At an Aug. 21, 2025 meeting of the Tennessee Valley Authority Board of Directors, Knoxville residents urged board members to keep the utility a public venture. (Photo: John Todd Waterman)

Keep the Tennessee Valley Authority public, said speakers at a Wednesday public hearing in Knoxville.

The hearing came one day before a TVA board meeting and after President Donald Trump threatened to fire the TVA Board of Directors if they do not fire TVA president Don Moul. The board refused in a letter.

Since his threat, Trump has not disbanded the board and instead nominated new members. Trump expressed interest in privatizing TVA’s power lines during his first term, and the news of his recent threat set off a backlash from unions and their members, environmentalists and local government officials

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