Vice-president to visit Tennessee after lawmakers kicked out
Joanna Walters
US vice-president Kamala Harris plans to travel to Nashville, Tennessee, today after the Republicans controlling the state legislature expelled two young Black lawmakers last night for joining public protests demanding greater gun safety in the wake of a mass shooting at an elementary school in the city.
Here’s a tweet from Harris’s press secretary, Kirsten Allen.
NEW >> Today, @VP will travel to Nashville, TN. There she will meet with state lawmakers as well as young leaders who continue to demand action on common sense gun reform.https://t.co/kMeaAAF1UI
— Kirsten Allen (@KirstenAllen46) April 7, 2023
Harris will meet with the two lawmakers, Justin Jones and Justin Pearson, and a third Democratic lawmaker, Gloria Johnson, who is white and narrowly avoided being expelled.
The move has been condemned as racist, anti-democratic and not in the interests of protecting children’s safety from gun violence and school shootings, critics say.
Key events
It’s a rare day on the politics blog when we get to the afternoon without a Donald Trump-related post. My colleague Kari Paul has this look at an interview given by adult movie actress Stormy Daniels, and the hush-money payment made by the former president that led to this week’s criminal charges against him:
In her first major interview since Donald Trump’s indictment, Stormy Daniels has said that while she wants the former president to be “held accountable” she doesn’t believe he should go to prison.
“I don’t think that his crimes against me are worthy of incarceration. I feel like the other things that he has done, if he is found guilty, absolutely,” Daniels, 44, said in an interview with Fox Nation’s Piers Morgan released on Thursday.
Daniels sat down with Morgan for a 1.5 hour interview, which she called her most extensive yet. She thanked people for “love and support” in a tweet, saying that the segment “laid to rest a lot of misinformation”.
When asked by Morgan how it felt to see Trump appear in court, Daniels said she was “shocked”. “I thought he was going to get away with not being accountable,” she said.
“The king has been dethroned – he’s no longer untouchable,” she said. “Nobody should be untouchable, doesn’t matter what your job description is – whether you’re the president – you should be held responsible for your actions.”
Daniels, who postponed the original timing of her interview with Morgan last week citing “security concerns”, said she was also regularly receiving threats. She told Morgan that one in 10 messages she gets now are death threats, and that the tone has become increasingly violent.
“It’s like a suicide bomber,” she said. “In the depths of their soul, they feel like they’re doing the right thing.”
Read the full story:
Senate leaders partner for detained journalist’s release
A rare joint statement from Democratic Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer and his Republican counterpart Mitch McConnell is calling on Russia to release an American Wall Street Journal reporter who was arrested last week.
Authorities in Moscow have charged Evan Gershkovich with espionage, Reuters reported on Friday, citing the Interfax news agency. The 31-year-old journalist was detained last month during a reporting trip to the city of Yekaterinburg, and faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
According to the news agency, Gershkovich pleaded not guilty during a court hearing on Friday.
We demand the baseless, fabricated charges against Evan Gershkovich be dropped and he be immediately released by the Russian government.
Let there be no mistake: journalism is not a crime.https://t.co/dK9CMrps4z
— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) April 7, 2023
In their statement, the senate leaders insisted “journalism is not a crime”:
We strongly condemn the wrongful detention of US citizen and Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, and demand the immediate release of this internationally known and respected independent journalist.
Russian authorities have failed to present any credible evidence to justify their fabricated charges.
Joanna Walters
Black Democratic party legislators in Tennessee are appealing to Republicans to hold talks with them over the shock expulsion of two state lawmakers last night because they joined a public demonstration in the legislative chamber demanding greater gun safety after yet another school shooting.
Amid news that US vice-president Kamala Harris is hastily arranging to visit Tennessee later today and meet with the ousted lawmakers, Justin Jones and Justin Pearson, the Tennessee Black caucus of state legislators spoke outside the state capitol a little earlier.
Representative Sam McKenzie of Knoxville, chairman of the Tennessee Black caucus, called almost unprecedented ousting of the lawmakers “an injustice”, local media reported.
“The world saw the optics. I don’t have to say a word about the fact that our two young African American brothers were unfairly prosecuted with information … evidence introduced inappropriately, but they handled themselves like true champions,” he said.
The two lawmakers, and Democratic state representative Gloria Johnson, are now known as the Tennessee Three. Johnson narrowly survived a vote to expel her. The two men are in their twenties. Johnson is white and in her sixties. “I made it through, and these two young men did not make it through,” she said earlier today, and it was reported that she agreed when asked if her being white played a part in her not being expelled from the legislature.
Nashville representative Vincent Dixie said: “Welcome to Tennessee, where there’s a pattern of racism that has permeated these halls that we walked through that were supposed to make laws for everyone here in Tennessee.”
He continued: “The world is watching. And what are we going to do now? Is it gonna be business as usual? ‘Well, it happened to two Black men. Oh, well. Let’s move on.’ Or are we going to actually do something about it?” WBIR.com reported.
Vice-president to visit Tennessee after lawmakers kicked out
Joanna Walters
US vice-president Kamala Harris plans to travel to Nashville, Tennessee, today after the Republicans controlling the state legislature expelled two young Black lawmakers last night for joining public protests demanding greater gun safety in the wake of a mass shooting at an elementary school in the city.
Here’s a tweet from Harris’s press secretary, Kirsten Allen.
NEW >> Today, @VP will travel to Nashville, TN. There she will meet with state lawmakers as well as young leaders who continue to demand action on common sense gun reform.https://t.co/kMeaAAF1UI
— Kirsten Allen (@KirstenAllen46) April 7, 2023
Harris will meet with the two lawmakers, Justin Jones and Justin Pearson, and a third Democratic lawmaker, Gloria Johnson, who is white and narrowly avoided being expelled.
The move has been condemned as racist, anti-democratic and not in the interests of protecting children’s safety from gun violence and school shootings, critics say.
Interim summary
It’s lunchtime on Friday, and we’re waiting to hear from Democrats in Tennessee how they intend to respond to the vote by Republicans to expel two young Black Democrats from the state’s House after they led a protest calling for gun reforms.
A wave of outrage followed Thursday’s move. Joe Biden blasted the move “undemocratic” while the ACLU of Tennessee, and Martin Luther King III, son of the civil rights pioneer, suggested racism was behind the action.
Both point out that the two expelled lawmakers are Black, while a third Democrat involved in the protest, who won enough support to survive the vote to oust her, is white.
Here’s what else we’ve been following:
Supreme court justice Clarence Thomas has been defending himself after reports he accepted decades or undeclared hospitality from a Republican mega-donor. Thomas, a staunch conservative, says he didn’t believe he was required to disclose it.
The Biden administration released a proposal that would forbid schools and colleges across the US from enacting outright bans on transgender athletes competing in sports.
US officials say they suspect Russia is behind the leaking and posting on social media of top secret documents, including an assessment of the country’s progress in its war in Ukraine.
Republicans in Kansas voted to ban gender-affirming medical care for transgender youth, but the bill is likely to be vetoed by Democratic governor Laura Kelly.
There’s more to come this afternoon, please stick with us.
US officials say they know who’s behind the leak and posting on social media of classified documents offering their assessment of Russia’s progress in the war in Ukraine: it’s Russia.
Reuters reported on Friday that three US officials, speaking anonymously, told the news agency that the documents also appear to have been altered to lower the number of casualties suffered by Russian forces.
The military documents offer a partial, month-old snapshot of the war, they said, adding that their assessment that Russia, or pro-Russian elements, were behind the leak was informal, and separate to an official investigation into what happened.
The three declined to discuss the documents in detail, the agency said, and the Kremlin and Russia’s embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The Guardian’s Lorenzo Tondo reported on Friday that the Pentagon is investigating the security breach in which classified war documents detailing secret American and Nato plans for supplying aid to Ukraine before its prospective offensive against Russia were leaked to Telegram and Twitter.
Read more here:
The Tennessee chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has added its voice to the furor over the expulsion of two Democratic Black state lawmakers by Republicans.
In a statement, Kathy Sinback, the chapter’s executive director, attacks the racial overtones of what she calls a “shameful” move:
Over the course of this legislative session, the Tennessee general assembly has systematically eroded the rights of some of the most vulnerable communities in our state. These expelled lawmakers represent over 136,000 people – predominantly people of color – in districts across the state, and this expulsion strips these voters of their representation.
BREAKING: Rep. Justin Jones and Rep. Justin Pearson have been expelled from our state legislature, an extreme measure that undermines democracy while disenfranchising & silencing the voices of marginalized communities.
Our statement: https://t.co/XDHWrDIOZE
— ACLU of Tennessee (@aclutn) April 7, 2023
Furthermore, only a small minority of Tennessee legislators are people of color. Not only is this targeted expulsion of two Black legislators without due process an extreme measure that undermines democracy, it raises questions about the disparate treatment of Black representatives, while continuing the shameful legacy of disenfranchising and silencing the voices of marginalized communities and the Black lawmakers they elect.
This unprecedented, authoritarian effort to silence opposition sets a dangerous precedent that could threaten democracy in statehouses across the country. We will continue to fight for a state where all Tennesseans have a voice and are treated justly and equitably.”
My colleagues on the Guardian’s video production team have compiled this rather excellent look at the expulsion of two Black Democratic lawmakers by Republicans in Tennessee, noting such “banishments” have taken place only a handful of times since the American civil war.
The episode has ignited a furious backlash from Joe Biden downwards, and features elements of racism, Republicans standing in the way of gun reforms, and an assault of democracy.
The video is well worth a look. You can watch it here:
Clarence Thomas defends undeclared hospitality
Embattled supreme court justice Clarence Thomas says he believed the decades of lavish hospitality he received from a Republican mega-donor did not need to be disclosed.
The statement from the conservative justice released on Friday is his first response to the bombshell accusations by ProPublica the day before that he took travel on yachts and jets, and other gifts funded by the property billionaire Harlan Crow, but did not declare them.
Democrats are calling for Thomas’s impeachment.
In the lengthy statement, a rare move for a sitting supreme court justice, Thomas says, in part:
Early in my tenure at the Court, I sought guidance from my colleagues and others in the judiciary, and was advised that this sort of personal hospitality from close personal friends, who did not have business before the Court, was not reportable.
I have endeavored to follow that counsel throughout my tenure, and have always sought to comply with the disclosure guidelines.
Thomas says he will comply with tweaks made to disclosure rules for all justices and federal judges last month that require personal hospitality to be declared.
In his own statement, reported by Law and Crime, Crow insisted he and his wife Kathy were “dear friends” with Thomas and his wife Ginni, and “we have never sought to influence Justice Thomas on any legal or political issue”.
Read more:
Republicans in Kansas on Friday voted to ban gender-affirming medical care for transgender youth, but the bill is likely to be vetoed by Democratic governor Laura Kelly.
The Kansas house voted 70-52 to pass the bill requiring the state’s medical board to revoke the licenses of doctors who provide such care, followed by a 23-12 vote in the senate that sent the measure to Kelly’s desk, the Associated Press reported.
Kelly promised LGBTQ+ youth during a statehouse lobbying day last month that she would protect their rights and reject any measure “that aims to harm or discriminate against you”.
Supporters of the bill do not have a two-thirds majority in either chambers needed to override any veto, the AP said.
There seems to be enough support, however, for overriding Kelly’s expected veto of a transgender bathroom bill that passed the legislature by larger margins.
Read more:
White House moves to strengthen transgender protections
The Biden administration has released a proposal that would forbid schools and colleges across the US from enacting outright bans on transgender athletes competing in sports.
But teams could create some limits in certain cases – for example, to ensure fairness, according to the proposal, which did not go into extensive detail about the term.
If finalized, the proposal would become enshrined as a provision of Title IX, the federal nondiscrimination requirement in education at institutions that receive federal funding. It must undergo a lengthy approval process, however, and is almost certain to face challenges from opponents.
It comes as a slew of Republican-controlled states nationwide enact legislation banning or restricting transgender athletes taking part in sports in educational settings, and new anti-trans laws in general.
On Thursday, the US supreme court refused to let West Virginia enforce a state law banning trans athletes from female sports teams at public schools.
“Every student should be able to have the full experience of attending school in America, including participating in athletics, free from discrimination,” said Miguel Cardona, Biden’s education secretary, in a statement.
Read the full story:
Here’s a selection of Twitter reactions to the expulsion by Tennessee Republicans of two Black Democratic lawmakers for joining a protest for stronger gun laws.
The overriding theme seems to be that it’s a fight for democracy that’s just beginning, and the nation’s young people will be leading the charge.
From Democratic New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez:
Republicans may think they won today in Tennessee, but their fascism is only further radicalizing and awakening an earthquake of young people, both in the South and across the nation.
If you thought youth organizing was strong, just wait for what’s coming. Gen Z don’t play https://t.co/gPwoFI7uib
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) April 6, 2023
From NBC News and MSNBC legal analyst Glenn Kirschner:
The naked racism of those Republican legislators in Tennessee should serve as a stark reminder that American apartheid endures. This is OUR struggle. All of us. There is no justice if there’s not equal justice. And yes, #JusticeMatters pic.twitter.com/rsyEgv5ZdB
— Glenn Kirschner (@glennkirschner2) April 7, 2023
From Mallory McMorrow, Democratic Michigan state senator and gun reform advocate:
Tennessee Republicans thought they could silence three House Reps just because they spoke out of turn to recognize Tennesseans demanding action on gun violence.
Today, they expelled two young Black men from office.
… and they handed them a national stage.
Let’s. Go. 🇺🇸 https://t.co/ulqVxaE4Br
— Mallory McMorrow (@MalloryMcMorrow) April 7, 2023
From Joe Walsh, former Republican congressman, now a political analyst:
Tennessee Republicans just fucked up. Big time. And like every other cruel, intolerant, bigoted, authoritarian, & anti-democratic Republican fuck up of the past 7 yrs, this fuck up will hurt them politically. It will continue the shrinking of & ultimate demise of my former party.
— Joe Walsh (@WalshFreedom) April 7, 2023
California’s Democratic governor Gavin Newsom:
And finally, for now, the Tennessee house Republicans, who insist they were “obliged” to take action because the two expelled Democrats were “disrespectful”:
Democrats in Tennessee are planning to reveal their next moves later on Friday in the wake of the “racist” expulsion by Republicans from the state house of two Black lawmakers for taking part in a protest for tighter gun laws.
It comes as Joe Biden and others weigh in on the “undemocratic” actions of the Republicans in booting two of three Democrats who joined the protest that followed last week’s Covenant school shooting in Nashville that killed six, including three nine-year-olds.
The two politicians ousted for a “breach of decorum”, Justin Jones and Justin Pearson, are Black. A third Democrat, Gloria Johnson, who survived the expulsion vote, is white.
The president, in a statement released last night, condemned Republicans for playing politics, and not focusing on “commonsense gun safety reforms”:
Today’s expulsion of lawmakers who engaged in peaceful protest is shocking, undemocratic and without precedent. Rather than debating the merits of the issue, these Republican lawmakers have chosen to punish, silence and expel duly-elected representatives of the people of Tennessee.
This morning, Martin Luther King III, son of the famed civil rights leader, praised the two expelled politicians and launched an attack on the “unconscionable” actions by the majority party for ignoring gun reform. On CNN he said:
Our nation refuses to deal with this issue. I’m so excited that these young men are fighting for democracy.
We had an assault ban until 2014, it’s very sad. [But] people can stand up and things can change, my father and mother taught us that.
The episode, he said, made it “crystal clear” that “racism is still very real”:
We’ve got to eradicate this evil. My dad used to say darkness cannot put out darkness, only light can do that.
It just goes to show how sad and tragic and divisive, and how awful racism is. We are better than that. We have got to change this behavior.
Jones, in comments on Thursday, said the nation was watching. “They think this issue is over. We’ll see you on Monday,” he said, referring to more protests likely to draw thousands to Nashville.
We’re waiting to learn what moves the Democrats might make. There will almost certainly be special elections, in which Jones and Pearson, who represent about 130,000 constituents between them, will be eligible to run. And they could be reinstated meanwhile by their county commissions.
Read the latest on this story here from the Guardian’s Nina Lakhani:
A Good Friday good morning to our US politics blog readers! There’s more than a whiff of racism hanging over the Tennessee state house this morning, where Republican lawmakers on Thursday expelled two of three Democrats who took part in a rowdy gun control protest on the chamber floor.
Those ousted are Black, while the third, who survived the expulsion vote, is white. Their perceived crime was “breaking decorum” for joining constituents demanding tighter gun laws in the wake of last week’s Covenant school shooting in Nashville that killed six, including three nine-year-olds.
Reaction to the expulsions has been swift as observers mull elements of racism, gun rights and an attack on democracy. Joe Biden called it “undemocratic”, while Martin Luther King III said on CNN Friday: “Racism is still very real … we have got to eradicate this evil.”
We’ll have more coming up. Here’s what else we’re watching today:
Conservative supreme court justice Clarence Thomas is facing calls for his impeachment after it was revealed he accepted undeclared luxury gifts from a Republican mega-donor for more than two decades.
Stormy Daniels, the adult movie actress paid off by Donald Trump to keep quiet about an encounter before the 2016 election, says in a new interview the former president has been “dethroned”. Trump appeared in court this week charged with falsifying business records relate to the pay-off.
Democrats in North Carolina are fuming over the defection of a lawmaker, giving Republicans a veto-proof supermajority in the state house for critical issues such as abortion, voting rights and gun controls.
Biden received good economic news on Friday with figures showing unemployment in the US down to 3.5%, and 236,000 jobs added in March.
Senate and House lawmakers are on their Easter break, and neither Biden nor vice-president Kamala Harris have any public events scheduled.
