Tenn. lawmakers may find way back to House
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Expelled by their Republican colleagues for an act of protest, Justin Jones and Justin J. Pearson were no longer members of the Tennessee House of Representatives on Friday. They could not advocate for their constituents in Nashville and Memphis, take to the floor again to push for gun control legislation or even access the building after hours.
But instead of sidelining the Democratic lawmakers, the expulsions have sparked outrage and galvanized national support within their party, and the two young Black lawmakers are poised to return to the state Legislature — as soon as next week — with a platform and profile far surpassing what they had just days ago.
On Friday, Vice President Kamala Harris made a hastily arranged visit to Nashville to meet with the state lawmakers, and President Joe Biden, who described the Republicans’ actions as “shocking” and “undemocratic,” called the ousted Democrats to offer his support and invite them to the White House.
“That made these individuals martyrs,” Rep. Antonio Parkinson, D-Memphis, said of the expulsions. “It’s going to be extremely hard to silence them.”
Jones and Pearson were expelled Thursday for interrupting debate last week by using a bullhorn to lead a gun control protest in the chamber in the wake of a deadly school shooting in Nashville. Republican leaders argued that the two lawmakers and Rep. Gloria Johnson, who joined the protest but survived an expulsion vote, had brought “disorder and dishonor to the House of Representatives.”
Critics said that the expulsions were an overreaction that defied the will of the voters who had elected Jones and Pearson in Nashville and Memphis, the state’s two largest cities, which also have large Black and Democratic-leaning populations. Democratic lawmakers and activists also warned that the expulsions could have dangerous repercussions, including encouraging lawmakers in Tennessee and other states controlled by a single party to use the measure as a tool for silencing dissenting voices.
The outrage was also driven by race, as some lawmakers, activists and others said they believed that it was a factor in the final outcome of the votes: The two young Black lawmakers were ejected, but the third lawmaker involved — Johnson, who is white — avoided the same fate by a single vote.
The fate of the seats in the immediate term now rests with local officials in Nashville and Shelby County, where the lawmakers’ districts were. The Shelby County Commission will decide whether to appoint Pearson. Some of the 13 commissioners have indicated their support. Others said they were still considering their options as they were thrust into the middle of a contentious situation.
In Nashville, where many members of the Metropolitan Council have signaled their support for returning Jones to his seat, the expulsion has worsened an already inflamed relationship between state and city leaders.
After Republicans attacked the lawmakers for the demonstration on the House floor, Rep. Bryan Richey, a Republican from the Knoxville suburbs, tried to discourage his colleagues from ejecting all three. He could envision how it would reverberate beyond Tennessee. (He voted against expelling Pearson and Johnson, but did support ejecting Jones.)
“If you expel them, they’re just going to get blown up to a level that none of y’all are ever going to see,” Richey said, recounting what he told other lawmakers considering expulsion. “And that’s exactly what’s unfolding right now.”