Kerry Roberts

Kerry E. Roberts is a Republican member of the Tennessee Senate for the 25th district,[1] which includes Robertson County, Dickson County, Cheatham County, Humphreys County and Hickman County.[2] In January 2020, Roberts left his weekly radio show on Springfield's WDBL and moved to Nashville's WLAC[3] morning show The Tennessee Star Report.[4]

Kerry Roberts
Member of the Tennessee Senate
from the 25th district
Assumed office
January 13, 2015
Preceded byJim Summerville
Member of the Tennessee Senate
from the 18th district
In office
March 8, 2011 – January 8, 2013
Preceded byFerrell Haile
Succeeded byFerrell Haile
Personal details
BornBedford, Indiana, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)Dianne Roberts
Children3 Children
ResidenceThe Beeches (Springfield, Tennessee)
EducationLipscomb University
OccupationCertified Public Accountant (inactive)
Websitewww.kerryroberts.com

Early life

Born in Bedford, Indiana, Kerry graduated from Bloomington High School North in 1979 and Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee, with a Bachelor of Science in Accounting in 1983.[5][6]

Roberts has been married to his wife, Dianne, since August 1987. They have three children, all of whom attended public schools. He is a member of the Church of Christ.[5] Roberts lives at a historic home known as The Beeches.[7]

Work history

After graduation from Lipscomb University, Roberts worked for Touche Ross and Company (now Deloitte). In 1985, he started his own accounting practice which he sold in 1990.

In 1990, Roberts opened a chain of bicycle retailers. Roberts also served as President and Chairman of the National Bicycle Dealers Association. He closed his stores as a result of losses incurred by the 2010 Tennessee floods.

Roberts now owns Resource Network LLC, a company that provides accounting, finance, and technology professionals on a temporary or contract basis.[8]

Committee assignments

Roberts previously served on the Health, Government Operations, and Environment and Tourism Senate committees. He was Secretary of the Health Committee.

In January 2019, Lt. Gov. Randy McNally appointed Roberts to be Chairman of the Senate Committee for Government Operations and reappointed Roberts to the Senate Judiciary Committee.[9]

Legislative accomplishments

Roberts sponsored legislation to create a “supplemental insurance program — commonly called a Katie Beckett waiver — to assist families of children with medically complex needs, regardless of their income.” Started by President Ronald Reagan, Tennessee was the last state to adopt a Katie Beckett waiver.[10]

Roberts sponsored the Fresh Start Act to “ensure that licensing authorities do not deny applications for professional licenses due to prior criminal convictions unless they are directly related to the profession, with the exception of certain felonies.” [11][12]

Campaigns

2011

Roberts won the Senate District 18 Republican Primary on January 20, 2011.[13]

Roberts won the Senate District 18 General Election on March 8, 2011.[14]

2014

Roberts announced his campaign for re-election to the Tennessee Senate on May 15, 2013.[15] On September 24, 2013, Representative Joshua Evans of Greenbrier, TN, announced that he was running against Roberts.[16] Other candidates included Tony Gross, Jim Summerville, and Wayne White.[17] Roberts won the August 7, 2014, Republican primary with 42.16 percent of the vote in a highly-contest primary. Representative Joshua Evans (Greenbrier) came in second with 37.82 percent, followed by incumbent Senator Jim Summerville (Dickson) at 15.87 percent, and businessman Wayne White (Dickson) at 4.15 percent.[18] In the November 4, 2014, general election, Roberts defeated Democratic Party nominee Tony Gross with 70.43 percent of the vote, compared to Gross' 29.57 percent.[19]

2018

In 2018, Roberts ran for re-election to the Tennessee Senate. He was unopposed in the August 2, 2018, Republican primary. On November 6, he won re-election with 11,392 votes. He defeated Democrat Wade Munday who only had 4,757 votes.[20]

Controversies

Higher education

In September 2019 on his weekly talk radio show, The Kerry Roberts Show, Roberts made national news when he claimed that higher education should be abolished to limit the "liberal breeding ground." [21] The Tennessee Star Report on Nashville's Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC welcomed Roberts to discuss his “hyperbole which was misunderstood by the liberal mainstream media” and incorrectly reported as a policy statement.[22]

Roberts’ website posted “His voting record demonstrates consistent support of higher education including the vote to make Tennessee one of the first states in the nation to provide two years of free college or technical education to high school graduates.” [23]

Protestors

In August 2020 during a special legislative session, Roberts was surrounded by protestors in Nashville. The Washington Post berated Roberts for complaining. [24] In a response published by Gannett, Roberts said those in the national media missed his point: he was defending the right of the protestors to protest. [25]

References
  1. "Senators - TN General Assembly". Capitol.tn.gov. Retrieved 2019-09-23.
  2. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-04-13. Retrieved 2014-03-11.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. "National News". WLAC. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  4. "Tennessee Star Report with Michael Patrick Leahy is broadcast on Nashville's Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 am to 8:00 am". Tennessee Star. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  5. Senate webpage
  6. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-05-09. Retrieved 2011-06-12.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. "The Beeches". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  8. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2019-05-22. Retrieved 2020-02-16.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  9. SUBMITTED. "Roberts appointed to lead Senate Government Operations Committee". Robertson County Connection. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  10. "Tennessee Senate, House agree to fully fund Katie Beckett waiver". Johnson City Press. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  11. "Support a Fresh Start After Incarceration". action.aclu.org. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  12. "Tennessee General Assembly Legislation". wapp.capitol.tn.gov. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  13. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-06-17. Retrieved 2014-03-11.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  14. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-06-17. Retrieved 2014-03-11.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  15. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-03-11. Retrieved 2014-03-11.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  16. Humphrey, Tom (2013-09-24). "Evans announces for Senate Dist. 25; Roberts touts fundraising - Humphrey on the Hill". Knoxblogs.com. Retrieved 2019-09-23.
  17. Tennessee Ticket (2012-11-06). "Tennessee Senate (2012) – Tennessee Ticket". Tennesseeticket.com. Retrieved 2019-09-23.
  18. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-11-29. Retrieved 2014-11-18.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  19. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-11-29. Retrieved 2014-11-18.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  20. "Dickson Co. final election results: Lee, Blackburn, GOP dominate". The Tennessean. November 6, 2018. Retrieved November 21, 2018.
  21. "It was a joke, says Tennessee senator who said colleges should be banned". NBC News. Retrieved 2019-09-10.
  22. "Senator Kerry Roberts Talks to the Tennessee Star Report About How Mainstream Media Can't Distinguish Between Reality and Hyperbole". Tennessee Star. 2019-09-12. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  23. "Senator Kerry Roberts". Senator Kerry Roberts. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  24. https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-fragile-flowers-of-tennessees-gop-legislature-contravene-a-basic-right/2020/09/06/796c8eb2-ec9b-11ea-99a1-71343d03bc29_story.html
  25. https://www.tennessean.com/story/opinion/2020/09/11/defending-first-amendment-rights-tennessee-senator-kerry-roberts/5762770002/
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