FRANKLIN, Tennessee – In comments made during a press gaggle held on Sunday in conjunction with his 16th Annual Boots & Jeans: BBQ & Beans Event, State Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson signaled that the Tennessee General Assembly is ready to take action in order to help the Tennessee National Guard soldiers who refused the COVID-19 vaccine and that he and his colleagues are “prepared to step up to the plate to make sure these brave men and women do not lose their jobs.”
Johnson’s comments came after U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and U.S. Representative Mark Green (R-TN-07) gave an update on their federal legislation, which if enacted would pull funding nationally from enforcement of the COVID-19 vaccine mandate on National Guard soldiers.
The Tennessee Star asked Senator Johnson to give an update on what state action is being considered in order to save the jobs of the guardsmen.
“Number one, I am so extremely grateful for Senator Blackburn and Congressman Green for the fight they are fighting at the federal level because this is coming from the Biden administration. I agree wholeheartedly with what they have both said,” he said.
“We at the state level are going to see what transpires with their legislation, but I can tell you in talking to my colleagues in the General Assembly – we are prepared to step up to the plate to make sure these brave men and women do not lose their jobs,” Johnson emphasized.
“I hope that that’s because the Biden administration reverses course, does the right thing, and lets them continue to do what they’re doing. But if for some reason that’s not possible, then we’ll be talking about next steps because we’re not going to let these people lose their jobs,” he added.
Previously reported, Johnson had issued a statement to The Star in which he commented favorably on the idea of a special session of the Tennessee General Assembly in order to save the jobs of National Guardsmen who did not comply with the Biden administration’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate.
“If the Biden administration chooses to take this radical action, I believe the General Assembly should keep all options on the table, including but not limited to a special legislative session, to save the jobs of our brave guardsmen and women,” Johnson said.
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Aaron Gulbransen is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Email tips to [email protected]. Follow Aaron on GETTR, Twitter, Truth Social, and Parler.
Photo “Jack Johnson” by Senator Jack Johnson. Background Photo “Tennessee National Guard” by Tennessee National Guard.
All talk. He is ready to act but just not yet. Waiting on someone else to do what Lee and the state legislature should be doing, Of course, Lee is MIA – again. And so is the do-nothing legislature.