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Democrats in Tennessee are planning to reveal their next moves later on Friday in the wake of the “racist” expulsion by Republicans from the state house of two Black lawmakers for taking part in a protest for tighter gun laws.
It comes as Joe Biden and others weigh in on the “undemocratic” actions of the Republicans in booting two of three Democrats who joined the protest that followed last week’s Covenant school shooting in Nashville that killed six, including three nine-year-olds.
The two politicians ousted for a “breach of decorum”, Justin Jones and Justin Pearson, are Black. A third Democrat, Gloria Johnson, who survived the expulsion vote, is white.
The president, in a statement released last night, condemned Republicans for playing politics, and not focusing on “commonsense gun safety reforms”:
Today’s expulsion of lawmakers who engaged in peaceful protest is shocking, undemocratic and without precedent. Rather than debating the merits of the issue, these Republican lawmakers have chosen to punish, silence and expel duly-elected representatives of the people of Tennessee.
This morning, Martin Luther King III, son of the famed civil rights leader, praised the two expelled politicians and launched an attack on the “unconscionable” actions by the majority party for ignoring gun reform. On CNN he said:
Our nation refuses to deal with this issue. I’m so excited that these young men are fighting for democracy.
We had an assault ban until 2014, it’s very sad. [But] people can stand up and things can change, my father and mother taught us that.
The episode, he said, made it “crystal clear” that “racism is still very real”:
We’ve got to eradicate this evil. My dad used to say darkness cannot put out darkness, only light can do that.
It just goes to show how sad and tragic and divisive, and how awful racism is. We are better than that. We have got to change this behavior.
Jones, in comments on Thursday, said the nation was watching. “They think this issue is over. We’ll see you on Monday,” he said, referring to more protests likely to draw thousands to Nashville.
We’re waiting to learn what moves the Democrats might make. There will almost certainly be special elections, in which Jones and Pearson, who represent about 130,000 constituents between them, will be eligible to run. And they could be reinstated meanwhile by their county commissions.
Read the latest on this story here from the Guardian’s Nina Lakhani:
Key events
White House moves to strengthen transgender protections
The Biden administration has released a proposal that would forbid schools and colleges across the US from enacting outright bans on transgender athletes competing in sports.
But teams could create some limits in certain cases – for example, to ensure fairness, according to the proposal, which did not go into extensive detail about the term.
If finalized, the proposal would become enshrined as a provision of Title IX, the federal nondiscrimination requirement in education at institutions that receive federal funding. It must undergo a lengthy approval process, however, and is almost certain to face challenges from opponents.
It comes as a slew of Republican-controlled states nationwide enact legislation banning or restricting transgender athletes taking part in sports in educational settings, and new anti-trans laws in general.
On Thursday, the US supreme court refused to let West Virginia enforce a state law banning trans athletes from female sports teams at public schools.
“Every student should be able to have the full experience of attending school in America, including participating in athletics, free from discrimination,” said Miguel Cardona, Biden’s education secretary, in a statement.
Read the full story:
Here’s a selection of Twitter reactions to the expulsion by Tennessee Republicans of two Black Democratic lawmakers for joining a protest for stronger gun laws.
The overriding theme seems to be that it’s a fight for democracy that’s just beginning, and the nation’s young people will be leading the charge.
From Democratic New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez:
Republicans may think they won today in Tennessee, but their fascism is only further radicalizing and awakening an earthquake of young people, both in the South and across the nation.
If you thought youth organizing was strong, just wait for what’s coming. Gen Z don’t play https://t.co/gPwoFI7uib
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) April 6, 2023
From NBC News and MSNBC legal analyst Glenn Kirschner:
The naked racism of those Republican legislators in Tennessee should serve as a stark reminder that American apartheid endures. This is OUR struggle. All of us. There is no justice if there’s not equal justice. And yes, #JusticeMatters pic.twitter.com/rsyEgv5ZdB
— Glenn Kirschner (@glennkirschner2) April 7, 2023
From Mallory McMorrow, Democratic Michigan state senator and gun reform advocate:
Tennessee Republicans thought they could silence three House Reps just because they spoke out of turn to recognize Tennesseans demanding action on gun violence.
Today, they expelled two young Black men from office.
… and they handed them a national stage.
Let’s. Go. 🇺🇸 https://t.co/ulqVxaE4Br
— Mallory McMorrow (@MalloryMcMorrow) April 7, 2023
From Joe Walsh, former Republican congressman, now a political analyst:
Tennessee Republicans just fucked up. Big time. And like every other cruel, intolerant, bigoted, authoritarian, & anti-democratic Republican fuck up of the past 7 yrs, this fuck up will hurt them politically. It will continue the shrinking of & ultimate demise of my former party.
— Joe Walsh (@WalshFreedom) April 7, 2023
California’s Democratic governor Gavin Newsom:
And finally, for now, the Tennessee house Republicans, who insist they were “obliged” to take action because the two expelled Democrats were “disrespectful”:
Democrats in Tennessee are planning to reveal their next moves later on Friday in the wake of the “racist” expulsion by Republicans from the state house of two Black lawmakers for taking part in a protest for tighter gun laws.
It comes as Joe Biden and others weigh in on the “undemocratic” actions of the Republicans in booting two of three Democrats who joined the protest that followed last week’s Covenant school shooting in Nashville that killed six, including three nine-year-olds.
The two politicians ousted for a “breach of decorum”, Justin Jones and Justin Pearson, are Black. A third Democrat, Gloria Johnson, who survived the expulsion vote, is white.
The president, in a statement released last night, condemned Republicans for playing politics, and not focusing on “commonsense gun safety reforms”:
Today’s expulsion of lawmakers who engaged in peaceful protest is shocking, undemocratic and without precedent. Rather than debating the merits of the issue, these Republican lawmakers have chosen to punish, silence and expel duly-elected representatives of the people of Tennessee.
This morning, Martin Luther King III, son of the famed civil rights leader, praised the two expelled politicians and launched an attack on the “unconscionable” actions by the majority party for ignoring gun reform. On CNN he said:
Our nation refuses to deal with this issue. I’m so excited that these young men are fighting for democracy.
We had an assault ban until 2014, it’s very sad. [But] people can stand up and things can change, my father and mother taught us that.
The episode, he said, made it “crystal clear” that “racism is still very real”:
We’ve got to eradicate this evil. My dad used to say darkness cannot put out darkness, only light can do that.
It just goes to show how sad and tragic and divisive, and how awful racism is. We are better than that. We have got to change this behavior.
Jones, in comments on Thursday, said the nation was watching. “They think this issue is over. We’ll see you on Monday,” he said, referring to more protests likely to draw thousands to Nashville.
We’re waiting to learn what moves the Democrats might make. There will almost certainly be special elections, in which Jones and Pearson, who represent about 130,000 constituents between them, will be eligible to run. And they could be reinstated meanwhile by their county commissions.
Read the latest on this story here from the Guardian’s Nina Lakhani:
A Good Friday good morning to our US politics blog readers! There’s more than a whiff of racism hanging over the Tennessee state house this morning, where Republican lawmakers on Thursday expelled two of three Democrats who took part in a rowdy gun control protest on the chamber floor.
Those ousted are Black, while the third, who survived the expulsion vote, is white. Their perceived crime was “breaking decorum” for joining constituents demanding tighter gun laws in the wake of last week’s Covenant school shooting in Nashville that killed six, including three nine-year-olds.
Reaction to the expulsions has been swift as observers mull elements of racism, gun rights and an attack on democracy. Joe Biden called it “undemocratic”, while Martin Luther King III said on CNN Friday: “Racism is still very real … we have got to eradicate this evil.”
We’ll have more coming up. Here’s what else we’re watching today:
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Conservative supreme court justice Clarence Thomas is facing calls for his impeachment after it was revealed he accepted undeclared luxury gifts from a Republican mega-donor for more than two decades.
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Stormy Daniels, the adult movie actress paid off by Donald Trump to keep quiet about an encounter before the 2016 election, says in a new interview the former president has been “dethroned”. Trump appeared in court this week charged with falsifying business records relate to the pay-off.
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Democrats in North Carolina are fuming over the defection of a lawmaker, giving Republicans a veto-proof supermajority in the state house for critical issues such as abortion, voting rights and gun controls.
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Biden received good economic news on Friday with figures showing unemployment in the US down to 3.5%, and 236,000 jobs added in March.
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Senate and House lawmakers are on their Easter break, and neither Biden nor vice-president Kamala Harris have any public events scheduled.
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