August 23, 2023 sheds new light on what is happening at the Tennessee Legislature in response to Governor Lee’s Red Flag Special Session proclamation.
On Tuesday, August 22, the Senate Judiciary committee passed three bills: SB7085, SB7086, and SB7088. All other bills on the calendar in Senate Judiciary committee were “tabled.” See report below. At the same time, the House subcommittees advanced 22 bills. See report below.
Many Second Amendment advocates, and others, have expressed objections to the Special Session as being constitutionally permissible. Indeed, several legislators had expressed over the summer that they did not feel a special session was justified or needed. House Joint Resolution 7040 was filed by Rep. Bryan Richey (R) to call for a vote to immediately adjourn the special session. That motion to “suspend the rules” was made on Monday, August 21, in order to allow the legislators to vote on whether to adjourn. Keep in mind, the vote on Monday was whether to suspend the rules in order to have a second vote on whether to actually adjourn.
According to the state’s website, six Republican House members voted to suspend the rules so that there could be a vote on the motion to adjourn – just six. Those six, according to the state’s website, were Representatives Capley, Hill, Keisling, Lynn, Richey, and Warner. We have been contacted by Rep. Jody Barrett who says he also requested to be recorded as a “yes” vote but the state’s website does not reflect his vote either way. Curiously, this lack of support to even have a vote on whether to adjourn raises the necessary question of whether other House members were perhaps advised, cautioned or even threatened against even voting on a motion to adjourn. That is a question that Second Amendment advocates would like to have answered because it might reflect the use of political or perhaps even inappropriate pressure to induce legislators on how to vote.
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