MAGA senator mocked for ‘eating like a toddler’ while vowing to 'hunt down' foes in odd ad

Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), among President Donald Trump’s most loyal allies, is hoping a new ad will help secure her victory this November in her bid for Tennessee governor, but the TV spot elicited more than a few raised eyebrows Wednesday due to its “ sickening ” subject matter. Published by Blackburn Wednesday morning, the new ad depicts the gubernatorial hopeful sitting in a Chinese restaurant in front of a bowl of fortune cookies. “How hard am I gonna crack down on China? Well, here’s a clue!” Blackburn is heard saying in the ad. A voiceover then boasts of Blackburn's aggressive positions against China, saying that as governor, she would block Chinese companies from acquiring Tennessee land – and "hunt down every communist who tries to defy us." Amid the voiceover, Blackburn is shown smashing fortune cookies into small pieces with her bare hands. At the end of the ad, Blackburn, her hands resting on a pile of broken fortune cookies, delivers one last message. “It doesn’t take a fortune cookie to figure it out – here in Tennessee, we’re going to stop communist China and protect Tennessee land,” Blackburn is heard saying. Bill Graham, a purported retired U.S. Marine and pro-Democratic commentator, called Blackburn’s ad “sickening.” Matt Anderson, the editor-at-large of Bless This Mess , a Nashville news and comedy commentary page , argued that while Blackburn’s message may land with Tennessee voters, the visual of Blackburn smashing fortune cookies was a “crazy choice.” “This message surely lands but eating like a toddler in a restaurant was a crazy choice,” Anderson wrote in a social media post on X to his 7,000 followers. Blackburn has a long history of criticizing China, once proclaiming that China had a “5,000-year history of cheating and stealing,” a remark that prompted Chinese journalist Chen Weihua to call Blackburn “the most racist and ignorant U.S. senator I have seen.” This message surely lands but eating like a toddler in a restaurant was a crazy choice — Matt Anderson (@mandersonville) July 8, 2026