Tennessee House getting fiesty

[happyhoix]

Back a while ago, the TN House voted to kick out 2 dems. They promptly got themselves re-elected, and one of them has called for a no confidence vote against the Speaker, listing 12 reasons. 

www.forbes.com/sites/willskipworth/2023/08/28/ousted-tennessee-rep-justin-jones-calls-for-no-confidence-vote-for-gop-house-speaker/?sh=4509a4a5d296

What made me look for that news article was the tail end of a TV news report stating the Dems have just all walked out of the House. 

And the word ‘facist’ was thrown in there.  

Wonder if the Speaker will try to kick all the Dems out this time. 

[happyhoix]

They’ve been fighting over gun control - that’s what got the two Dems kicked out the first time (disrupting the assembly).

www.pbs.org/newshour/show/tennessee-legislature-opens-contentious-special-session-over-gun-reform

I don’t expect the Speaker will be replaced, and I don’t expect there to be any real gun control imposed, but good for the Dems for refusing to shut up and sit down.

[billisonboard]

Democrats walk out of House session after Rep. Jones silenced; Gallery cleared

[Pink Cashmere]

From the article  billisonboard provided a link to….

Jones was ruled out of order twice, which according to House rules immediately triggers a vote that would prevent him from speaking for the rest of the legislative day. Jones was attempting to make a point on how Nashville did not need more police in schools but rather more mental health funding when Sexton ruled him out of order.

It sounds to me like Mr. Jones would like to address the roots of some of the problems in our society. I support that.

[Tennesseer]

Aug 28, 2023 19:18:57 GMT -5 Pink Cashmere said:

From the article  billisonboard provided a link to….

Jones was ruled out of order twice, which according to House rules immediately triggers a vote that would prevent him from speaking for the rest of the legislative day. Jones was attempting to make a point on how Nashville did not need more police in schools but rather more mental health funding when Sexton ruled him out of order.

It sounds to me like Mr. Jones would like to address the roots of some of the problems in our society. I support that.

Seeing the Republican party seems to blame gun violence on mental health issues and not the continued proliferation on firearms in the state, one would think Sexton would like to hear Jones out.

[tskeeter]

The issue with the TN legislators wasn’t about gun control.  It was, as happyhoix noted, about some legislators disrupting legislative proceedings, including using a bullhorn on the house floor to engage with spectators in the gallery.  Such an egregious breach of legislative decorum merits some disciplinary action, but removal from their elected role seems like over reaction.

[Pink Cashmere]

Sept 8, 2023 17:14:48 GMT -5 tskeeter said:

The issue with the TN legislators wasn’t about gun control.  It was, as happyhoix noted, about some legislators disrupting legislative proceedings, including using a bullhorn on the house floor to engage with spectators in the gallery.  Such an egregious breach of legislative decorum merits some disciplinary action, but removal from their elected role seems like over reaction.

I think it is about more than gun control. There were 3 legislators that participated in what happened. 2 black men and a white woman. The black men were “punished”, and removed from their positions, but not the white woman. 

I have lived in the Southern part of this country my whole life. We are often expected to know our place and stay in it. Here, a lot of white men do not do well with black men daring to speak up and/or challenge them. The “good ‘ol boy network” is still a very real thing around here. 

This is as much about the 2 legislators trying to be heard, when their peers keep trying to silence them, as it is about them standing up for something that seriously needs to be addressed.