Hours after Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee on Monday signed the Heartbeat Bill into law, a federal judge quickly blocked the measure.
U.S. District Judge William Campbell in Nashville opted to wait for the bill to become law to rule on whether to block it. In granting the temporary restraining order Monday, he wrote that he’s “bound by the Supreme Court holdings prohibiting undue burdens on the availability of pre-viability abortions.”
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Just a few weeks ago, Tennessee looked like a sure bet to become the latest state to protect businesses and other organizations from lawsuits by people impacted by the coronavirus in the push to reopen the economy. Republican Gov. Bill Lee had talked up the change and touted his advocacy on tort reform as a businessman, and he had GOP lawmakers in supermajorities lined up to seal the deal.
That was before negotiations among lawmakers broke down so badly in the hectic waning hours of legislative work that the generally mild-mannered Senate Speaker Randy McNally accused two House leaders of working with “a cabal of Democrats and attorneys to defeat the legislation and place our entire economy in danger.”
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One hallmark for the pandemic scare in Tennessee has been the heavy governmental use of electronic meetings, facilitated by Gov. Bill Lee signing executive orders allowing them.
The meetings often were on Zoom or a similar format, and as the state began reopening, sometimes meetings would have participants both in person and participating electronically.
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Gov. Bill Lee is thinking about calling the Legislature in for a special session to pass a bill to provide retroactive COVID-19 legal protection for businesses, the Chattanooga Times Free Press said.
The General Assembly ended their session on Friday without the House passing the Tennessee Recovery and Safe Harbor Act. It received 46 of 50 votes needed. House Majority Leader William Lamberth (R-Portland) questioned whether the measure was legal under Tennessee’s Constitution regarding the impairment of contracts. (The Senate had approved the bill.)
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Gov. Bill Lee announced a new “TN Strong Mask Movement” Thursday with the goal of making face masks more “fun.”
According to a press release from the governor’s office, the Economic Recovery Group developed the new program along with more than 30 “flagship brands” across the state, including Amazon, Bridgestone, Bristol Motor Speedway, Graceland, Jack Daniel’s, several professional sports teams and universities, and many others.
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Major pro-life legislation was approved by the Tennessee Legislature in Friday’s early morning hours just before legislators wrapped up their year.
Passage — and the end of the session — came as a surprise because Senate leaders had said they would not take the abortion measure up in this condensed year, according to a story by The Tennessee Journal: On the Hill. The publication also reported the Senate did this to persuade the House to back off of making changes to the budget proposal the Senate had approved.
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Gov. Bill Lee spoke by phone Wednesday with First Lady Melania Trump on a new task force to address children’s mental and physical health during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The White House said Penny Schwinn, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Education, also participated.
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Maury County Mayor Andy Ogles asked Gov. Bill Lee to lift the COVID-19 restrictions in the county because they “are doing more harm than good.”
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Lt. Gov. Randy McNally declared the Saturday Nashville protests, which he said were “mayhem,” were caused by outside agitators. It turns out the vast majority of the violent Nashville protesters were locals.
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The Metro Public Health Department in Nashville will still provide COVID-19 patient information to first responders and law enforcement.
Metro Public Health Director Michael Caldwell said the practice is “temporary,” but that it’s working, WPLN reported Thursday.
“This is an emergency,” he says. “This is critical, timely, life-saving information that has reduced and contained the spread of this disease within our medical institutions and within our jails. I’m puzzled by why the state reversed course.”
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Nearly 30 GOP officials from throughout Tennessee this week urged Gov. Bill Lee to end all COVID-19-related restrictions, and they also urged that the state’s General Assembly members return from their current recess.
They submitted an open letter this week requesting just that.
In their letter, they told Lee that while he is Tennessee’s chief executive “he is not the representative of the people.”
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Tennessee issued new business guidance Wednesday that will end capacity restrictions for restaurants and retail shops and permit large noncontact attractions to open in 89 of the state’s 95 counties.
Attractions that now can reopen include amusement parks, zoos, large museums and theaters.
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Next time you hear progressives talk about how they are the ones who are sticking up for minority communities, ask them to square their opposition to educational freedom – or the ability for families to customize their child’s education.
Progressives cheered this week as Nashville Chancellor Anne C. Martin ruled that the state’s education savings account program is “unconstitutional” because of an obscure section in our constitution where it talks about “home rule.”
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The woman behind Tennessee providing COVID-19 patient data to first responders has been promoted.
Brandon O. Gibson, a senior advisor to Gov. Bill Lee, was promoted to the state’s chief operating officer (COO), the governor’s office announced Tuesday.
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The City of Knoxville said Tuesday it will opt-out of sharing the names and addresses of COVID-19 patients with law enforcement following a statewide controversy over the practice.
Mayor Indya Kincannon and Police Chief Eve Thomas said that the Knoxville Police Department will leave a state program that allows law-enforcement officers across Tennessee to access a database of persons who have tested positive for COVID-19.
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The Tennessee Black Caucus of State Legislators wants the state to quit giving names and addresses of COVID-19 patients to police.
The caucus made the request to Gov. Bill Lee and the Tennessee Department of Health, WATE reported, citing a press release from Democratic Caucus Chairman Ken Jobe. Lee sent letters to Tennessee police offering to provide personal information to their departments once they’ve entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the state.
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A judge ruled that the Tennessee Education Savings Account (ESA) Pilot Program is unconstitutional, and a nonpartisan think tank says that could harm children.
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The Knox County government backed off a ban of communion, baptism and Bibles at church services after Gov. Bill Lee said his guidance on houses of worship overruled local decisions.
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A panel of federal judges ruled 2-1 that Tennessee must allow the “Constitutional right” to abortion during the Chinese Coronavirus pandemic. The decision came Friday from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in Cincinnati, available online here. Ruling in favor of abortion were Judges Karen Nelson Moore (pictured left) and Helene N. White. The dissenting opinion came from Judge Amul R. Thapar (pictured right), appointed by President Donald Trump in 2017. Moore was appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1995 and White was appointed by President Barack Obama in 2008. Moore and White ruled that the so-called right to an abortion applies even during the state’s ban on elective medical procedures during the COVID-19 crisis. And, here, although we have great respect for the challenges Tennessee faces as it responds to this novel public health crisis, we agree with the district court that the State’s response, in this one respect, unduly curtailed constitutional liberty, and that judicial intervention was thus warranted. By the same token, however, we also conclude that, when it comes to the precise scope of the district court’s injunction, the district court went too far in asserting its authority. The case was an…
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In a “what the heck” moment, the Tennessee Department of Labor & Workforce Development on Thursday said unemployment filings for two-thirds of counties went down for the second week of March.
The filings were for March 8-14, just before the Chinese coronavirus took a toll.
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With Tennessee possibly moving toward an economic reopening in May, one looming question is what, if anything, will the state do with people who continue to test positive for COVID-19, especially ensuring that they are staying quarantined.
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee announced Monday he will extend the state’s stay-at-home order through April 30, but he also said government and private-sector officials are working to reopen the state’s economy in May, The Tennessee Star reported.
Lee said this at a televised press conference, adding “we are not out of the woods yet, and it could be some time [before we are].”
“Until a vaccine or a therapy is widely available to Tennesseans, this virus will be a present reality to us to manage and consider whenever we are making decisions,” Lee said.
Lee said that last month he started working with leaders of industry to understand how this pandemic would impact the state’s businesses.
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The Beacon Center of Tennessee released a set of 20 policy solutions focused on what policies the state should and shouldn’t enact moving forward when it deals with COVID-19.
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Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said Wednesday that it is his “hope and expectation” that abortion clinics would cancel elective procedures during the coronavirus pandemic.
Lee issued an executive order Monday that requires all hospitals and surgical outpatient facilities to cancel or postpone all “non-essential procedures” through April 13. The intent of the order is to free up personal protective equipment for health care professionals on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic.
His executive order asks “non-hospital health care providers,” such as abortion facilities, to deliver any personal protective equipment in their possession to the nearest Tennessee National Guard Armory.
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The Tennessee Department of Health has backed down from its secret government stance — by a little — and released the county-by-county location of the state’s seven confirmed coronavirus cases.
The TDH and Gov. Bill Lee for two days had refused to say which counties had coronavirus COVID-19 cases. Late Tuesday evening, TDH acknowledged intense public criticism when it issued this statement:
The Tennessee Department of Health has announced updated case management protocol regarding confirmed cases of COVID-19 in a continued effort to keep communities informed while also maintaining patient privacy.
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Nashville Mayor John Cooper confirmed a case of coronavirus on Sunday, making it the third in Tennessee, coming the same day Shelby County announced a case.
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U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) has been busy checking in on the state’s response to the deadly tornadoes that hit Middle Tennessee this week.
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New reports on the Williamson County man diagnosed with the coronavirus indicate he flew home from Boston, and has a son attending Battle Ground Academy.
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Miramar, Florida-based Spirit Airlines decided it likes the Volunteer State’s spirit and has decided to move its control center to Franklin.
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The Tennessee House of Representatives is considering a new bill aimed at stopping Gov. Bill Lee from allowing an influx of refugees without legislative approval.
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You can reflexively oppose anything the left supports and almost never to worry about being wrong. Unfortunately, many conservatives have fallen for the shiny object that is being dangled in front of them by the left called, “criminal justice reform.”
The American criminal justice system is not perfect and like any other system, there are always improvements and corrections that can be made. Unfortunately, most of the reforms the left is suggesting make things worse, not better.
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In October, something that has been very underreported happened. It is something that Tennesseans should know about and be very worried about.
One of Governor Bill Lee’s pet objectives is criminal justice reform. In October, while speaking to the GOP Senate Republican Caucus, Lee said, “We can empty our jails in the same way that some other states have done. I know we can do that.”
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Gov. Bill Lee’s decision on December 18 to say yes to more refugees in Tennessee allows the federal government to resettle refugees from any country it wants into the state, including an estimated 300 to 720 refugees from Middle East countries that the government of Australia has refused to accept.
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Gov. Bill Lee went to Elizabethton last week to tout a college grant. He got that and more — including a protest over his refugee plan.
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Gov. Bill Lee doubled down on his controversial — and unpopular — decision to say yes, rather than no, to more refugees in Tennessee during an interview with Michael DelGiorno on his radio program Monday morning, heard on Nashville’s 99.7 WTN.
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The number of resettled refugees who have arrived in Tennessee has increased 46 percent in 2019 during the 11 months Bill Lee has served as governor of the state.
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Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee announced college projects receiving $25 million in funding through the Governor’s Investment in Vocational Education (GIVE) program.
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Gov. Bill Lee said Thursday he hasn’t decided if he’ll accept President Donald Trump’s offer to let states refuse to accept refugees, U.S. News reported. The governor added he has not spoken to his team about how he will respond to this executive order.
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Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee’s education agenda continues to take shape with the recent appointments of nine members of a Public Charter School Commission.
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FedEx filed a $212 million building permit Tuesday for a new package sorting facility and hub in Memphis, MyNorthwest reported.
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Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee announced the launch of the Governor’s Civics Seal and mini-grant program to provide support and recognize schools and districts that prioritize teaching the nation’s history and civic values.
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A lawyer activist organization in Washington, D.C., is trying to block Tennessee’s efforts to secure its elections from fraud and incompetence by filing an injunction in federal court, but one political observer isn’t buying it, saying the law combats illegal registration efforts.
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Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee is pushing to launch his school voucher program a year early, in the 2020-2021 school year, education blog Chalkbeat said. The General Assembly had set a deadline of the 2021-2022 school year, the blog said. Lee told the Tennessee Department of Education to work with the Tennessee Board of Education to make the early launch happen for the Education Savings Account (ESA), or vouchers. Chalkbeat also said the early launch would move up the pace of expected lawsuits by organizations like the Tennessee Immigrant & Refugee Rights Coalition, which is preparing to challenge the law’s constitutionality. The law excludes students whose families enter the country illegally. Other critics say they worry about the potential for fraud. At least five school systems that have formally opposed vouchers have not done a good job of preparing their students for college, The Tennessee Star reported in May. The five school systems in Tennessee that have come out to formally oppose school vouchers haven’t exactly done that great of a job preparing students for college. This, according to statewide statistics members of the Tennessee Higher Education Commission reported last week. As The Tennessee Star reported, representatives from some of…
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The pieces are falling into place for the Tennessee GOP House Caucus to select the new speaker, with a couple of new faces entering the race this week. The caucus will meet July 24 to pick a nominee to replace disgraced outgoing Speaker and Rep. Glen Casada (R-TN-63) of Franklin, The Tennessee Star said. The meeting was called by House Majority Leader William Lamberth (R-TN-44) of Portland. In a statement issued by Lamberth Wednesday, he said his call for the caucus meeting came, “following conversations with our members of the last several days.” In an exclusive interview with the USA TODAY Network – Tennessee, State Rep. Ryan Williams (R-TN-42) said he wants to unite the party and rebuild the state GOP brand. “I think there are some chasms between some members and others in our caucus, but the goal here is to unite the differences,” he said. “Like Ronald Reagan said, focus on the 80% we agree on.” Williams, a former GOP caucus chairman from Cookeville, is not the only candidate. The Chattanooga Times Free Press said the other declared candidates for speaker are Reps. Mike Carter (R-TN-29) of Ooltewah and Curtis Johnson (R-TN-68) of Clarksville, GOP Caucus Chairman…
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Mitsubishi is saying “buh bye” to California’s high taxes and moving its headquarters to Franklin, multiple media outlets report. Mitsubishi was one of two final Japanese car manufacturers to have its headquarters in California, CNET said. Honda will be the lone Japanese holdout. Moving to Franklin will allow the company to be closer to its Alliance partner Nissan, which moved there around 13 years ago. Nashville Business Journal added that other Middle Tennessee automotive brand names include Bridgestone, General Motors, Hankook and suppliers and other related companies. The move will include about 200 jobs and an $18.25 million investment in corporate jobs including legal, finance, IT, sales and dealer operations. Mitsubishi is negotiating a long-term office lease plus a lease for interim use. A move to a temporary space will start in August and be done by the end of the year, Nashville Business Journal said. Automotive News said Mitsubishi cited Franklin’s high-tech community, cost savings, business-friendly work environment and, again, proximity to Nissan. Mitsubishi’s decision is yet another loss for Southern California, referred to in 2000 as “Motown West” for the concentration of automotive brands that based their U.S. operations there. Since then, the brands under Ford’s former…
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State Rep. Matthew Hill (R-TN-07) said he will seek the Republican nomination for Speaker of the Tennessee House. The Jonesborough Republican, who is the Deputy House Speaker, made the announcement Wednesday at a legislative breakfast hosted by the Johnson City Chamber of Commerce, WJHL said. State Rep. Mike Carter (R-TN-29) also has announced a desire to run for the position, multiple media outlets reported. One day after the Tennessee House Republican Caucus met and voted “no confidence” in his continued leadership by a margin of 45-24, Speaker Glen Casada (R-Franklin) released a statement announcing he intends to resign as Speaker at a date to be determined in cooperation with the Caucus leadership, The Tennessee Star reported Tuesday. Casada did not indicate whether he would continue to serve as a member of the Tennessee House of Representatives, representing parts of Williamson County. The entire Republican House leadership, Tennessee Republican Party Chairman Scott Golden, Lt. Gov. Randy McNally, and Gov. Bill Lee have all called on Casada to resign, The Star said. WJHL reported that Hill told them he voted “no confidence” in Casada and also spoke to him. “I spoke with the speaker privately about that and he knows of…
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Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee promised to call a special session to remove House Speaker Glen Casada if he does not resign, following a no-confidence vote by House Republicans. Lee on Monday night tweeted, “Today House Republicans sent a clear message, and I’m prepared to call a special session if the Speaker doesn’t resign.” Today House Republicans sent a clear message, and I’m prepared to call a special session if the Speaker doesn’t resign. — Gov. Bill Lee (@GovBillLee) May 21, 2019 After the vote of no confidence, Casada said he was “disappointed” but would “work the next few months to regain the confidence of my colleagues so we can continue to build on the historic conservative accomplishments of this legislative session,” according to the Chattanooga Times Free Press. According to a story by WSMV: Lee issued the statement after the 45-24 vote of no confidence taken against Casada after a lengthy meeting of the House Republican Caucus. House Majority Leader William Lamberth also called for Casada to resign and asked Lee to call a special session. House Republican leaders called for Casada’s resignation and supported the governor’s declaration, according to a story by The Tennessee Journal: On the Hill.…
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A newspaper claims that House Speaker Glen Casada’s former chief of staff once bragged to a reporter that he had bugged legislative committee meeting rooms and now a Democratic leader is calling for an investigation. Joel Ebert of The Tennessean reported last week that the ex-chief of staff, Cade Cothren, told a reporter earlier this year that he could view and listen to people in the rooms whenever he wanted. The story is available here. Last week, Cothren denied the comments as well as his ability to eavesdrop. Also, The Tennessean said that white noise machines, which hamper the ability to eavesdrop, were located in the ceilings of the hallways inside and outside of Casada’s office. The newspaper says several lawmakers had expressed concern someone might be recording their conversations in private meetings, but the publication did not name names other than Casada. Ebert, the statehouse reporter for The Tennessean, now says State Rep. Mike Stewart (D-TN-52), chairman of the Democratic House Caucus, has called for a federal investigation. On Wednesday, Ebert tweeted, “Here is a copy of the letter that @RepMikeStewart sent to the US Attorney’s office today, asking for a probe into the information I wrote about…
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Tennessee House Speaker Glen Casada is moving to handle the continued fallout over revelations that include allegedly inappropriate text messages involving him and former chief of staff Cade Cothren. Casada said he directed the Speaker’s office to cooperate with a District Attorney General’s Conference investigation of an email from activist Justin Jones. Even as the pressure is ramping up for his resignation, Rep. Casada (R-TN-63) issued an action plan on Friday: As we move into the weekend, I wanted to share a quick update on the immediate steps we are taking to follow up on the Action Plan released earlier this week to address recent issues and concerns. Today I submitted a letter to the Chairman of the House Ethics Committee requesting that they issue an advisory opinion concerning my actions taken relative to the resignation of my former Chief of Staff. I welcome feedback from this bipartisan committee. I have learned that a special prosecutor has been appointed by the District Attorney Generals’ Conference to begin investigating the email from Mr. Justin Jones that was forwarded by my former Chief of Staff to the local District Attorney. My desire is for this independent review to be completed as…
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Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee plans to let an online sports gambling bill become law without signing it, multiple news outlets are reporting. The Tennessee Journal: On the Hill reported: “The governor has said he does not believe that the expansion is best, but he recognizes that many in the legislature found this to be an issue they want to explore further,” Lee spokeswoman Laine Arnold said in a statement. “He plans to let this become law without his signature.” The Tennessee Education Lottery will be responsible for carrying out the online sports betting program, the Chattanooga Times Free Press said. There will be a 20 percent tax, which is expected to generate $41 million for the lottery, $7.6 million for local government revenue and $2.5 million to provide anti-gambling addiction programs through the Tennessee Department of Mental Health. The original version of the bill would have permitted gambling shops in physical locations but that provision was dropped after the governor opposed it, the Times Free Press said. The bills are HB0001 in the House and SB0016 in the Senate, according to the tracking information, which is available here. The Senate on Tuesday passed the bill, with three amendments, by…
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A bill that strengthens Tennessee’s protections against female genital mutilation (FGM) is headed to Gov. Bill Lee for his signature after the Legislature approved the measure. The national EndFGMToday campaign issued a press release congratulating Tennessee lawmakers. The advocacy organization said the bill will provide additional protections for women and girls from FGM and punish the perpetrators. The bill will strengthen an already-existing law already on the books. “The mutilation of little girls’ genitals defies all standards of humanity and cries out as a hideous violation of human rights, according to the United Nations and World Health Organization,” said attorney and child welfare advocate Elizabeth Yore, who heads EndFGMToday. “The CDC estimates that 513,000 girls are at risk of female genital mutilation in the United States. Legislators in Tennessee realize this fact and are working to strengthen their laws even further to protect women and girls in their state. EndFGMToday urges Gov. Bill Lee to sign this critically important legislation as soon as possible.” State Rep. Terri Weaver (R-TN-40) was the sponsor of the House legislation, HB 1364. State Sen. Joey Hensley (R-TN-28) sponsored SB 1166 in the Senate. The tracking information is here. The bill passed unanimously in…
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