Crookie Good Guys Of The Year: The Tennessee Three

By Frances Langum — December 24, 2023

the story of the year with some Good Guy News. The Tennessee Three, which turned out to be a real Tennessee Two Step.

You see, in 2023 Tennessee Republicans had two things going for them. First, a racist legislative supermajority that could do pretty much whatever it wanted. And second, at the national level, nobody paid much attention to the corrupt and racist proclivities of Tennessee Republicans.

The Tennessee Three changed all that.

In April, Tennessee’s House voted 72-25 to oust Rep. Justin Jones, and 69-26 to oust Justin Pearson for their “disorderly behavior” for taking part in a gun violence protest on March 30 sparked by the Covenant School shooting that took the lives of three adults and three 9-year-old children on March 27.

But members spared Rep. Gloria Johnson of Knoxville in a 65-30 vote, short of the two-thirds majority needed to remove her.

There was no difference between the actions of Representative Johnson, and the two Justins, except for the fact that the Justins are two young black men, and Representative Johnson is an older white lady. And when asked if she thought race had anything to do with her being spared and the Justins being expelled, she said HELL yes.

CNN—Representative Gloria Johnson of Tennessee was asked; “Why were the other two expelled and you were not?” Johnson— “I think it's pretty clear, I am a 60-year-old White woman and they are two young Black men.” She said what she said........ pic.twitter.com/mNU19upFUG

— Kenny Akers (@KeneAkers) April 9, 2023

The expulsion drew widespread national condemnation; President Joe Biden hosted the duo at the White House later that month and called the move “undemocratic.”

“What the Republican legislature did was shocking, it was undemocratic, and it was without any precedent.”

President Biden commends the “Tennessee Three” — Justin Jones, Justin Pearson, and Gloria Johnson — who faced expulsion after protesting gun violence on the TN House floor. pic.twitter.com/FlVJamOqpZ

— The Recount (@therecount) April 24, 2023

By July the Justins had raised more than $2 million combined through about 70,400 campaign donations, and both won their seats again in elections in August.

A week after the expulsion, wealthy Republicans from around the country arrived in Tennessee for a Republican National Committee donor retreat. From Politico: "Privately, Republicans acknowledged to Playbook the inconvenience of visiting a state where local party leaders are mired in ugly headlines and accusations of racism." Oh boo hoo.

It also came out that Republican Tennessee House speaker, Cameron Sexton doesn't actually live in the district he represents. AND he was ripping off taxpayers for tens of thousands of dollars by billing the state for expenses for travel to and from a place where he doesn't actually live.

And congratulations Marsha Blackburn, your election opponent in 2024 is Gloria Johnson.

And the Tennessee Three win a Crookie GOOD GUY Award!