Maury County Mayor Andrew Ogles on Wednesday called upon members of the Tennessee General Assembly to convene a special session to address Gov. Bill Lee and what Ogles said was the governor’s “continued abuses of power.”
Ogles, in this proclamation, said Lee’s “indecisiveness and half measures” have “subjugated parents and their children to out of control school boards and superintendents, liberal mayors and a complicit commissioner of education.”
“At a time when truly conservative governors are aggressively fighting against both local AND federal assaults on our freedoms, Governor Lee is taking the twisting path to appease the Left and their allies,” Ogles said in the proclamation.
Ogles said that General Assembly members must defend freedom, liberty and individual rights by doing the following:
• Limit the powers of the governor and what Ogles said was Lee’s abuse of emergency powers “using unconstitutional executive orders, which infringe on the liberties of the citizens of this state.”
• Protect the children of Tennessee from forced mask wearing and respect the individual choices of parents to manage the health and well-being of their own children.
• Protect all state residents from forced vaccination for COVID-19 whether by government or businesses both as consumers and employees.
Ogles also asked Tennessee residents to reach out to their respective legislators.
“It is time to stand, … And when the final lots are cast and we are measured against history, I pray that we will have preserved freedom for generations to come,” Ogles wrote.
“And if we are to err, let us err on the side of freedom. The choice is ours, and I choose freedom.”
Ogles, in his proclamation, also said COVID-19 is serious and “is treatable with sophisticated treatment protocols, therapeutics and that vaccines are widely available.”
Lee signed an executive order late last week regarding the state’s continued response to the COVID-19 pandemic, but people other than Ogles also worry the order infringes upon basic liberties.
Among other things, Lee’s executive order permits more flexibility in behavioral health care to relieve capacity strain and allows medical laboratory directors to monitor facilities remotely. But the order also gives the state government discretion to use the National Guard in connection with certain health care and emergency services operations. Lee’s executive order also permits telephone assessments for involuntary commitment cases, and it also allows for the construction of temporary quarantine and isolation facilities.
Tennessee State Rep. Bruce Griffey (R-Paris) said Sunday that if he and other state legislators hold a special session then they should consider restraining the governor’s emergency powers.
Members of Lee’s staff did not respond to The Tennessee Star’s request for comment Wednesday.
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Chris Butler is an investigative journalist at The Tennessee Star. Follow Chris on Facebook. Email tips to [email protected].
