The Devil in the Details: A Fabulous Gay House Hubby’s Take on Stephen Miller’s Tennessee Takeover

By Brian Michael

Y’all, pour yourself a something-strong. We need to talk. While I was here in Nashville, trying to decide if my new living room curtains should be “Bohemian Rhapsody” or just a simple “Eleganza, Extravaganza,” a whole different kind of drama was brewing down at the Capitol. And honey, it’s not the kind of juicy, fun drama. It’s the kind with bad lighting and a villain who looks like he’s never smiled once in his entire life.

I’m talking about Stephen Miller. Yes, that Stephen Miller. The guy whose entire aesthetic is “malicious hall monitor.” And apparently, he’s decided Tennessee is his new pet project. Our very own House Speaker, Cameron Sexton, has been on the phone with him, eager to turn the Volunteer State into the testing ground for the most aggressive, mean-spirited immigration policies this country has seen in a generation. They want us to be the "model." Fabulous.

Now, you might be thinking, “Brian, you’re a fabulous gay house hubby, not an undocumented immigrant. Why do you care so much?”

Oh, honey. Bless your heart for asking. Let me break it down for you from my perch here in my stylishly appointed Nashville home.

First, let’s call this what it is: a national political drama using our state as its backdrop. Stephen Miller doesn’t give a damn about Tennessee. He doesn’t care about our music, our food, our weirdly specific love for hot chicken. He sees us as a laboratory. We’re the rats in his maze of cruelty, and the prize is a pat on the head from a former president. It’s an insult. Our state, with all its complicated beauty and grit, deserves better than to be a prop in some D.C. power play.

But more than that, it’s about the kind of place we want to live in. You don’t get to cherry-pick your bigotry. The same energy it takes to round up and terrorize one group of people is the same energy that’s always been, and will always be, a threat to the rest of us. I know a little something about being part of a group that certain people find “undesirable.” I know what it feels like when politicians use your existence as a political football to score points with their “base.”

When you see our lawmakers cozying up to a man whose entire career is built on dehumanizing people, you have to ask yourself: who’s next? When they’re willing to tear families apart for political gain, what makes you think they won’t come for your marriage, your healthcare, your right to exist openly and fabulously in this state? The line in the sand is never a straight line. It’s always moving, and it’s always coming for someone you love.

And for what? To solve a problem that isn’t even our biggest issue? Our legislature is obsessed with this, but they can’t seem to fund our schools properly or figure out how to make healthcare affordable. It’s like watching someone burn their house down to get rid of a spider. It’s performative cruelty, and it’s a pathetic distraction from their own failures.

They’re trying to sell us a story. They want us to believe that this is about “law and order” and “protecting Tennesseans.” But don’t be fooled. This is about fear. This is about creating an enemy to keep us scared and divided while they do whatever they want. It’s the oldest, most tired playbook in the world.

So, from my perspective as the Fabulous Gay House Hubby of Nashville, this isn’t just about immigration policy. It’s about the soul of our state. Do we want to be known for our music, our creativity, our legendary hospitality? Or do we want to be known as the place that eagerly volunteered to be the testing ground for Stephen Miller’s dystopian fantasy?

I know which Tennessee I choose. It’s the one that’s a little messy, a little complicated, but has a big heart. It’s the Tennessee where you can be who you are, love who you love, and where your neighbor’s accent might be from Mexico or El Salvador or just down the road in Murfreesboro. It’s a place that’s vibrant and alive because of its people, not in spite of them.

So, no, Speaker Sexton. We don’t want to be your “model.” We are not your political science experiment. And Stephen Miller, honey, you can take your hateful agenda and crawl back into whatever dark corner you came from. Tennessee is better than this. And this fabulous gay house hubby, and plenty of others like me, will be here to remind them of it. Now, if you’ll excuse me, these curtains aren’t going to hang themselves.