A Tennessee Republican lawmaker died overnight at his residence in Montgomery County. The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office said that Tennessee Representative Jeff Burkhart (R-Clarksville) was discovered deceased at home early Friday morning. He was 63 years old. The sheriff’s office said the call came in at about 7 a.m.
Burkhart used to be a firefighter in Clarksville and worked his way up to assistant fire chief. He then joined the Clarksville City Council in 2008. He was chosen to represent Montgomery County’s District 75 in 2022 and kept that job until he died on Friday morning. Several of Burkhart’s Republican coworkers have made public statements about how sad they are that he died.
Senator Marsha Blackburn noted that Burkhart would be “deeply missed.”
“State Rep. Jeff Burkhart was a good friend who always showed up to help others. He loved representing Montgomery County and was fully dedicated to improving the lives of those he represented. My condolences to his family and friends. He will be deeply missed,” Blackburn wrote on X.
Tennessee Republican Caucus Chair Jeremy Faison (R-Cosby) also lent his condolences and described his friendship with Burhart.
“Over the last several years, I’ve had the privilege of knocking on doors for members of my @tnhousegop. The doors I hit for Jeff Burkhart left a lasting impression on me. Montgomery County knew, loved, and appreciated their Rep. Jeff was loved! Door after door I would hear stories of how Jeff had helped their family. Fire fighters literally stopped to get signs from me. Jeff’s life mattered and the TN House of Representatives will greatly miss him!” Faison wrote.
The Tennessee GOP released this statement regarding Burkhart’s passing.
“Rep. Burkhart’s life of public service—from his years with the Clarksville Fire Department and his time on the Clarksville City Council to his work in the General Assembly—reflected his unwavering commitment to community, faith, and the values that bring Tennesseans together. His leadership on infrastructure improvements, education, public safety, and support for working families will leave a lasting impact on our state,” the group added.
They continued, “Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and all who loved and served alongside him. We offer our deepest condolences as they navigate this immeasurable loss.”
The Tennessee House Democrats also released a statement on his death.
“We’ve lost a beloved member of our legislative family,” said Caucus Chairman John Ray Clemmons. “On behalf of the entire House Democratic Caucus, I extend our heartfelt, sincere condolences and prayers to Rep. Jeff Burkhart’s family, friends, and loved ones. Rep. Burkhart was an exemplary public servant and champion for the families of Montgomery County. He touched many lives with his service and will be dearly missed by all in our State Capitol.”
Speaker of the House Cameron Sexton (R-Crossville) called Burkhart a “high-quality man” in an online statement.
“We are deeply saddened on the sudden passing of Representative Jeff Burkhart. He was a high quality man that put community and service above self. He will be missed dearly here on earth, we take peace knowing he is being welcomed into God’s eternal home,” Sexton wrote.
Rep. William Lamberth (R-Portland) called Burkhart a “good friend” and called for prayers for his family.
“Today I lost a good friend and Tennessee lost a phenomenal public servant. Representative Jeff Burkhart passed away at home this morning and will be deeply missed by us all. Jeff was simply a solid guy who got along with everyone and served his community with distinction. Please pray for his family and the entire Montgomery County community,” Lamberth said.
Tuesday, at the weekly House Republican Leadership press conference, Speaker Mike Johnson discussed House Republicans’ efforts to deliver maximum transparency regarding the Epstein files and ensure justice for victims of Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes.
Speaker Johnson also addressed what he called Democrats’ newfound interest in the Epstein files, despite the information being in the government’s possession throughout the Biden Administration.
“The truth is, the biggest proponents of this discharge petition were never actually interested in transparency or ensuring justice or protecting victims of this unspeakable tragedy, the Epstein evils. And how do we know that? Because the Democrats had every one of the Epstein files in their possession for the four long years of the Biden Administration,” Speaker Johnson said. “The Biden Department of Justice had the files the entire time, and not a single one of the people who were so loud and animated right now ever said anything about it for all those four years.”
“For four long years under the previous administration of the Biden-Harris Administration, Democrats insisted there was no border crisis. Remember, they told you that that wasn’t a problem at all. They dismissed inflation as transitory. That’s what they told us. They told the American people not to believe what we could all see with our own eyes, that there was an obvious mental and physical decline on the part of President Biden individually,” Johnson said. “And now, seemingly overnight, these same cast of characters, they’ve taken a sudden and urgent interest in the Epstein investigation.”
“None of them held press conferences. None of them demanded the release of the documents. And under Biden’s DOJ, when they prosecuted just Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, not a single one of these Democrats or any of the proponents of the discharge ever made any noise about that at all,” he said. “So, it’s fair for the American people to ask the question, why now? Why suddenly are they so interested?”
Johnson said Republicans are “working in earnest to deliver transparency to the American people” while ensuring that victims are not harmed.
“This was an unspeakable tragedy, and we have great compassion for the victims,” Johnson said. “They deserve justice. It has been too long delayed.”
Johnson highlighted the House Oversight Committee’s