Former President Barack Obama ripped into the anti-democratic machinations by the Tennessee state legislature, shaming lawmakers there as weak for voting to expel two Black representatives who participated in a peaceful protest over gun control in the wake of a Nashville school shooting.
Obama wrote that “No elected official should lose their job simply for raising their voice – especially when they’re doing it on behalf of our children.”
Calling the Tennessee debacle the “latest example of a broader erosion of civility and democratic norms,” Obama wrote that “silencing those who disagree with us is a sign of weakness, not strength.”
What happened in Tennessee is the latest example of a broader erosion of civility and democratic norms. Silencing those who disagree with us is a sign of weakness, not strength, and it won’t lead to progress.
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) April 7, 2023
CNN described the strong-armed tactics as Republicans’ “ruthless use of their state House supermajority to expel two young Black lawmakers for breaching decorum exposed a torrent of political forces that are transforming American politics at the grassroots.”
Obama joined President Biden in his dismay — a public dissent — over the “shocking” anti-democratic display.
Biden wrote: “Three kids and three officials gunned down in yet another mass shooting. And what are GOP officials focused on? Punishing lawmakers who joined thousands of peaceful protesters calling for action. It’s shocking, undemocratic, and without precedent.”
Three kids and three officials gunned down in yet another mass shooting.
— President Biden (@POTUS) April 6, 2023
And what are GOP officials focused on?
Punishing lawmakers who joined thousands of peaceful protesters calling for action.
It’s shocking, undemocratic, and without precedent. https://t.co/NB9gSdFI9h
