Second Tenn. State Rep Reinstated

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Facts

• Less than a week after being expelled, the Shelby County Board of Commissioners has reappointed Justin J. Pearson to his seat representing Tennessee House District 86 in the state legislature.¹
• Pearson's reinstatement comes just two days after the Nashville Metropolitan Council unanimously voted to restore fellow Democrat Rep. Justin Jones to office.²
• Last Thursday, Jones and Pearson were voted out of the chamber for participating in a gun reform demonstration involving protesting in the statehouse after a deadly shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville that saw three children and three adults killed.³
• Hundreds of supporters marched Justin Pearson through Memphis to the Shelby County Board of Commissioners meeting, chanting and cheering before entering the commission chambers, where officials quickly voted 7-0 to restore him to his position.⁴
• A third Democrat, Gloria Johnson, avoided expulsion when the House voted for her to remain in office last Thursday.³
• Johnson, who is White, suggested that she avoided expulsion partly due to her race, while Pearson and Jones, both Black men, suggest their race played a role in their removal.⁵

Sources: ¹NPR Online News, ²FOX News, ³Itn, ⁴Associated Press and ⁵NBC.

Narratives

• Democratic narrative, as provided by The daily beast. Jones and Pearson were already popular because of the policies they support, and the compassion they showed for the victims of the Nashville school shooting. By expelling them, and not considering they would easily be reinstated by their county commissions, Republicans made two of their opponents into nationwide celebrities who will now be better able to push for gun reform, racial justice, and other progressive causes.
• Republican narrative, as provided by Townhall. These Democrats violently led a rebellion against an elected body and broke several of the House’s rules. Unfortunately, Democrats continue to believe the rules don’t apply to them, especially when it comes to pushing for unconstitutional gun restrictions. They shouldn’t celebrate too hard, though. Jone and Pearson still have to win reelection in order to remain in their seats.