Blackburn was saying about executions was possible or not, and luckily I work with the guy who quite literally wrote the book on Tennessee executions @iamstevenhale.bsky.social
Nashville Banner@nashvillebanner.bsky.social · last wk.Marsha Blackburn wants to expedite executions and “bring back the electric chair” if elected governor, but legally, it’s not that simple. ✍️ @sarahgracetaylor.bsky.social and @iamstevenhale.bsky.social
A new charge letter alleges that John Honeysucker, a top Metro official under federal investigation, traded favors with Nashville developers with whom he had sustained personal and financial relationships. Honeysucker retired ahead of a disciplinary hearing in the matter. ✍️ @stelliott.bsky.social
Records reveal Metro's charges against former MWS official - Nashville Banner
Documents detail allegations that former Metro Water official John Honeysucker misused his role to aid developers currently under federal investigation, others.
nashvillebanner.com
Most importantly, we shout out The Brave Little Toaster, one of the most underrated animated movies of our time.
Steven Hale@iamstevenhale.bsky.social · 2w agoPretty. Nice. Little Pod. Me and SGT about the robot cars and other things.
The voters I talked to at Pinkston’s event are really skeptical about an independent candidate winning, but even more reluctant to vote for Blackburn or Green.
Nashville Banner@nashvillebanner.bsky.social · 2w agoSome Tennessee voters dislike Republican nominee Sen. Marsha Blackburn but don’t trust Democrats to win the governor’s race in the red state. Can independent Lauren Pinkston convert them? ✍️ @sarahgracetaylor.bsky.social
After a white nationalist spouted anti-Muslim remarks outside the Islamic Center of Nashville, the surrounding community and neighbors responded in waves. The mosque has a long history as one of the neighborhood’s anchors. ✍️ @mikeiereiland.bsky.social and @andreatudhope.bsky.social
Community support bolsters Islamic Center of Nashville - Nashville Banner
Nashville neighbors rallied in support of the Islamic Center in multiple ways after a white nationalist targeted the historic mosque with a hateful message.
nashvillebanner.com
Dolly Parton's voice was angelic not because it possessed some kind of divine perfection or unattainable beauty, but because it seemed to be personally invested in the well-being of anyone and everyone who listened to it, illuminated from within with an almost otherworldly benevolence.
Dolly Parton Had the Voice, and Concerns, of an Earth Angel
Parton gave hopeful expression to songs she wrote about the hard times and hard-won triumphs of her life.
nyti.ms
RIP Dolly. I hope the wigs and tits in heaven are even bigger 😢
Nashville police made two arrests last week that highlight the way generative artificial intelligence technology is supercharging the sexual exploitation of children online. ✍️ @iamstevenhale.bsky.social
Recent arrests show rising CSAM threat from generative AI - Nashville Banner
Two arrests in Nashville show how generative AI is being used to supercharge the online sexual exploitation of children, and how authorities try to combat it.
nashvillebanner.com
The location of a planned U.S. Department of Homeland Security national immigration enforcement call center has changed from Adams to Nashville, a federal contract database shows. via @tennesseelookout.com www.newsfromthestates.com/article/ice-...
ICE changes location of Tennessee call center site from Adams to Nashville
The location of a planned U.S. Department of Homeland Security national immigration enforcement call center has changed from Adams to Nashville, a federal contract database shows.
newsfromthestates.com
The robot cars are watching us. @sarahgracetaylor.bsky.social has been watching them. nashvillebanner.com/2026/08/20/w...
Waymo vehicles' surveillance does not stop between rides - Nashville Banner
Waymo vehicles continue to record their surroundings when they are parked in Nashville neighborhoods and near businesses, sparking privacy concerns among some.
nashvillebanner.com
I went to the Nashville gas station where a woman was killed Monday after the semi-truck she was sleeping under ran her over. Some people who have been surviving on the street alongside her were there. They told me her name was Tasha. nashvillebanner.com/2026/08/19/n...
Friends mourn unhoused Nashvillian killed by semi-truck - Nashville Banner
A 46-year-old unhoused Nashville woman was fatally run over by a semi-truck while sleeping under its trailer Monday. Friends recall her life, struggles.
nashvillebanner.com
People keep coming up to me at the coffee shop, the gym, the bar saying "steven, steven does the @nashvillebanner.bsky.social have a free daily newsletter with original reporting and links to other stories??" Yes, actually, we do. And you can subscribe to it here: nashvillebanner.com/newsletters/
Newsletters - Nashville Banner
Sign up for our free daily newsletter. Start each day with a rundown of the most important stories impacting our city and state.
nashvillebanner.com
On Thursday, the state executed Darrell Hines for the 1985 murder of Catherine Jean Jackson Jenkins. In his last words, he spoke to his son. Jenkins' children said, "This doesn't bring closure...but it does bring justice." ✍️ @mikeiereiland.bsky.social
Tennessee executes Anthony Hines for 1985 murder - Nashville Banner
Anthony Darrell Hines was executed on Thursday for a 1985 murder. He spent 40 years on death row. A family member of the victim said, "it does bring justice.”
nashvillebanner.com
Tennessee taxpayers are paying about $1,961 each to fund the Trump administration’s mass deportation policies, according to an analysis of the federal budget released by the Economic Policy Institute.
Report: Trump mass deportation policies cost Tennessee taxpayers $1,961 apiece • Tennessee Lookout
Tennessee taxpayers pay about $1,961 each to fund the Trump administration’s deportation policies, according to the Economic Policy Institute.
tennesseelookout.com
There’s a spot on my street where individual Waymos often park, sometimes for hours at a time. I’m working on a story for @nashvillebanner.bsky.social related to this. Let me know if you know of anywhere else Waymos lurk between rides. Thanks!
Tennessee is set to execute Darrell Hines by lethal injection today in Nashville. I haven't covered this case because I worked as an investigator for Hines' defense team. But my colleague @mikeiereiland.bsky.social has been. Here's his recent story on the case: nashvillebanner.com/2026/08/10/d...
Darrell Hines' long-scheduled execution is set for Thursday - Nashville Banner
Tennessee plans to execute Anthony Darrell Hines on Thursday for the 1985 murder of Catherine Jenkins. The victim's family believe that moment is long overdue.
nashvillebanner.com
In a new report, a Senate Democrat accuses Tennessee Sen. Marsha Blackburn of declining to help investigate the financial records of Jeffrey Epstein, despite her public calls for accountability. ✍️ @sarahgracetaylor.bsky.social
Report alleges Blackburn refused to help with Epstein probe - Nashville Banner
A report from leading Senate Democrats claims Sen. Marsha Blackburn refused to help subpoena financial records linked to the Jeffrey Epstein investigation.
nashvillebanner.com
The company whose planned data center next to the Nashville Zoo provoked massive public backlash is suing Metro over the city’s “relentless efforts” to block the development. nashvillebanner.com/2026/08/11/d...
DC Blox sues Metro Nashville over data center zoning laws - Nashville Banner
DC Blox has filed a federal lawsuit against Metro Nashville over data center zoning regulations, alleging its project near the Nashville Zoo was targeted.
nashvillebanner.com
It’s the triumphant return of the Tuesday News Roundup! Host @racheliacovone.bsky.social is joined by executive producer @whittlz.bsky.social and @nashvillebanner.bsky.social statehouse reporter @sarahgracetaylor.bsky.social to cover everything from Thursday’s primaries to hot raccoon summer 🔥🦝
Nashville Voted! We’re Breaking Down the Results. Plus, It’s Hot Raccoon Summer - City Cast Nashville
It’s the triumphant return of the Tuesday News Roundup! Nashville Banner statehouse reporter joins host Rachel Iacovone and executive producer Whit...
nashville.citycast.fm