Tennessee Republican Denies Black Lawmakers Were Expelled Because Race, Claims One ‘Wanted to Be Kicked Out’

GOP Rep. Bryan Richey told CNN race was not a factor in the decision by the Republican-dominated Tennessee House of Representatives to expel two Black lawmakers but not a White one after they joined a protest in the statehouse last week.

On Thursday, Reps. Justin Jones and Justin Pearson, who are Black, were expelled by the two-thirds majority vote necessary to remove them from office. Gloria Johnson, who also joined the protest and is White, was spared expulsion.

Richey appeared on Friday’s edition of The Lead. He voted against expelling Pearson and Johnson, but voted to remove Jones because, Richey said, he actually wanted to be kicked out of office. The Republican lawmaker also denied that race was a factor in the House’s votes.

The three participated in a raucous protest at the statehouse after three children and three adults were gunned down in a mass shooting at a Nashville elementary school in late March.

“So, you were one of seven Republicans who voted against expelling Democrat Gloria Johnson, and one of just three Republicans who voted against expelling representative Justin Pearson,” Jake Tapper noted. “But you did vote to expel representative Justin Jones. Can you explain your votes to us?”

Richey replied that he was against expulsion from the outset.

“So, I started sharing with leadership and everybody that, I did not think that expulsion was right thing,” he explained. “What these three individuals did was completely horrible. It was a disrespect to our General Assembly, those members that have served before me, and that will serve in the future.”

He explained that he did not believe the lawmakers’ actions amounted to a removable offense, adding that his office is next to Jones’s and that the two spoke ahead of the expulsion vote.

“Representative Jones’s office is right next door to mine,” he said. “I had multiple conversations with him this week letting him know that I wasn’t in favor. And essentially, he told me that he wanted to be kicked out because his following was growing. He’s getting all this national exposure and that the Metro City Council had already said that they were going to reappointing back to the General Assembly. So, I was honoring his wishes and voting for him.”

Richey reiterated that he didn’t think any of them should be removed from office.

“So, Republicans voted to expel two young Black men and not the 60-year-old White woman, Rep. Gloria Johnson, who did the same thing,” Tapper said. “Johnson says that that’s because she’s White. What do you think of that?”

“That’s political nonsense,” Richey shot back. “If anything, it was two energetic, youthful males that were a little bit more animated while they were up there. And Ms Gloria Johnson, Rep. Johnson, she stood there when–they played the video. It clearly showed her standing there not doing as much, and I think that swayed other members to not vote for her. And that’s why she’s still there, had nothing to do with the color of their skin. I respect all three of them and their constituents that voted for them. I felt that they should stay.”