Play stupid games: Tennessee GOP makes Democrats pay a heavy price for childish tantrums over redistricting



Tennessee state Republicans passed a new congressional map last week that, applying the logic of the U.S. Supreme Court's recent Callais ruling, carves up a Democrat-held district that was the product of a racial gerrymander. They managed to do so despite obstruction and gross incivility from their Democrat colleagues.

Tennessee state Rep. Justin Jones, for instance, walked around the chamber blowing a bullhorn in the faces of lawmakers and subjecting them to potential noise-induced hearing loss. Jones — a Democrat who was caught on film throwing a traffic cone at a driver during a 2020 Black Lives Matter blockade — also set fire to a printout of the Confederate flag and repeatedly accused Republicans of racism.

'Maybe next year we’ll explain the basics like "don’t start fires in the Capitol."'

Democrat state Sen. Charlane Oliver — the radical who threatened riots in 2024 over the passage of a bill she didn't like — danced atop her desk in the chamber, yelling and holding up a banner that said, "No Jim Crow 2 Stop the Steal."

Some of the Democrats yelled and chanted while Republicans calmly conducted the work at hand, while another got testy with police, barraging a Tennessee Highway Patrol trooper with insults while interfering with an arrest.

Evidently, actions still have consequences in the Volunteer State.

Republican Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton notified Democratic House Minority Leader Karen Camper on Tuesday that members of the Democratic Caucus should expect to receive individual letters removing them from all standing committees and subcommittees in the statehouse, "except where membership is required pursuant to Rule 65 of the House Rules."

RELATED: South Carolina GOP poised to erase district of geriatric Democrat who got Biden elected

Madison Thorn/Bloomberg/Getty Images

Sexton cited as cause Democrats' actions "aimed at disrupting the democratic and legislative processes and creating disorder on the House Floor, including, but not limited to:

  • Interlocking arms in the well of the House;
  • Blocking aisles on the House Floor;
  • Instigating and encouraging disruptions of the legislative process in coordination with paid protestors and attendees in the gallery, including the distribution of earplugs to a member of your caucus;
  • The use of prohibited props and noisemakers on the House Floor;
  • Demonstrating a lack of respect toward fellow members seeking recognition to speak on legislation; and
  • Flagrant disregard for the Permanent Rules of Order of the House."

Rather than reflect on whether they went too far again or shouldn't bemoan the loss of a racial gerrymander, state Democrats condemned the committee-removal consequence, painted themselves as victims, and descended farther into lunacy.

Minority Leader Camper said in a long-winded, reality-averse statement that the passage of the new map "felt like being stabbed in the back, then having the knife pushed in deeper and turned to finish the job."

The minority leader then engaged in several paragraphs of what could only be described as partisan-hack numerology.

Camper, convinced there was a "symbolic scheme behind the handling of debate during this extraordinary session," said:

  • there were supposed to be 47 minutes of debate on each side, which was somehow "a clear nod to the 47th President";
  • the duration of the "debate allotments" when it came to the "debate structure surrounding changes to election law," when added up, would have "totaled 54 minutes — a nod to 1954, the year of the landmark Brown v. Board of Education Decision"; and
  • the addition of 47 plus the time allotments also associated with the debate equals 74 — clearly a nod to 1974, the "year Harold Ford Sr. became the first Black member of Congress elected from Tennessee in the modern era."

In conclusion to her embarrassing numbers game, Camper suggested that her protest last week was ultimately aimed at ensuring that these numbers wouldn't add up — that there would instead be only 44 minutes of debate on the redistricting legislation in honor of the 44th president, Barack Obama.

"We are hurt. We are disappointed. But we are not intimidated," wrote Camper. "And no committee assignment will stop us from fighting for democracy, voting rights, constitutional freedoms, and the people of Tennessee."

State Rep. Justin Pearson — the Democrat who interfered with an arrest on Thursday and called a THP trooper "stupid motherf**ker" and "boy" — whined on X, "Speaker of the TN House Cameron Sexton just removed me and every Democrat — and therefore every Black elected official in the state legislature from any committee we served on. This move strips nearly 2 million Tennesseans from [sic] the representation they deserve in TN state leg."

The Tennessee House GOP said of the Democrats' responses, "Of course now they’re playing victim. Maybe next year we’ll explain the basics like 'don’t start fires in the Capitol.'"

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Lindsey Graham GOP challenger makes shocking promise to change NASCAR: 'South Carolina will rise again'



An opponent of South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham (R) has targeted NASCAR as his No. 1 priority.

Senate candidate Paul Dans, a member of the first Trump administration, has remained steadfast in his dedication to unseating Graham.

'We don't give a crap what Bubba Wallace thinks.'

On Sunday, however, Dans posted a video from the Goodyear 400, held at South Carolina's iconic Darlington Raceway, and revealed one of his day-one promises.

Dans said that, if elected, he would immediately pick up the phone and ask NASCAR to overturn one of its George Floyd-era rules.

"On June 10, 2020, NASCAR banned the flying of Confederate flags at its races," Dans began. "As your next U.S. senator from South Carolina, my first call is going to be to the CEO of NASCAR, Jim France."

"Sir, we want to fly our flags again at NASCAR, and we don't give a crap what Bubba Wallace thinks. South Carolina will rise again," Dans added.

NASCAR banned the flags from its events in 2020 just two days after driver Wallace called for their removal in the wake of Floyd's death, which had happened about two weeks prior.

NASCAR said at the time that the presence of the Confederate flag at its events "runs contrary to our commitment to providing a welcoming and inclusive environment for all fans, our competitors, and our industry. ... The display of the Confederate flag will be prohibited from all NASCAR events and properties."

RELATED: 'I'm on fire!' NASCAR indefinitely suspends driver for using 'gay voice'

Photo by Malcolm Hope/Icon Sportswire/Corbis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Less than two weeks after the ban, an alleged noose was found in Wallace's garage stall, followed by "a piece of twine tied in what appeared to be a noose" found "hanging from a tree on raceway property" at Sonoma Raceway in California.

Days later, the FBI concluded no crime had been committed and revealed that the rope in Wallace's stall had been there since October 2019, and "nobody could have known Mr. Wallace would be assigned" to that stall.

The alleged noose turned out to be a "a garage door pull rope fashioned like a noose."

RELATED: Michael Jordan shocks NASCAR by doing something no one has done in 77 years

Photo by Matt Hazlett/Getty Images

Dans' platform focuses heavily on replacing Graham; his website reads, "Fire Lindsey Graham," in a pop-up upon first visit, alongside a photo of the candidate with President Trump.

Other positions by Dans include "no more endless wars" and "obliterate the deep state."

The candidate is well known for being the director of Project 2025, a document that drew much criticism from left-wing sources in the lead-up to the 2024 presidential election. For example, the ACLU described the project as "a roadmap for how to replace the rule of law with right-wing ideals."

However, the project's website says it was a way to "prepare for a new conservative administration through policy, training, and personnel."

Graham's office did not respond to a request for comment.

The Republican primary for South Carolina takes place on June 9.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Facebook user threatens to kill black people at Alabama fair, adds 'white power' message and Confederate flag. Cops say black man is behind post.



An 18-year-old black man is behind a Facebook post that promised to kill black people at an Alabama fair and used white supremacist imagery, police told AL.com.

What are the details?

The Facebook user indicated in the post that he and his friends “are coming to [the] Opelika Alabama fair to kill every NEGRO that we lay eye contact on so be prepared. WHITE POWER," the outlet said, adding that the poster’s profile included the Confederate battle flag.

Opelika police said they launched an investigation Sept. 19 after learning about the "racially inflammatory" post that included a threat to "shoot attendees of a certain demographic at the upcoming Lee County Fair."

The department added that it "takes threats like these very seriously" and that it would "provide additional officers for security to ensure the safety of all fair attendees."

A day later, police said they had a suspect.

"Officials were able to trace the social media account to a residence in Lafayette, AL," police said. "Through the investigation, 18-year-old Pharrell Smith was developed as a suspect." Lafayette police arrested Smith on "unrelated charges" on Oct. 6, police said.

\u201cFAIR TERRORISTIC THREAT SUSPECT https://t.co/VZtoiMS9QD\u201d
— Opelika Police Department (@Opelika Police Department) 1665091924

Opelika police added that once he's released from the custody of Lafayette police, Smith would be extradited to Lee County and arrested on a terroristic threat charge.

Police added that those with information on the case can contact the Opelika Police Department Detective Division at 334-705-5220 or the Secret Witness Hotline at 334-745-8665 — and anonymous tips can be submitted through the Opelika Police Mobile App.

'Another day... another hoax!'

Among the comments under the police department's Facebook post about the arrest, one reads, "Wow! Another day... another hoax! Let’s hope justice is served and he gets the full amount. Please do... persecutors and judges."

Court threatens mom with losing child custody unless she gets rid of Confederate flag-painted rock



A New York appellate court has threatened a mother with losing custody of her multiracial child unless she gets rid of a "small" rock near her driveway that is painted with a Confederate flag.

What are the details?

The Albany Times-Union reported that a panel of five judges in the state's second-highest court ruled unanimously that the white woman and the black father of her elementary-age child could retain joint custody of their daughter — but that if the mother did not remove the rock, she could face a "change of circumstances" in the custody battle.

Justice Stanley Pritzker, who authored the court's decision, wrote that during a fact-finding hearing, "the mother testified that she has never used any racial slurs in front of the child or at all," but noted that neither the judge who presided over a prior 2018 ruling nor the child's law guardian address the mother's possession of a "small Confederate flag painted rock near her driveway."

"Given that the child is of mixed race, it would seem apparent that the presence of the flag is not in the child's best interests, as the mother must encourage and teach the child to embrace her mixed race identity, rather than thrust her into a world that only makes sense through the tortured lens of cognitive dissonance," Pritzker wrote.

"Further, and viewed pragmatically, the presence of the Confederate flag is a symbol inflaming the already strained relationship between the parties," the judge continued. "As such, while recognizing that the First Amendment protects the mother's right to display the flag if it is not removed by June 1, 2021, its continued presence shall constitute a change in circumstances and Family Court shall factor this into any future best interests analysis."

According to The Washington Post, the court's decision was clear: "The rock puts the woman's child custody at risk." The newspaper noted that the mother was not represented by an attorney.

Jason Leifer, the attorney serving as the child's law guardian, told the Times-Union that while he agrees the rock needs to go, he's concerned about the precedent the court's ruling could set for future custody battles between parents.

"I think parties will now raise objections to many symbols and opinions held by the other party, including some that the majority of society does not find offensive," Leifer told the outlet. "What's going to have to happen is this — if the issue is raised the court will need to hear evidence of the child how the child's well-being is negatively affected by a parent's views and opinions. In some cases this will be easy, such as if a child is being indoctrinated into a hate group, but in many cases it won't be so easy."

Leifer told the Associated Press, "I just think that this thing opens a door to litigating... someone's personal opinions on something."

North Carolina No Longer Issuing Confederate License Plates

'Plates bearing the Confederate battle flag have the potential to offend those who view them'

New York bans sale of Confederate flags and other 'symbols of hate'; Gov. Cuomo admits bill he just signed has First Amendment problems



New York Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed a bill Tuesday outlawing the sale of Confederate battle flags, Nazi paraphernalia, and anything else deemed a "symbol of hate" on state property.

The bill, Spectrum News reported, builds on attempts to ban the sale and display of Confederate flags at fairgrounds.

Cuomo acknowledged even as he signed the bill that it may well have some First Amendment problems.

What does the bill do?

The bill bars anyone from selling or displaying hate symbols on public grounds unless it serves an educational or historical purpose.

The bill's summary claimed that the definition of "symbol of hate" to be "symbols of white supremacist and neo-Nazi ideology or the Battle Flag of the Confederacy."

However, the actual text of the bill does not offer such a clear definition.

According to the bill's text, "the term 'symbols of hate' shall include, but not be limited to, symbols of white supremacy, neo-Nazi ideology or the battle flag of the Confederacy," leaving the definition of "symbols of hate" open to bureaucrats' interpretation.

Cuomo admits free speech problems

In a statement accompanying his bill signing, Cuomo admitted that the new law may have First Amendment problems and might need to be fixed now that it has been signed, the New York Post noted.

"This country faces a pervasive, growing attitude of intolerance and hate — what I have referred to in the body politic as an American cancer," Cuomo said, according to the Post. "By limiting the display and sale of the confederate flag, Nazi swastika and other symbols of hatred from being displayed or sold on state property, including the state fairgrounds, this will help safeguard New Yorkers from the fear-installing effects of these abhorrent symbols."

But, he added, the law needs to be tweaked to "balance" New York's priorities with U.S. free speech protections.

"While I fully support the spirit of this legislation, certain technical changes are necessary to balance the State's interests in preventing the use of hate symbols on state land with free speech protections embodied in the First Amendment of the United States Constitution," he said.

The governor's office told the Post that "the governor's legal team will be reviewing the bill in consultation with the state Legislature to make a possible amendment."

The bill's lead sponsor, state Sen. Alessandra Biaggi, a Democrat, touted the governor's signing, saying, "With the signing of my bill, we are drawing a clear line in the sand. By limiting hateful symbols from being glorified on state property, New York will denounce images that represent violence while still acknowledging our nation's shameful history of oppression," Spectrum News reported.

She added that the new law will let New York "discourage the perpetuation of symbols that do not represent our values of justice and inclusion" without noting exactly what could eventually be added to the state's list of proscribed "symbols."

Biaggi's press secretary later told the Post that there will be an amendment to the bill that "limits the prohibitions at the state fair, to ensure that we are respecting the protections that the Supreme Court has recognized for individuals and vendors at state fairs to exercise their First Amendment rights."

With Michael Jordan Buying A NASCAR Team, Stock Car Racing Expands Its Audience

Jordan’s name can attract new sponsors and level the financial playing field. But will his team be able to make Wallace a regular contender?