On Monday, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee announced that he intends to call for the Tennessee General Assembly to convene a special legislative session in August to “strengthen public safety and preserve constitutional rights.”
After speaking with members of the General Assembly, I am calling for a special session on August 21 to continue our important discussion about solutions to keep Tennessee communities safe and preserve the constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens.
— Gov. Bill Lee (@GovBillLee) May 8, 2023
Lee is also asking Tennessee residents to weigh in with any feedback on which steps or changes the general assembly should consider when it comes to increasing public safety.
“After speaking with members of the General Assembly, I am calling for a special session on August 21 to continue our important discussion about solutions to keep Tennessee communities safe and preserve the constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens,” Lee said in a statement.
“There is broad agreement that action is needed, and in the weeks ahead, we’ll continue to listen to Tennesseans and pursue thoughtful, practical measures that strengthen the safety of Tennesseans, preserve Second Amendment rights, prioritize due process protections, support law enforcement and address mental health,” Lee added.
Lee intends to issue a formal call of the special session in the near future, his office reports. In the meantime, the governor will “meet with legislators, stakeholders and Tennesseans throughout the summer to discuss practical solutions ahead of the special session.”
The general assembly’s forthcoming special session comes weeks after Lee called for Red Flag Laws in response to the March 27 shooting at The Presbyterian Covenant School in Nashville, to which Republican legislators said they will not introduce legislation for.
On Twitter following Lee’s call for what he called ‘Order of Protection’ laws, the Tennessee House majority party wrote, “Any red flag law is a non-starter for House Republicans. Our caucus is focused on finding solutions that prevent dangerous individuals from harming the public and preserve the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens. We have always been open to working with Governor Lee on measures that fit within that framework.”
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network.
Photo “Bill Lee” by Gov. Bill Lee.
I must have missed it–was the manifesto released so that the legislature knows what might and what might not work?
It would be appropriate if the legislators refused to show for this unwise spectacle. Lee is in way over his head. He shot his mouth off in a big hurry in response to the paid and ill-informed protestors. The guy has been a loser from Day 1. He should go back to just counting his millions.
Where are we supposed to “weigh in”? We need to enforce the laws we already have. I believe conservative run states and cities already do that more than liberal centers of chaos. There are/have been far too many people who obviously displayed sever emotional issues that never got reported. The hispanic person who just shot people at a mall posted all kinds of deranged beliefs on social media, and no one did a damn thing. This has been a reoccurring pattern for twenty years. If we live under the “surveillance state” why aren’t these people being dealt with before they start killing people?
I don’t believe the “government” wants to stop these mentally sick people from using firearms to murder people. I dare say that some of these murderers have been brainwashed to commit these crimes. Never loose sight of the fact that the only thing keeping America free from the globalist’s one world agenda is our right to own firearms. This is why the liberal/democrat/socialists are waging a never ending campaign to eventually confiscate all firearms in America. If you don’t believe that you cannot see any further than beyond your nose.
I missed it. Was the manifesto released so the legislature knows what might work and what might not?