Hey patriots, Ryan here. If you haven’t heard John Rich’s The Devil and the TVA, crank it up—it’s a gut-punch of truth about the Tennessee Valley Authority’s 90-year war on American landowners. This song’s dedicated to the folks in Cheatham County, Tennessee, who, with President Trump and Secretary Brooke Rollins in their corner, sent the TVA running in 2025. But it’s also a wake-up call for every American who values freedom, property, and the right to control their own destiny. Let me lay it out: the TVA’s a symptom of a bigger problem, and the solution is clear—every American needs to take back their power, literally, by building their own solar, wind, geothermal, or other power plants on their land. That’s how we make this nation unstoppable.
Picture this: families working the same fields for over a century, raising kids and grandkids, surviving floods, droughts, and the Great Depression, only to have the TVA show up and say, “You think you own something, but you don’t own nothing.” That’s what John Rich sings about, and it’s what happened in Cheatham County when the TVA tried to plop a 900-megawatt methane gas plant—turbines, pipelines, lithium batteries, and all—right on top of farms, homes, and schools. They didn’t care about water contamination, air pollution, or the lives they’d destroy. As Rich puts it, “He’ll smile and grin and then take your farm away / He’ll tear it all to hell right in your face.” That’s the TVA’s game since 1933: show up with their own police, lawyers, and bulletproof vests, laugh at your protests, and seize your land with eminent domain.
But Cheatham County fought back, and with Trump’s leadership and Rollins’ support, they won. Trump leaned on the TVA board, and by July 15, 2025, the agency backed off, scrapping plans for the plant. Rollins even posted on X, “ON IT, @johnrich. Standby.” That’s the kind of action we need—leaders who stand with the people, not unelected bureaucrats who think they’re above the law. The song’s chorus, “No, the devil ain’t got nothing on the TVA,” nails it: this agency’s been displacing folks—over 125,000 for their dams and projects—across Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Kentucky, Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia for decades. And they’re still at it, eyeing new sites even after Cheatham’s victory.
Now, let’s talk about the real fight—not just stopping the TVA, but breaking free from the whole rotten system. The grid’s a house of cards, folks. It’s not built to withstand attacks, natural disasters, or the insane energy demands of the AI and tech revolution coming our way. Big government and their cronies like the TVA want you dependent on their outdated, overpriced power. But here’s the truth: we don’t need them. Imagine if every American had their own power plant—solar panels, wind turbines, geothermal systems, you name it—right on their property. I’m telling you, this nation would be an unstoppable force. No more begging the government for scraps, no more blackouts, no more TVA goons stealing your land. Just pure, American self-reliance.
And don’t let anyone tell you it can’t be done. I plan to build a whole-house solar system for my barndo in Arkansas for under 15 grand, and it powers 4-5 air conditioners through this brutal heat. Fifteen grand! That’s nothing compared to the freedom it gives you. Battery tech is getting safer, cheaper, and denser by the day—pretty soon, every patriot can have a setup that laughs in the face of the grid. The lies we’ve been fed—that only big utilities can handle power, that you need their permission to live free—are crumbling. And here’s another kicker: we need to ditch the laws that stop regular Americans from building small-scale refineries. Turning crude into gas is easier than the bureaucrats want you to think. If we can refine our own fuel and generate our own power, what’s stopping us? Nothing.
Look at the AI tech companies—they’re already figuring this out, building their own power plants to keep their data centers humming. They know the grid’s a liability. We should all be doing the same. The TVA’s a relic of FDR’s socialist New Deal, a federal corporation that acts like a private company but answers to nobody. It’s got its own police force, its own rules, and the power to take your land without blinking. John Rich is calling for a “complete revamping” of the TVA, and I’m with him—privatize it, strip its eminent domain powers, and let the free market sort it out. Trump’s already shaking things up, firing TVA board members and nominating patriots like Lee Beaman, Mitch Graves, Jeff Hagood, and Randall Jones who get that energy security shouldn’t mean screwing over landowners.
This fight’s bigger than Cheatham County. As Rich sings, “The battle continues in counties across the seven states where the TVA is still on the move.” But it’s bigger than the TVA, too. It’s about taking back our God-given rights to life, liberty, and property. It’s about saying no to Goliath and yes to David. Every one of us can be a David—building our own power systems, refining our own fuel, and telling the government to get the hell off our land. So, patriots, what’s your story? Have you dealt with the TVA or other agencies trying to take what’s yours? Are you ready to cut the cord and power your own future? Share your thoughts, listen to The Devil and the TVA, and let’s keep this fight alive!
Sources: fox17.com, newschannel9.com, timesfreepress.com, The Atlantic