In a statement on Monday, a spokesperson for Republican Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton said that the two expelled Democratic representatives would be readmitted to their seats if their local boards reappoint them.
Democratic Reps. Justin Pearson and Justin Jones were allegedly (cough cough) expelled for leading chants on the floor to call for gun safety laws following another mass shooting. Of course, white Democratic lawmaker Gloria Johnson kept her seat by one vote. And everyone has noticed that. I'm sure Sexton realizes that members of his party in Tennessee are looking like Klansmen to the rest of the country.
"The two governing bodies will make the decision as to who they want to appoint to these seats," the statement reads. "Those two individuals will be seated as representatives as the constitution requires."
When Republicans expelled Reps Justin Jones and Justin Pearson for using their First Amendment rights to push for a solution to end gun violence, at the same time, Republicans continued to call for more guns; they never expected what would happen next as the Tennessee Three was thrust into the spotlight on the national stage.
Rep. Justin Pearson (in the featured video) is a force to be reckoned with -- and he has a powerful voice.
Look out, GOP. You thought you were silencing an uppity Black man, but you created a fierce Democrat that isn't afraid to speak truth to power.
