Tennessee Democrats Kicked Off Committees After Disruptive Protests

After a protest over congressional redistricting in Nashville spiraled out of control, the Republican speaker of Tennessee’s House of Representatives removed Democratic lawmakers from all standing committees and subcommittees for their involvement in the demonstration.

The protesters opposed Tennessee’s new congressional map, which lawmakers in the GOP-controlled state House approved in the wake of the Louisiana v. Callais Supreme Court ruling that limits racial gerrymandering. Tennessee’s new map eliminates the state’s only Democratic congressional district, which is also majority-black.

Democrats Blow Their Rocky Top

In a letter sent to House Minority Leader Karen Camper, Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton explained that members of the Democratic Caucus would be removed from their committee assignments, with exceptions made where membership is required under House Rules.  

Sexton accused Democratic representatives of “disrupting the democratic and legislative processes” and “creating disorder on the House floor,” highlighting six violations, including:

“Interlocking arms in the well of the House; Blocking aisles on the House Floor; Instigating and encouraging disruptions of the legislative process in coordination with paid protestors and attendees in the gallery, including the distribution of earplugs to a member of your caucus; The use of prohibited props and noisemakers on the House Floor; Demonstrating a lack of respect toward fellow members seeking recognition to speak on legislation; and Flagrant disregard for the Permanent Rules of Order of the House.”

Members impacted by the decision received individual letters, including Democrat Justin Jones, who was seen lighting a Confederate flag on fire inside the Tennessee State Capitol. In response to the letter, Jones accused his “white Republican colleagues” of retaliating against him for protesting their “white supremacist agenda.” “[T]he Speaker of the House is now choosing retaliation against a Black lawmaker for standing up against their Jim Crow racial gerrymander,” Jones wrote in an Instagram post. But Jones appears to have the issue backwards: Louisiana v. Callais reinforces limits on racial gerrymandering, and Tennessee’s new map reflects the court’s ruling.

The Redistricting War

The uproar over Tennessee’s congressional map comes amid the nationwide redistricting war, which was sparked by Texas late last year when Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, signed into law a new House map that could hand the GOP another five seats.

Virginia jumped into the fray “to restore fairness,” but after the Democrat-led legislature committed a “constitutional violation” to create a new map, the state’s Supreme Court ruled against the redistricting effort. Now, Republicans are hoping for another home run in Louisiana, where a Senate committee voted this week to establish a new map, which would give Republicans another seat in Congress.

Meanwhile, in South Carolina, the Republican-led state Senate opposed a plan to redraw the Palmetto State’s congressional map, despite support from the state House and President Donald Trump. State Senator Shane Massey, who serves as Majority Leader, was behind the upper chamber’s decision to reject redistricting efforts.

“Too many people in power just want to do whatever it takes to stay in power,” he argued. “They’ll do whatever it takes to keep it, but I ask to what end? What do you do with it when you’ve attained it?” Fair enough. But then again, Massey sought power himself. He ran for office and now holds one of the most powerful positions in South Carolina. If he’s not willing to use that power to support his agenda, what exactly was the point of attaining it in the first place? It appears he could learn a thing or two from the GOP in Tennessee and Louisiana.