Editorial: Paths diverging
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The news cycle this week included extremes: Political retaliation for freedom of speech and a public official exercising freedom of speech and assuming no consequence.
Having an opinion and taking a stand does not protect anyone from public scrutiny. In fact, if you are a public official, you are for all intents and purposes on display.
What we saw this week was an odd mix of First Amendment brinksmanship and a gross misstep.
On Thursday, Tennessee Republicans expelled two Democratic lawmakers from the state Legislature for their role in a protest calling for more gun control in the aftermath of a deadly school shooting in Nashville. (A third Democrat was narrowly spared by a one-vote margin.)
According to published reports, banishment is a move the chamber has used only a handful of times since the Civil War. Most state legislatures have the power to expel members, but it is generally reserved as a punishment for lawmakers accused of serious misconduct, not used as a weapon against political opponents, the Associated Press reported.
GOP leaders in Tennessee said the actions were necessary to avoid setting a precedent that lawmakers disruptions of House proceedings through protest would be tolerated.
Wed call it punishment.
At an evening rally, the two Democratic lawmakers pledged to be back at the Capitol advocating for change. Rather than pass laws that will address red flags and banning assault weapons and universal background checks, they passed resolutions to expel their colleagues, Rep. Justin Jones said. And they think that the issue is over. Well see you on Monday.
Jones, Justin Pearson and Gloria Johnson joined in protesting last week as hundreds of demonstrators packed the Capitol to call for passage of gun-control measures. As the protesters filled galleries, the three approached the front of the House chamber with a bullhorn and participated in a chant. The scene unfolded days after the shooting at the Covenant School, a private Christian school where six people were killed, including three children.
We called for you all to ban assault weapons, and you respond with an assault on democracy, one of the lawmakers said.
The two expelled lawmakers may not be gone for long. County commissions in their districts get to pick replacements to serve until a special election can be scheduled, and they could opt to choose Jones and Pearson. The two would also be eligible to run in those races. Under the Tennessee Constitution, lawmakers cannot be expelled for the same offense twice.
That is a lot of navigating in a political minefield. It drew global attention to the conundrum of gun control and politics in America. It went from a call for change to an attack on the very right to share that opinion. That is more dangerous than a gun, in our opinion.
Closer to home, however, an Otter Valley Unified Union School Board member, Brent Scarborough, has come under fire for Facebook posts community members have argued mock, and even threaten, transgender individuals.
Scarborough was elected to an at-large seat on the board in March. He posted memes that compare being transgender to identifying as a different weight or vaccination status and that advise parents to teach their kids to change gears, not genders.
According to reporting by Sophia Buckley-Clement, one of the posts insinuated that if a transgender woman used the womans restroom beside his wife or child, she would be beaten to the point of needing a wheelchair.
Scarborough acknowledged the posts were his; he told the journalist he didnt believe anything he posted was offensive. Yet, his Facebook page had been switched from public to private during the week.
A Brandon parent called out Scarborough, stating, The most recent (posts) entered the realm of threatening. Its just unacceptable A school should be a place where all students feel safe. And using demeaning and threatening memes and inflammatory rhetoric is just not appropriate behavior. Not for a public figure.
Sure, Scarborough has every right to his opinion, the same way the Tennessee lawmakers have an opinion on gun control after a mass shooting in their community. The difference is that they used their opinion as a call to action. As a school board member, it does not bode well to make fun of or marginalize a vulnerable population that is a participant in the very school district he represents.
That feels like punishment, too. One delivered recklessly and without thought of consequence or concern for individuals or the community at large.
They may be personal views, but public officials especially elected officials are subject to a high level of scrutiny. We expect public officials to be approachable and thoughtful in their deliberation. Calling for discussion is one thing. Castigating constituents is another thing altogether.
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Saturday, April 8, 2023 at 4:00 am