NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Story courtesy of WVLT / WSMV) – All members of the House Democratic Caucus have been removed from their committees and subcommittees, according to a letter obtained by WSMV.
The letter, signed by House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R) and addressed to Leader Camper, states that “members of the Democratic Caucus will receive individual letters removing them from all standing committees and subcommittees of the House, except where membership is required.”
Sexton’s letter states that the committee removals are “due to actions taken” by the members during last week’s special session over redistricting across Tennessee. Those actions, Sexton said, “aimed at disrupting the democratic and legislative processes and creating disorder on the House Floor.”
He went on to cite specific examples, such as Democrats interlocking arms and blocking aisles on the House floor. He also accused them of “instigating and encouraging disruptions…in coordination with paid protestors and attendees,” and using “prohibited props and noisemakers on the House Floor.
WSMV earlier learned that multiple representatives had been stripped of their committees through posts they individually made on social media.
State Rep. Justin Jones (D-Nashville) posted the letter he received, which read, “Dear Representative Jones, You have been removed from all House standing committees and subcommittees,” the letter, signed by House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R), says.
He claimed he received the letter “for protesting their white supremacist agenda.”
“Just as my white Republican colleagues chose racial retaliation against Tennessee’s Black voters, the Speaker of the House is now choosing retaliation against a Black lawmaker for standing up against their Jim Crow racial gerrymander,” Jones wrote alongside the letter. “This is not new. This is the same pattern of racial discrimination and authoritarian abuse we have come to expect.”
Jones said that being removed from his committees “will not deter us from the fights ahead.”
“We will not stop fighting. We will not stop getting in good trouble,” he said. “We will not go back.”
Justin Pearson (D-Memphis) also posted on social media, saying that he and others were removed from their committees.
“Speaker of the TN House Cameron Sexton just removed me and every Democrat — and therefore every Black elected official in the state legislature from any committee we served on,” he wrote on X. “This move strips nearly 2 million Tennesseans from the representation they deserve in TN state leg.”
Memphis’ other Democratic Representative, Gabby Salinas, posted the letter she received. With it, she wrote a single message: “I would do it again.” In a video posted moments later with the same message, she said she served on the judiciary and state and local committees, as well as the public service and criminal justice subcommittees.
“This is a result of the actions that we took on the [House] floor last week,” she said. “It is interesting that disenfranchising an entire district here in Shelby County carries zero consequences … but speaking out, using your voice, and representing interest of the people of Tennessee is something that they deemed punishable.”
“I have zero regrets,” she continued. “…I am glad that I was there in that moment to be able to speak up for my district and fight for all Tennesseans and for everybody in our county. … We are the tip of the spear. What happens here impacts the entire country.”
Rep. Gloria Johnson (D-Knoxville) said on Facebook that she was removed as well.
Sen. London Lamar’s team tells WSMV that they have not heard of any Democratic Senators impacted by similar moves. WSMV has reached out to the House for comment.
