democrats who led gun safety protests we will take you there and across the country as we loo at what is going on in a state houses from coast to coast the big question, the lawmaker know what their constituents really want? money power politics and the supreme court the investigation into justice clarence thomas secretly accepting luxury trips from major republican donor the 11th hour is getting underway on this thursda night. good evening once again. i m stephanie ruhle. tonight, we begin in the state of tennessee we are in a stunning act o political retaliation. republican lawmakers expelle two of their democrati colleagues, justin jones and justin pearson they joined in a peacefu protest on gun violence with students jones and are both black a third democratic lawmaker wh is white was up for a vote but was not expelled here saw the tennessee newspaper wrote it up. quote, ten days after a shoote on loaded 152 rounds inside nashville school and killed si people, tennessee
clarence thomas secretly accepting luxury trips from major republican donor the 11th hour is getting underway on this thursda night. good evening once again. i m stephanie ruhle. tonight, we begin in the state of tennessee we are in a stunning act o political retaliation. republican lawmakers expelle two of their democrati colleagues, justin jones and justin pearson they joined in a peacefu protest on gun violence with students jones and are both black a third democratic lawmaker wh is white was up for a vote but was not expelled here saw the tennessee newspaper wrote it up. quote, ten days after a shoote on loaded 152 rounds inside nashville school and killed si people, tennessee hous republicans on thursda expelled two democrati lawmakers for breaking house rules and mounting a gun protest on the chamber floor surrounding my democrati colleagues, expelled state representative justin pearso had this message of hope for the future we have good news tha sunday always comes.
police this action is older. let s go every week to thi rotunda and remind them that we re not going to let this go they re expelling me today but they can t expel our movement. they are trying to silence people they can t silence thousands o us here who are demandin change no action, no peace! that is what he said a fe hours ago. let s find out what he has t say tonight. i want to bring in expelled state representative justi jones. mr. jones, what a day this has been for you how are you feeling tonight? i m exhausted it was a 12 hour session i stayed with my other colleagues as their vote happen i m very sad for democracy i tennessee. i m hopeful by those thousands of young people gathered at th capitol who will be back t hold my colleagues accountable for this attack on democracy and this attack on a community that has been a grieving one were calling for common sens gun laws they responded by expelling us first ending with ou
thirds vote, it s only happene three times before demonstrators today filled the halls of the state capital arguments from democrats did little to sway that republican a supermajority. this does not seem like america, to expel the voices o the opposition it s a signal of authoritarianism it is very dangerous the republican speaker of the house says today s actions were about the rules they did break rules by going to the well and showin that they were at the well they were speaking they pulled out a bullhorn before there was a recess. here is what justin jones said after all three votes t police this action is older. let s go every week to thi rotunda and remind them that we re not going to let this go they re expelling me today but they can t expel our movement. they are trying to silence people they can t silence thousands o us here who are demandin change no action, no peace! that is what he said a fe hours ago. let s find out what he has t
atlanta used to be i think this is going to cause billions of dollars fo tennessee and that might b what it takes to turn some republican heads is to actuall lose money that s my head-scratcher, i republicans are apoplectic tonight, if they are embarrassed, proud of ho cosmopolitan, chic nashville has become, what republicans are cheering tonight sayin this was a good move, we wil stay in power down here, i don t understand you know, i m sure there ar plenty of state house lawmaker who feel very good about wha they did today, and watching this discourse today that leve of condescension, from several of the white lawmakers directe towards both forme representative pearson and former representative jone almost mind-boggling i m not sure i ve witnesse something like that except for and old films about the civi rights movement. i think there are quit confident that they did th right thing, i think they don feel like they should be in th