Bill Lee’s decision to call a Special Session in which he wanted the Legislature to pass a Red Flag law (see item 12 in his August 8, 2023, proclamation) has provided the framework for a Legislative disaster in Tennessee all centered around Lee’s decision to try to force the Legislature to pass his Red Flag law. In doing so Governor Lee and many Legislators have blatantly ignored the United States Supreme Court’s decision in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen, in which the Court made clear that any regulation of rights protected by the Second Amendment must be shown by the government to be a restriction that existed (or a close analogue) as part of the nation’s historical tradition as of 1791.
The decision to call a special legislative sessions is in the discretion of the governor but it is subject to constitutional limits. One it must be in response to an “extraordinary occasion” and second it must have a specific purpose. Bill Lee called one for “public safety” and included 18 wide ranging, very general and non-specific topics like “stalking”, “mental health” and court system reform in his agenda. The proclamation itself evidences Lee’s blatant disregard for constitutional parameters.
Then, consider the carnival sideshow that has resulted. Was the legislative response measured to address an “extraordinary occasion” and limited to a specific purpose. Well, as of 9:00 a.m. on August 24, the Legislators have filed:
– 114 House bills
– 109 Senate bills
– 53 House Joint resolutions
– 143 Senate Joint resolutions
– 17 House resolutions
– 1 Senate resolution
One could easily conclude that this was viewed as a “general session” with so many bills filed allegedly regarding “public safety”. Consider for example, House Bills 7017 through 7022 by Rep. Anthony Davis which seek to create new criminal offenses as “a hate crime, which shall be punished one classification higher than otherwise provided if the defendant committed the act of mass violence against the other person due to the person’s status as a healthcare provider who provides gender-affirming care.” Similar bills were filed to create enhanced punishments as hate crimes based on the victim’s “status as a healthcare provider who performs abortions.” Certainly, these issues have nothing to do with an “extraordinary occasion” much less the Covenant murders. But numerous bills like these were filed because Bill Lee ignored the purpose of the constitutional conditions on special sessions.
As of August 24, 2023, the Senate has passed only 3 bills out of committee (excluding resolutions and appropriations) and none of those 3 substantively did anything to negatively impact gun owners. In contrast, the House has passed 32 bills out of its subcommittees, more evidence that the House and its leaders are treating this as a general session rather than one limited to an extraordinary occasion.
This difference between the willingness of the House to pass roughly a quarter of the bills that were filed compared to the Senate’s choice to pass far fewer is something to note. Apparently, it was noted by House Republican Caucus Chairman Jeremy Faison who reportedly somehow managed to acquire an ostrich egg during the commotions of the special session and used it (or at least used the House Republicans Twitter account) to award the Senate GOP “the 2023 Ostrich Egg” for the Senate’s decision to not pass as many bills as the House which the Twitter post claims “the people sent us here to do”.
Curiously, Rep. Faison’s delusions about who “sent them” to special session ignored the fact that only Bill Lee made that decision. In fact, the overwhelming outcry of Republicans and the express vote of the Tennessee Republic State Executive Committee was that no special session should be held at all. Of course, Rep. Faison could have been referring to the Democrats that sent Justin Jones, Justin Pearson and Gloria Johnson to the Legislature to enact gun control.
The special session has costs the taxpayers likely hundreds of thousands of dollars in Legislative fees and expenses. It has cost the state an unknown amount for the perhaps 500-600 state troopers that were either sent to Nashville or put on standby for a potential security crisis. It has likely cost Nashville and potentially other local governments an unknown amount for perhaps 500-1000 local law enforcement that were told to be prepared for deployment to Nashville. The question is was Bill Lee’s demand for a special session to pass his gun control agenda, which included a Red Flag proposal, really worth it or was this just a “do something” effort to appease some Tennesseans (and many from outside Tennessee) who seize any opportunity to demand gun control.
There are useful consequences of the Governor’s demand for a Red Flag law and a special session (which has so far proved to be fruitless). For example, there is now no doubt that Bill Lee ignores the Second Amendment and the Supreme Court. There is no doubt that Bill Lee is not to be trusted to protect our rights under the Second Amendment or for that matter other parts of the Bill of Rights. There is no doubt that Bill Lee is willing to waste taxpayer dollars to try and pressure the Legislature to do what he – as nothing more than an administrator – wants done. There is no doubt that Bill Lee supports gun control.
But there are other consequences. We now know that Lt. Governor McNally personally supports Red Flag laws even if other Senators do not. We know that some Senators, like Sen. Art Swann, wants to advance gun control by banning what he considers to be assault weapons. We can examine the bills, proposed amendments and statements of other senators that arose in this special session to decide who to support and who must be opposed in the 2024 and 2026 election cycles.
Further, the shenanigans in the House provide even greater opportunities to identify and potentially replace legislators in the 2024 election cycle. The events also shed light on whether certain legislators should not be considered as committee chairs and provide a basis to question the committee assignment choices by Speaker Sexton. Indeed, conservatives may now find an ally in some Senators who were offended if not insulted by being awarded the 2023 Ostrich Egg award at least with respect to House member incumbent re-election efforts or leadership roles. But there is more because the numerous house bills and resolutions (including committee statements) – primarily those by the Republicans – offer plenty of details that will be considered when it comes time to supporting some incumbents (who have stood firm on the 2nd Amendment promises) and opposing others who are proven failures at protecting our constitutionally protected rights.
Finally, it should be clear to all Second Amendment supporters that the Red Flag Down campaign does not end when Bill Lee’s Special Session ends. There can be no question that Bill Lee, his Democrat supporters, and many of his “team player” Republicans will be working from this point forward to pass Red Flag and other gun control measures going forward. Rather than the ending the need to dig in and fight for our rights, the end of the Special Session is the calling card across the state to re-evaluate which individuals are “bona fide” Republicans, which should be retained and even elevated into leadership, which should be replaced in future primaries, which should be removed from existing leadership positions. Now is the time to search out those Tennesseans who have the characteristics of constitutional stewardship to help them and encourage them to step forward in public service to replace the ones who have proven that they lack those constitutional stewardship qualities.
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