Stacey Campfield

Stacey Campfield (born June 8, 1968) is an American politician. From 2011 to 2015, he served as the Republican member of the Tennessee Senate from the 7th district. Previously, he represented the 18th district in the Tennessee House of Representatives.

Campfield was originally elected to the Tennessee House of Representatives in 2004, succeeding Steven Buttry. In 2010, he ran for and won the state senate seat of Tim Burchett, who was elected to the United States House of Representatives. Throughout his tenure, Campfield gained widespread attention for his proposal of conservative legislation, controversial statements, and erratic behavior. In 2014, he was defeated in his primary re-election campaign by Richard Briggs.

Early life, education, and career Stacey T. Campfield was born on June 8, 1968. Originally from Vestal, New York, he grew up spending summers in Tennessee. He graduated from Vestal High School in 1986. He holds associate degrees from Broome Community College and Regents College and a BS in Management from Regents College.

Campfield's entry into politics occurred during the 2000 United States presidential election, during which he campaigned for George W. Bush.

During his time in the General Assembly, he was described as a "real estate re-developer." He has been involved in several organizations including the Young Republicans, the College Republicans, the United Way, and the American Red Cross.

During the campaign season for the 2008 elections, Campfield made a public blog post falsely accusing Democrat Roger Byrge, a House of Representatives candidate in the 36th district, of having been arrested on a drug charge — the arrest had actually been made on Byrge's son. After narrowly losing the election to Republican Chad Faulkner, Byrge sued Campfield for libel. Campfield described the lawsuit as "laughable," explaining that he made the false claims after misunderstanding a hypothetical comment by Glen Casada. In 2013, a judge dismissed the lawsuit, finding that Campfield may have believed the false statement at the time of writing. However, on appeal, the lawsuit was reinstated, with a second judge concluding that, even if he believed the false statement, Campfield still may have recklessly tarnished Byrge's reputation by never attempting to verify the claim before publicly promoting it.

Tenure In 2007, Campfield sponsored a bill to issue death certificates for aborted fetuses, claiming it would show the number of lives ended by abortion. Tennessee already required abortions to be reported, with the state's Office of Vital Records making the number of abortions publicly available. Democrat Rob Briley criticized the bill as "preposterous" and "a huge waste of taxpayer money."

In 2008, Campfield proposed a bill to ban elementary and middle school teachers from teaching about any "sexual orientation other than heterosexuality," saying the topic should be left to families. The Tennessee Equality Project opposed the bill, saying while teachers need not advocate for or against homosexuality, they should be able to allow students to debate the issue. The bill ultimately died in committee.

In 2010, Campfield sponsored a bill to make the names of people with state-issued handgun permits private.

Black Legislative Caucus membership In 2005, Campfield inquired about joining the Black Legislative Caucus. When rebuffed by chairman Johnny Shaw, Campfield criticized the group's bylaws as racist and suggested they were more discriminatory than those of the Ku Klux Klan. Shaw considered calling a caucus vote on granting Campfield honorary membership without voting rights, but Campfield said he only wanted full membership. In response to the incident, the Nashville Branch of the NAACP called for Campfield's resignation.

Rental properties controversy In January 2009, four University of Tennessee students renting one of Campfield's properties alleged he slow-walked major repairs to the property and threatened to sue the students if they attempted to leave. When Campbell allegedly failed to return multiple calls from the students, one tenant contacted Knoxville's city codes enforcement office. While investigating the property, the office found 47 code violations, including a basement flooded with water and feces, leaking faucets, inoperable windows, missing gutters, and improper wiring. The office deemed the home "unfit for human habitation." Campfield insisted that he would make all necessary repairs to the property, but also alleged that some problems were the fault of the tenants themselves and that others problems had been exaggerated.

Halloween football game incident On October 31, 2009, Campfield was escorted out of a Tennessee Volunteers football game. According to reports, a mother filed a complaint after Campfield, wearing a wrestling mask in violation of stadium policy, frightened her two daughters. Campfield agreed to remove the mask when confronted by a deputy; however, he then attempted to enter a section of the stadium different than the one indicated on his ticket. The deputy, believing their interaction had been misinterpreted, questioned Campfield, who allegedly became defensive and argumentative. Ultimately, the deputy and another officer escorted Campfield out.

Tennessee Senate (2011–2015)

Elections In 2010, Campfield declared his candidacy to represent Tennessee's 7th Senate district, previously held by Tim Burchett and encompassing pieces of Knox County including Fort Sanders, Fourth and Gill, and Downtown Knoxville. During the campaign, he came under fire for having lived with a convicted sex criminal — Campfield stated that he had rented the man a room out of his house before becoming aware of his history, at which point Campfield terminated the arrangement. and defeated Democrat Randy Walker in the general election.

In 2014, having drawn criticism from members of his own party, Campfield was challenged in the Republican primary by Knox County Commissioner Richard Briggs. Briggs received public praise from Bill Haslam and significantly outraised Campfield. On August 7, 2014, Briggs handily defeated Campfield by a 38-point margin.

Tenure In 2011, Campfield proposed legislation requiring that individuals seeking government-related benefits pay for drug tests to confirm eligibility. Later that year, he revived his 2008 bill banning instruction on homosexuality in schools, branded as the "Don't Say Gay" bill, which was successfully voted through Senate committee. However, the bill was not taken up by the House of Representatives, and Campfield would continue to push similar legislation; his 2013 version of the bill drew a rebuke from the American Civil Liberties Union for an additional provision requiring school nurses and guidance counselors to report gay or questioning students to their parents.

In 2012, Campfield introduced a bill to shift Tennessee from an open primary to a closed primary election system, and requiring voters to affiliate with a party before being eligible to vote in that party's primary. Campfield argued voters often vote in a different party's primary to promote weaker candidates or those aligned more closely to the voter's own party's political positions.

In 2013, Campfield introduced a bill to cut by 30 percent payments made to parents or caretakers of children through Tennessee's Temporary Assistance to Needy Families program if the children fail to meet requirements for grades or attendance, if the children are not enrolled in free tutoring programs, and if the parent refuses to attend parent-teacher conferences or parent counseling. Opponents deemed the legislation the "Starve Our Children" bill,

In 2014, Campfield was among a group of lawmakers considering legislation to cut off water and electricity to facilities run by the National Security Agency and similar entities they accused of unconstitutional spying. Campfield acknowledged the proposal would be unable to significantly impact federal surveillance, but argued it would still be appropriate for the state to refuse to subsidize the agency. At the time, it was not clear if Tennessee had an NSA facility within the state.

Signorile interview and aftermath In January 2012, following a reintroduction of the "Don't Say Gay" bill, Campfield was interviewed by Michelangelo Signorile. Campfield replied to a question on the history of AIDS: "Most people realize that AIDS came from the homosexual community – it was one guy screwing a monkey, if I recall correctly, and then having sex with men... My understanding is that it is virtually – not completely, but virtually – impossible to contract AIDS through heterosexual sex." PolitiFact described Campfield's characterization of the origin of AIDS as "Pants on Fire!" false. Campfield was also criticized by students and alumni of his high school alma mater, who called for him to be removed from the school's Hall of Fame, into which he had been inducted in 2008. as well as Governor Haslam. When confronted, Campfield largely stood by his comparison, but regretted "that some people have missed the point."

Public image Campfield's time in the legislature was contentious, with the lawmaker often receiving criticism across the political spectrum. filmmaker Del Shores, and entertainers Penn & Teller. Political opponents variously described him as strange or crazy, Jesse Fox Mayshark, a contributor to the Metro Pulse, backed these characterizations, branding his interview with Campfield as a "conversation with Knoxville’s weirdest politician." However, he simultaneously described Campfield as genial, engaging, and even-keeled, and he highlighted Campfield's apparent confusion over being singled out as unusual.

In 2014, the Music City Theatre Company, a Nashville-based theatre group, announced the debut of Casey Stampfield: The Musical, a stage production centered on Campfield. Campfield welcomed news of the production, saying, "I’m always for taking a step back and enjoying good political satire."

Post-legislative life

Elections Campfield has twice run to return to political office. In 2018, he declared his candidacy to succeed Roger Kane to represent the 89th district in the Tennessee House. During the campaign, he posted a campaign video calling out the "fake news" while surrounded by copies of Knoxville News Sentinel newspapers. Campfield ultimately placed third in the election, losing to small business owner Justin Lafferty. Personal life Campfield is unmarried and has no children. He is a Catholic.