The Tennessean Editorial Board asked candidates connected the Nov. 8 authorities and national wide predetermination ballot in Tennessee to reply our questionnaire. Find biographical accusation and their responses to 10 questions. Early voting starts connected Oct. 19.
More:Learn astir candidates moving successful the Nov. 8 Tennessee wide predetermination | Editorial
Biographical Information
- Name: Doctor Jason Brantley Martin
- Age (at clip of Aug. 4 superior election): 47
- Neighborhood, municipality and/or city: Nashville
- Education: Tulane University - Undergrad University of South Alabama- Medical School Vanderbilt University - Residency and Fellowship
- Job history: Chief Resident astatine the Nashville Veteran Affairs Medical Center Meharry Medical College Nashville General College Sumner Regional Hospital
- Family: Married to Dr. Jennifer Martin present person 3 daughters of their own: Lilly, Ansley, and Laney.
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Ten Questions astir your Candidacy
What bureau are you seeking? (Include district):
Governor
Why are you moving for this office?
As a doc moving successful nationalist wellness astatine Nashville General Hospital, 1 of our large information nett hospitals successful Tennessee, I saw however a deficiency of entree to capable healthcare was detrimental to people's lives -- and however successful immoderate cases, it outgo radical their lives. I cognize we tin bash amended to instrumentality attraction of 1 another.
During the COVID pandemic, though we were capable to assistance truthful galore radical survive, our squad mislaid implicit 400 patients successful Sumner County -- and I cognize we could person done amended for galore of those patients if Governor Lee had intelligibly spoken the information and been a person successful that moment. I cognize that the deficiency of enactment is not conscionable related to COVID -- its prevalent crossed the endeavor successful authorities government, and it’s the crushed we underfund our schools, neglect to support our teachers, fastener radical up for tiny cannabis offenses, neglect economical maturation successful agrarian Tennessee, and neglect to grow Medicaid. It’s clip for existent enactment successful Tennessee.
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What makes you qualified to clasp this bureau and amended qualified than your opponent(s)? (Please specify if you are unopposed, but consciousness escaped to answer)
First and foremost, connected the frontlines of healthcare, I person seen however regressive nationalist policies are hurting Tennessee families. I person a bosom for service. I've been a nationalist servant successful Tennessee for 20 years successful the healthcare profession, and I privation to instrumentality my relation arsenic a healer, arsenic a statement builder to authorities government. In the people of my occupation successful the ICU, I woody with precocious stakes problems with literal beingness and decease consequences each time -- I privation to bring the aforesaid steady, calm, collaborative attack that I usage successful the infirmary to authorities government, wherever we request strong, consistent, principled leadership. Don't beryllium fooled -- immoderate radical volition archer you that you person to beryllium a lawyer, oregon a vocation politician, earlier stepping into the Governor's office. Governor Lee’s failures person thing to bash with NOT being a vocation person – he’s a nonaccomplishment due to the fact that helium is much funny successful chasing nationalist governmental ambitions and towing the enactment enactment than helium is taking attraction of the hard moving families of Tennessee. We request a politician with a bosom for nationalist service, with a grounds of healing, and with a grounds of telling the truth.
How tin you marque the biggest interaction connected your assemblage done this position?
We truthful desperately request principled leadership. I privation to marque the biggest interaction by telling the truth, turning down the rhetoric, and focusing my vigor connected making people’s lives amended alternatively than lining my ain pocket, oregon the pockets of my friends. Governor Lee admitted that it was incorrect to marque it harder for inmates to get retired of jailhouse aboriginal for definite convictions – helium said it was a atrocious thought to walk the “Truth successful Sentencing” authorities recently, but helium didn’t person the governmental courageousness to veto this bill. He didn’t person the courageousness to archer the information and enactment successful a principled way, and truthful helium fto this measure go instrumentality without his signature. That isn’t leadership. A akin concern occurred erstwhile the General Assembly fundamentally criminalized homelessness by making it a felony to “camp” connected authorities lands – Governor Lee thought this was the incorrect mode to woody with the unhoused population, but helium didn’t person the courageousness to veto this legislation; helium didn’t person the courageousness to transverse his governmental allies successful the General Assembly. This deficiency of courageousness and rule is detrimental to the radical of Tennessee.
If you are elected (or re-elected), what are your apical 2 to 3 priorities for your caller (or next) word successful office?
- We indispensable grow Medicaid. Medicaid enlargement not lone is the close happening to bash to instrumentality attraction of our brothers and sisters present successful Tennessee, but it’s besides the close happening to bash economically. In Tennessee, we pb the federation successful infirmary closures per capita, and we pb the federation successful aesculapian bankruptcies per capita -- we are breaking our families and our communities with aesculapian debt. When entree to healthcare leaves, our factories, and plants, and shops leave, too. Rural Tennessee is near down without entree to healthcare. With Medicaid expansion, we could alteration the fig of uninsured Tennesseans by 50%! We could assistance 400k much Tennesseans get entree to wellness security tomorrow if the Governor and the General Assembly had the courageousness to marque it so. Better entree to healthcare would enactment economical growth, peculiarly successful agrarian Tennessee.
- We indispensable support women’s wellness rights successful the authorities of Tennessee. Here’s what we cognize astir termination restrictions: termination restrictions don’t halt abortions – they conscionable halt SAFE abortions. Abortion restrictions don’t halt abortions for everyone – conscionable for the radical who can’t spend to question to different states wherever the services are offered. We request to basal up for marginalized communities; we request to support the wellness rights of women successful our community. The existent termination trigger instrumentality signed by Governor Lee is radical. It does not adjacent acceptable speech exceptions for rape, incest, oregon the beingness of the woman. Physicians who supply lifesaving attraction to women successful these circumstances could look a felony proceedings and years successful jail. This extremist trigger instrumentality indispensable not stand.
- We indispensable enactment nationalist acquisition and our nationalist schoolhouse teachers. Governor Lee has attacked nationalist acquisition astatine each crook – he’s politicized our schoolhouse boards; he’s robbed section schoolhouse boards of control; he’s under-funded our schools his full word of office; he’s implemented voucher programs to defund nationalist education; and astir precocious he’s failed to support our hard moving teachers portion his friends connote that our educators are “dumb.” I recognize that beardown nationalist schools assistance each communities, that beardown nationalist schools are the mode kids and families alteration their lives for the better, that nationalist schools tin beryllium the hubs for advancement successful their communities.
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What are you proceeding astir from voters astir what they privation you to accomplish, if elected?
We request to legalize cannabis for aesculapian and recreational use. We could usage the hundreds of millions of dollars of taxation gross from this regulated marketplace to enactment causes similar education, healthcare, and infrastructure. We should halt locking up chiefly Black and brownish Tennesseans for tiny cannabis cause offenses and usage those instrumentality enforcement resources much appropriately. We should springiness our farmers a caller harvest to prevention the household farm. We should person entree to cannabis for aesculapian purposes -- for crab patients, and chronic symptom patients. States with legalized cannabis person less opioid deaths, too.
What other bash you privation voters to cognize astir you that volition assistance them marque an informed determination connected Election Day?
I believe, aft visiting each country of the authorities and each 95 counties, that we person truthful overmuch much that unites america than that which divides us. We request to absorption connected issues similar education, healthcare access, broadband net -- issues that unite america – truthful that we tin thrive together. Some politicians spot governmental points successful dividing america up into regions (West, Middle, oregon East), races, oregon governmental affiliations. We request to cull the authorities of part and enactment unneurotic for a stronger Tennessee.
Tell america about a mentor oregon usher who made a quality successful your beingness and what contented would you impart to the community?
My mentor, Dr. Art Wheeler, was a captious attraction doc astatine Vanderbilt and 1 of the top teachers I ever had. The astir invaluable acquisition helium taught maine was however to enactment calm and however to marque logical decisions erstwhile decease was connected the line. I signifier this each time successful the hospital, and erstwhile Governor, I'll proceed to usage the lessons Dr. Wheeler taught maine to marque the pugnacious but indispensable decisions to pb Tennessee and amended the lives of our moving families.
Will you perpetrate to being civilian successful however you contiguous yourself and the mode you interact with opponents and others? (Our explanation of civility is being a good, active, honorable and respectable citizen)
Yes
A amusive question: What are 1 oregon 2 attractions (restaurants, parks, venues, etc.) that visitors cannot miss if they travel to your community?
Our greenways and parks successful Nashville which let you to thrust and acquisition our assemblage connected the ground. As good arsenic the African American Music Museum successful Nashville which highlights the accomplishments of galore musicians and Nashville's divers euphony culture.
Call Opinion and Engagement Director David Plazas astatine (615) 259-8063, email him at dplazas@tennessean.com or tweet to him at @davidplazas.
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