Kustoff hoping to ride on Trump support
U.S. Rep. David Kustoff was hoping Thursday to play up his conservative roots and ride the support of President Donald Trump in a bid to fend off challenger Dr. George Flinn Jr.
Flinn ads portrayed Kustoff as a liberal on abortion rights. But political analysts say Kustoff most likely would weather the attack and had the edge in the congressional District 8 Republican primary.
Early results Thursday night showed Kustoff with 20,874 votes, or 53 percent of the ballots counted, compared with 16,647 for Flinn and 1,880 for Colleen Owens. She appeared on the ballot although she had withdrawn from the race earlier this summer.
The winner will run in the Nov. 6 general election against a Democratic challenger, either Memphis social worker John Boatner or Memphis entrepreneur Erika Stotts Pearson. In the early vote count in the Democratic primary, Boatner led 7,370 to 6,712.
Flinn, a Memphis radiologist and radio station owner who has run for office before, mounted an expensive campaign. He tried to shake the incumbent’s right-ofcenter status among voters in the Republican stronghold.
District 8 boundaries contain part of East Memphis and all or part of the suburbs of Arlington, Bartlett, Collierville, Germantown and Lakeland as well as most of West Tennessee, including Dyersburg, Jackson and Union City.
“Flinn’s ads did have some effect,” said Memphis lawyer John Ryder, a political analyst and former general counsel for the Republican National Committee.
Flinn ads claimed Kustoff voted to fund Planned Parenthood. The ads painted him as a pro-abortion lawmaker with U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-California.
Kustoff was endorsed by Tennessee’s Right to Life group, but some voters still paused to check Flinn’s assertion and ask, “Did Kustoff really vote for that?” Ryder said.
Planned Parenthood funds had been included in a larger bill intended to keep federal operations running. Kustoff contended he had voted for the omnibus measure, Ryder said, and the abortion matter eventually faded as an issue for many voters.
Kustoff, a former U.S. attorney from Germantown, appealed to Republicans by campaigning in support of Trump policies. He backed Trump’s position on 93 percent of the relevant votes, according to one political site.
Trump responded in favor of the incumbent. Last month the president tweeted, “David is strong on crime and borders, loves our Military, Vets and Second Amendment.”
Flinn’s camp also contended Kustoff ’s campaign had accepted donations from law firms that represent alleged terrorists.
Kustoff sits on the House Financial Services Committee, including its terrorism and illicit finance subcommittee. In hearings last year, the subcommittee explored the sale of ancient artifacts by al-Qaida, Islamic State and other militant groups that in turn financed for their organizations with the money.
Flinn was lauded in some circles for spending his own money on the campaign rather than reaching out for donations. Records show he had spent $2.7 million by late July.
Flinn, owner of Flinn Broadcasting and Flinn Radiology Group, also ran for Congress in four previous elections in 2010 through 2016. Two years ago, Kustoff took 27 percent of the primary vote to Flinn’s 23 percent.