DATELINE: NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE — THE PHOENIX IS DEAD. BUT WHAT ABOUT TODD WARNER?
Dummy of the Week
Unless you’ve been buried under a mountain of political mailers, the verdict is in:
Former state Rep. Glen Casada is guilty on 17 counts.
Cade Cothren—his burner-happy bagman—is guilty on all 19.
Fake names. Forged W-9s. Taxpayer-funded kickbacks disguised as constituent services.
The jury didn’t flinch.
And while the convictions rolled in, one man kept talking like none of it mattered.
So congratulations, State Representative Todd Warner — you’re a dummy.
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Warner wasn’t just in the neighborhood when this scandal broke.
He was on the guest list.
In January 2021, before he was even sworn into office, the FBI raided his home and business.
They took his campaign records.
They took his computers.
They even took his excuse for why he couldn’t file a campaign disclosure report.
Most politicians would’ve taken that as a cue to lay low.
Warner? He stuck with it.
He continued using Dixieland Strategies—a vendor tied to Cothren and Phoenix Solutions.
Same bulk mail permit. Same tactics. Same smell.
Asked about it, Warner told The Tennessee Lookout’s Sam Stockard:
“This man’s still innocent until proven guilty. He’s done me a fantastic job. I’ll put it up against anybody’s.”
Well, now he has been proven guilty.
And through it all, Warner has remained loyal to his indicted buddy—right up to the bitter end.
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Which brings us to Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse.
In 2023, Warner and Cothren were spotted dining together in Nashville.
Also in the restaurant that night: House Speaker Cameron Sexton, House Majority Leader William Lamberth, and House Republican Caucus Chair Jeremy Faison.
Cothren reportedly confronted Lamberth. Voices were raised. Expletives were exchanged.
It wasn’t just an awkward dinner—it was a total collapse of basic political civility.
And Warner? Just another night out with the guy who defrauded the state under the alias “Matthew Phoenix.”
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This month, as federal prosecutors laid out their case in court, Warner didn’t just watch.
He showed up—not as a witness, but as a critic of the prosecution.
To NewsChannel 5’s Phil Williams, Warner said:
“What my gut feeling is… [Speaker Sexton] was hoping the FBI would find something on Casada and Cothren… maybe even the governor.”
Then, without a flicker of irony:
“My question is, what would President Trump think in Washington if Speaker Johnson used the FBI to take out members of his own caucus? That’s absolutely what’s happened.”
To Warner, this wasn’t a corruption case.
It was a political hit job—masterminded by the very leadership he works under.
Never mind the fake vendors. Never mind the forged signatures.
The real crime, apparently, was disloyalty.
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And that, really, is the story of Todd Warner.
He doesn’t do quiet.
He doesn’t do strategic.
He’s publicly gone after Speaker Sexton.
He’s called for Lieutenant Governor Randy McNally to resign.
He’s taken jabs at Majority Leader William Lamberth.
He’s opposed nearly everything from Governor Bill Lee.
He is, quite literally, a life-size Rock ’Em Sock ’Em Robot—angrily pounding his fists at anyone in charge.
And speaking of plastic robots, Warner appears to have about as much moral clarity as one too.
We’d love to tell you about the bills Warner has passed.
But he hasn’t passed anything meaningful.
We’d love to tell you about the committees he’s chaired.
But he doesn’t chair any.
We’d love to talk about policy.
But all he offers are personal vendettas and public tantrums.
Ask him about results, and he’ll just tell you:
“I’m not leadership’s bitch.”
Great.
But who does that help?
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Now that Cothren is likely headed to federal prison—who’s left standing with Warner?
Surprise: it’s Tennessee Stands.
The fringe-right pressure group gave Warner a 93 on their legislative scorecard.
Why? Easy: he yelled at the people Gary Humble told him to.
That scorecard isn’t about accountability.
It’s a weapon.
Tennessee Stands uses it to bully legislators, not guide them.
And frankly, it’s a completely slanted document—but we’ll save that for another day.
When asked about Todd Warner, Tennessee Stands couldn’t be prouder.
Just ask their director of candidate recruitment, Moonhee Bischoff, who posted:
“I wish every legislator had the courage of Representative Warner.”
Of course she does.
Because for Tennessee Stands, courage means saying dumb things loudly—and blaming leadership when no one listens.
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But wait—there’s another surprise.
While Warner trashes PACs and paints himself as an outsider, he also took help from the Tennessee Education Association—the state’s largest teachers’ union.
Yes, that TEA:
• The one that filed a federal lawsuit against Tennessee’s ban on divisive concepts (CRT)—claiming it “censors” teachers.
• The one that opposes school vouchers, charter school growth, and education savings accounts.
• The one that’s backed Democrat-aligned education spending increases and lobbied against almost every Republican education reform in the past decade.
So much for conservatism, right?
Anti-voucher warriors united—Tennessee Stands, TEA, and Todd Warner, in the most dysfunctional ménage-à-‘meh’ state policy has ever seen.
Warner is not building coalitions.
He’s cashing praise and collecting political cover from anyone willing to flatter him.
Call it conviction if you must. But let’s be honest—
it’s the base definition of opportunism.
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So here we are.
The Phoenix is in ashes, but Warner’s judgment—and his mouth—are still committing crimes against good governance.
He’s defended frauds.
He’s torched every bridge he didn’t build.
He’s turned belligerence into his only legislative skillset.
So, a big congratulations to you, State Representative Todd Warner — you’re a bona fide dummy.
And folks in Chapel Hill and the surrounding area of District 92 — you truly deserve better than this.