Up@dawn 2.0 (blogger)

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Monday, April 10, 2023

Why one Tenn. Republican voted against all three expulsions of Dem lawmakers

Never underestimate the vox populi.

The lone Republican to vote against the expulsion of three Tennessee Democratic lawmakers said in an interview on Friday that he voted nay because he wanted to give the now ousted members another opportunity to talk through the House rules.

Rep. Charlie Baum explained that he preferred to work with Democratic Reps. Justin Jones, Gloria Johnson and Justin Pearson, dubbed the Tennessee Three, in committees and subcommittees to come to a clearer understanding of the House procedures and ensure their constituents would continue to be represented by their elected officials.

"I guess that that necessarily means not expulsion," Baum said in an interview with The Washington Post on Friday.

His fellow Republicans disagreed.

Just hours after Baum learned Monday of the Republican expulsion resolutions, he decided he would vote against expelling Jones, Johnson and Pearson for leading a gun-control protest from the Tennessee House floor after a mass killing.

He quickly began hearing from as many as 100 constituents in Murfreesboro, a Nashville suburb, who told him they felt expulsion wasn't necessary. That night, he spoke to his wife, Kelly, who agreed. On Tuesday, he told Republican leadership he would break with the party... WaPo

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