IN-DEPTH: Republican Trifecta in Tennessee Didn’t Stop Chaos During Special Session

The Tennessee State Capitol in Nashville on March 29, 2023. Chase Smith/The Epoch Times

Months of debate in the Tennessee Legislature over gun control following the deadly Covenant School shooting came to an end on Aug. 29, as both chambers concluded their business in a special session called by Republican Gov. Bill Lee.

The session, which was announced shortly following the shooting in which three adults and three children were murdered, was officially called to focus on public safety. The governor, in his call for the session, laid out a narrow but detailed list of what legislation could and couldn’t be proposed during the session.

Although the governor’s official call laid out 18 possible priorities for lawmakers to consider, the state Senate was intent the first day of the session to pass only a few bills, none of which address gun ownership in the state—something called for by Democrats and Covenant School families.

Leaders in the House and Senate, where Republicans have a supermajority, were at odds with one another and with the governor, with infighting causing as much dysfunction as fights between the parties.

On the morning of Aug. 29, the Senate made it clear the chamber would pass only three bills and a fourth appropriations bill to fund the special session and other safety enhancements, tying the hands of the state House of Representatives—which had originally planned on debating more legislation that day.

The Senate adjourned until January, followed by the House, although not without both verbal and physical altercations on the House floor.

Dysfunctional House

Despite the efforts of Democrats and Republicans in the House, who proposed more than 100 bills in the short amount of time of the special session, substantial debate on the proposed legislation was overshadowed instead by politics, protests, censure, and an emergency injunction by a Nashville court.

On the first day of the session, House Republicans passed a set of rules that clarified the consequences of a lawmaker’s being ruled out of order twice in one day—a move that is a direct result of three Democrats’ being ruled out of order for disrupting proceedings in March in the wake of the school shooting.

The outburst by the Democrats, who were calling for gun control, led to a vote of expulsion for the members, with only one of the three being spared expulsion.

The other two lawmakers, Reps. Justin Jones of Nashville and Justin Pearson of Memphis, were quickly reappointed to their seats by their local governments and officially won reelection in special elections in August.

The rules also included a ban on holding copy paper-sized signs in the House gallery and in committee rooms. Democrats characterized both of these rules as limiting free speech and debate, and they were the subject of controversy as the special session moved forward.

Injunctions and Censure

In committee meetings the day after the new rules were passed in the House, state troopers were called to remove three women from a committee room for holding small signs.

Shortly after, the women became the subject of a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union against House Speaker Cameron Sexton. A Davidson County Chancery Court judge issued an injunction on the sign ban, allowing signs to return the following morning.

House leadership sought to overturn the injunction, but those efforts were fruitless as the state attorney general’s office didn’t win over the chancellor in arguments on Aug. 28, with the judge leaving the injunction in place.

The rule laying out consequences for disrupting proceedings was also a subject of controversy later on Aug. 28, when Mr. Sexton ruled Mr. Jones out of order twice and then called for a vote by the full House to determine whether they agreed and consequences should be imposed.

The body voted along party lines in agreement with the speaker, leaving Mr. Jones to be silenced from speaking for the remainder of the legislative day, which led all of the chamber’s Democrats to leave the chamber in protest.

Any subsequent ruling of being out of order, had the session lasted longer, could have silenced him for the remainder of the special session.

Senate Draws Line in Sand

Republicans in the Senate were at odds with the governor and the speaker from the beginning, with one member calling for the special session to adjourn just minutes after it began.

In subsequent days, the Senate’s committee meetings and floor sessions were short, some lasting only a few minutes. Leaders in the upper chamber began stating last week they would pass only three bills, a sentiment they followed through on.

Tennessee Rep. Justin Pearson speaks on his phone while being expelled from the state Legislature in Nashville, Tenn., on April 6, 2023. Seth Herald/Getty Images

The laws passed are a public safety campaign and distribution of free firearm locks; a bill shortening the notification period in which local courts are required to inform the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation about the outcome of criminal proceedings; and a bill to require the bureau to provide an annual report on child and human trafficking in the state.

A fourth bill related to $100 million in appropriations allows for funding expenses for the body to hold the special session and includes $50 million in grant funding for mental health agencies and $30 million in school safety grants to public and private higher education institutions.

Claims of Assault on Final Day

The disarray in the House previewed earlier in the year was only a sign of how contentious relationships in the body would become.

As Republican leadership explained that the Senate had adjourned and no further business could be taken up by the House, debate about adjourning in the House led to fiery speeches and claims from both sides of being physically assaulted.

A Republican representative claimed that a Democrat plowed through him while on the floor. Mr. Jones and Mr. Pearson appeared to follow Mr. Sexton as he attempted to exit the chamber after adjourning the session, with video footage from the House gallery showing a physical altercation and tense moments as both sides tried to calm their members down.

In a press conference following adjournment of the House, Mr. Jones and Mr. Pearson claimed that it was actually Republican leadership, including the speaker and majority leader, who pushed them while attempting to approach them.

Mr. Pearson additionally wrote on social media that he was “shoved” by the “white supremacist” speaker of the house, telling local media he was considering pressing charges.

Mr. Jones circulated a letter late last week informing members he planned to call a vote of no confidence in Mr. Sexton on Aug. 28, something he and Minority Leader Karen Camper said may have led to Mr. Jones’s censure on Aug. 28.

Before adjournment on Aug. 29, Mr. Jones inquired with the House clerk about when it would be appropriate to present his call for a vote of no confidence in Mr. Sexton, although the House adjourned without taking the matter up for vote.

Gun Rights Group Claims Victory

The Tennessee Firearms Association, which has advocated against the special session since it was announced, said the lack of legislation passed is a victory for gun owners in the state.

The group said in a statement they believe that the vast array of proposed gun control measures from both Republicans and Democrats “underscores the persistence of the issue” and likelihood of its resurgence in coming regular sessions.

The group said the governor’s persistence on the Legislature’s passing an extreme risk order of protection law—which they say is akin to “red flag” laws that take weapons from those deemed dangerous—is a sign that the issue isn’t dead in Tennessee.

They also warned that Democrats who gained attention during the special session, including those who were “silenced” for rules violations, “will likely gain financial resources nationally as a threat to the Second Amendment.”

“Tennessee Firearms Association members and members of other legitimate gun advocacy groups as well as our respective members can take a brief breath for today but only if they remain aware that the biggest threat to our rights is government, including the state and local governments in Tennessee,” the group said in a statement. “It is now time to regroup, reassess, get ready for what may be a greater and more sustained fight that will be manifested in the January 2024 continuation of the Legislative session.”

Protesters gather inside the Tennessee state Capitol to call for an end to shootings and support more restrictive gun laws in Nashville, Tenn., on March 30, 2023. Seth Herald/Getty Images

The group added that some Republicans in the Legislature, mostly in the House, are “not a unified voice that are willing, at least on the Second Amendment, to defend our rights.”

“The Special Session exposed Republicans—mainly in the House—who are a clear risk to Second Amendment interests,” the group wrote. “The Special Session also exposed a clear tension between the House and Senate on a number of issues related to not only gun control but the Governor’s agenda in general.”

Governor Weighs In

The governor issued a statement on the public safety session on Aug. 29 following the adjournment of both chambers, calling the week “difficult” but “hopeful.”

He praised the chambers for passing four of his proposals, including appropriations of more than $100 million in public safety funding.

“This has been an important week for Tennessee—a difficult week, but I believe a week that’s hopeful,” Mr. Lee said in remarks. “Public safety matters to every Tennessean, and it is a matter of urgency for every Tennessean.”

He said he remains hopeful because crime is a “rising problem in this country” and “Tennesseans want to live in a safe neighborhood,” which has encouraged public debate.

“That is why I called the special session,” he added. “That’s why we worked with the General Assembly for months to bring forth ideas and suggestions that they might have ways to make our state safer.”

He said lawmakers had made progress on the issue.

“It’s also encouraging that thousands of Tennesseans weighed in and engaged in the process over the last several months,” he added. “I want to speak particularly to the Covenant parents who were a part of that engagement process in an important way. Their presence made a difference, and they reminded Tennesseans that there is hope in the midst of tragedy. They brought that hope into this process. They also reminded us that civility is not a weakness. I’m thankful to them.”