The Tri-Star State

Rep. Tim Rudd, R-Murfreesboro, wants the legislature to remove a Nashville judge for doing her job — making a ruling. If successful, lawyers say it will create a chilling effect.

This week, the Tennessee General Assembly moved through a bill that would limit the participation of transgender students in sporting teams. Meanwhile, Republicans in the senate want to ban student-athletes' protests during the national anthem. We explain how these proposals could end up in the courts.   Also on this episode: House Education Administration Committee Chairman Mark White explains why he supports a bill that would allow the governor to force schools to reopen.

The Tennessee General Assembly is back this week after shutting down due to inclement weather. On the docket for their comeback: Gov. Bill Lee’s constitutional carry proposal. We break down what else to expect. Also in this episode: An interview with Joe Woolley, the CEO of the Nashville LGBT Chamber. He says corporations across the state will unite to fight the slate of anti-LGBT measures in the Tennessee General Assembly.

The Tennessee legislature is considering a bill that would limit the participation of transgender athlete’s in sports team. We break down why Republicans are pushing for it. Also on this episode: Sen. Raumesh Akbari, D-Memphis, explains why her caucus will fight the GOP-introduced bills.

House Speaker Cameron Sexton has been reelected to the position and, once again, he is in the middle of controversy.  The Crossville Republican now has to deal with members of his own party being investigated by the FBI. WPLN’s politics reporter Sergio Martínez-Beltrán sat down with him to chat about the latest developments.  Also on this episode: We break down some of the measures expected to be debated this year.

For the first time, the person in charge of the Tennessee Democratic Party will be a Black leader. Hendrell Remus was elected earlier this month. He will now be in charge of the party’s strategy to win more seats in the state legislature — a task that has not been easy in the last decade. Remus talks with WPLN’s Political Reporter Sergio Martínez-Beltrán about his approach to accomplish this. Also in this episode: We break down how Tennessee Sens. Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty have voted during the confirmations of President Biden’s cabinet picks. 

Underpinning the Jan. 6 insurrection was a slew of conspiracy theories about election fraud, even after the courts repeatedly struck down almost every attempt to call votes into question.   These false claims were shared extensively by former President Donald Trump and members of the GOP in Tennessee, as well as conservative local leaders. WPLN’s Ambriehl Crutchfield talked to some of them.  Also on this episode: a recap of the legislative special session on education. 

The first week of the 112th Tennessee General Assembly is on the books. Lawmakers debated and passed an agreement for TennCare’s block grant. But, what happens now?  Also on this episode: an interview with Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn. 

The Tennessee General Assembly goes back into session on Tuesday — just days after FBI agents raided the homes and offices of three House GOP members. Also on this episode: an interview with Senate Speaker Randy McNally. 

The clock is ticking — we are just hours away from Election Day. Over a million people in Tennessee has already voted early or by mail. But, many more are expected to cast their ballots this Tuesday. And as Tennesseans get ready to make this happen, WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán shares some information for your vote to count.

Early voting started last week, and thousands of Tennesseans have already voted in person.  But there are still WPLN listeners who want to vote absentee yet have concerns about it. So, WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán has been reading your questions regarding mail-in voting and has some new answers. 

During the last few months, Tennessee has been hit with a flurry of legal challenges over mail-in voting. This has caused some confusion during the final stretch of the November presidential election. So, to clarify any doubts, WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán breaks down the status of the lawsuits and the rulings. 

Recent court rulings have created a lot of confusion regarding who can request mail-in ballots and voting in general.   And, as a crucial election approaches, Tennesseans have reached out to WPLN News and Curious Nashville with their pressing questions.  WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán has been talking to sources AND state officials to clarify all of the doubts. And he’s going to attempt to answer a few of them. 

2020 has been a challenging year for everyone, including Gov. Bill Lee.  Crisis response from the pandemic to protests have given Lee the opportunity to show what he values and how he wants to lead Tennessee.   WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán has been keeping track of Lee’s decisions and says he has pushed for some of the most conservative policies in the country.

The special session for the Tennessee General Assembly has ended, but the controversy coming out of it is still going strong.  The state extended wide ranging protection for businesses and schools from COVID-19 lawsuits. And one measure essentially ended a months-long racial justice protest near the capitol steps. That bill caused splits even between members of the Republican supermajority.  WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán and Samantha Max have been covering the debates inside and the protests outside. They say the new legislation is already causing the demonstrators to rethink their approach. 

The August Primary Election is coming up this week and the Republican candidates for the U.S. Senate are in full attack mode.  Ads are blanketing TV and social media and high-profile surrogates have been flooding the state to help out Manny Sethi and Bill Hagerty. WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán has been on the campaign trail lately. 

Tennesseans won’t know the full economic effects of the pandemic for a while but its impact on the state budget is becoming clearer.  Over the last week lawmakers have been figuring how to cut hundreds of millions of dollars across all departments. WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán has been on Capitol Hill this week following the latest. 

The Tennessee General Assembly is facing one of its biggest budgetary challenges ever.  Sales tax revenue is down dramatically meaning more reductions to the state's spending plan. WPLN's Sergio Martínez-Beltrán has been talking to lawmakers to get a better sense of what's likely to be cut. 

After two months of recess, the Tennessee General Assembly is getting back to business this week.  And there’s already disagreements and controversy. WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán is also going back to the capitol. But, even in quarantine, he’s been keeping up with the latest legislative developments. 

Throughout the coronavirus crisis Gov. Bill Lee has been criticized for being slower than other governors in calling for a stay-at-home order. Many have said he has not taken the issue seriously.   But the governor is taking it very seriously personally, at least. WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán traveled with Lee across the state late last week to have an exclusive look at the governor’s operation.

“Unprecedented” is being used a lot to describe the current time we’re living in, and it’s safe to say that can be used to describe what just happened in the state legislature over the past week. WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán has been at the capitol throughout this unusual session, where lawmakers voted last week to pass an emergency budget and recess until at least June. He spoke to WPLN’s Rachel Iaovone about these extraordinary times at the state legislature.

The last two weeks in Tennessee have felt like four months.   Deadly tornadoes ripped through Middle Tennessee on the same day as the Super Tuesday presidential primaries.  Three days later, the state announced its first confirmed case of coronavirus. But all this time, the state legislature has still been conducting business.   WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán says it may have been overlooked but lawmakers have been debating important legislation. 

Super Tuesday is around the corner — that’s when 14 states including Tennessee will hold presidential primaries.  So far, about 337,000 Tennesseans have cast their ballots. But campaigns are still hitting the ground and knocking on doors to get people out to vote.  WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán has been covering the campaigns and says there is a real split among Democrats. 

The three-month paid family leave for state employees promised by Governor Bill Lee appears to be in limbo.    Now it’s up to the Tennessee General Assembly to decide whether to move forward with it. And WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán says they’re not as excited about offering generous paid leave as the governor’s office is.

Democrats in the Tennessee legislature are a superminority. This means that most of their proposals will not become law.  But that hasn’t stopped them from pushing Governor Bill Lee on certain issues such as education.  WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán talked to Senate Minority Leader Jeff Yarbro, who says they want to see the governor put a lot more money in schools.

Governor Bill Lee has been talking about plans to reform the criminal justice system in Tennessee since the campaign trail. He studied the issue during his first year in office with the expectation that this would be the year for legislative action. But WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán says the proposals are less sweeping than expected and some are a bit tougher on crime.

The capitol bust of Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest is, once again, at the center of controversy but the battle lines are a little different.   This time, some Republicans are asking for it to be removed. WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán has been talking to lawmakers about their change of heart.

Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton has made clear what his priorities are for the current legislative session. Healthcare, education, and criminal justice reform are on top of that list.  But some of those issues have also put him at odds with members of his party, including the governor.   WPLN's Sergio Martínez-Beltrán sat down with Sexton and has the interview. 

A soon-to-be signed adoption law in Tennessee is stirring fears of an economic backlash. Companies and conventions have threatened to stop doing business with the state because of legislation that allows faith-based adoption agencies to refuse placements based on their religious beliefs. Republican Gov. Bill Lee says he will sign it into law despite some pushback from his own party. WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán says Tennessee is joining nearly a dozen states passing nearly identical adoption laws. He’s here to explain.

It’s time to start all over again. After a couple of months recess the Tennessee General Assembly will reconvene this week. But WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán says lawmakers have been busy in the “offseason” and have already filed about 100 bills.

Criminal justice reform, school vouchers and refugee resettlement. Those are some of the issues Republican Governor Bill Lee has pushed for during his first 11 months in office. Lee recently sat down with WPLN's Sergio Martínez-Beltrán to talk about his first year. Here's their conversation.

In 2019 Tennesseans saw a lot of “news” from the state Capitol. A new governor, two new speakers of the House of Representatives, and the state’s first ever school voucher law. WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán covered the “news” and all the other stories in a very tumultuous year in state politics. Here’s his conversation with Jason Moon Wilkins.

On a recent chilly afternoon last week at Nashville's Centennial Park, Sean Michel was walking his dog with a friend. This was also the first day of impeachment hearings against President Donald Trump. Michel didn't hesitate to share his thoughts on impeachment.

Four months. That’s how much time is left before Super Tuesday — the day in March when Tennesseans and people in 14 other states and two jurisdictions will vote on the next nominees. WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán has been covering the Democratic candidates who have visited Tennessee and he says they are focusing more and more on what has been a reliably red state.

The impact of the latest nationwide strike by union workers against General Motors is beginning to be quantified. According to multiple reports, the automaker has lost about $1 billion dollar since the strike started three weeks ago. In Tennessee, state officials worry the union strike against General Motors could have negative impacts on the local economy. WPLN's Sergio Martínez-Beltrán talked to leaders in the community around Spring Hill and he said it's not the typical partisan issue.

It’s been over a decade since Tennessee Democrats scored a big win in a state race. What’s the party doing to turn things around? That’s a question many in the state executive committee have asked. And they're not happy with the answers they're getting from the Tennessee Democratic Party chair, Mary Mancini.

The open U.S. Senate race in Tennessee just got interesting. Former Gov. Bill Haslam decided he will not run, opening the door for other Republicans who may have been holding back. And the next day, President Donald Trump tweeted that the U.S. ambassador to Japan, Tennessee's Bill Hagerty, is getting into the race.

A Tennessee initiative to boost literacy rates is in jeopardy. The Read To Be Ready program launched in 2016 and had an ambitious goal of increasing literacy among third graders. But its popular summer camp program has officially run out of funds.

There’s an official date for Rep. Glen Casada to leave his post as speaker but, for some lawmakers Aug. 2 is not soon enough. They want him to resign before then — some legislators fear Casada has ulterior motives for hanging on.

Republicans in the Tennessee House of Representatives vowed to make free-market reforms in health care this year. The agenda was ambitious — reduce surprise billing, incentivize patients to be more cost conscious and deregulate the hospital industry. In the end, some legislation stalled out, some was substantially watered down, but patients may still see some change.

Just because Rep. Glen Casada, R-Franklin, plans on stepping down as House speaker doesn’t mean there aren’t still lingering questions surrounding the scandal that led to his departure. WPLN’s political reporter Sergio Martínez-Beltrán and senior editor Chas Sisk say there are three issues related to the scandal that remain unresolved.

Republican lawmakers in the Tennessee House of Representatives will soon decide the fate of Speaker Glen Casada. The embattled lawmaker has faced backlash after racist and sexist text messages between him and his former chief of staff were leaked to the media.

House Speaker Glen Casada has been fighting for his political life. And it's not the first time his reputation has been on the line. Many lawmakers have called for the Franklin Republican to step down. That's after the leaking of sexist and racist text exchanges with a top aide, his now-former chief of staff, Cade Cothren. WPLN senior editor Chas Sisk spoke with Jason Moon Wilkins about why this isn't just a crisis for Casada, it's a problem for Tennessee’s Republican Party as a whole.

This year’s legislative session has come to an end, and a new wave of Tennessee Republicans scored some big wins during the last couple of weeks. WPLN’s political reporter Sergio Martínez-Beltrán has been on the hill for the last four months, and he says the final weeks were very hectic.

It’s been quite a week in the Tennessee General Assembly. Gov. Bill Lee’s Education Savings Account passed in the House on a narrow, last-minute vote. It also passed in the Senate.

There have been many changes in the last few weeks to Gov. Bill Lee’s Education Savings Accounts proposal. The legislature is still workshopping the details of the school voucher plan. And GOP leaders are trying to convince rural lawmakers on the fence, to vote for the bill.

Many of Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee's initiatives are making their way through the state legislature, and some are faring better than others. In his first year, the governor’s proposals range from increasing vocational education to faith-based initiatives to implementing a pilot program for school vouchers.

Equal rights advocates are warning Tennessee lawmakers about consequences the state could face if they move forward with legislation that targets the LGBTQ community. The General Assembly is considering about 10 measures that could impact whether LGBTQ people could adopt, or use a bathroom that matches their gender identity.

The Tennessee General Assembly is getting to the do-or-die point for new legislation. The end of committee meetings means lawmakers have to make important decisions regarding bills that could determine whether they’ll pass or they’ll fail. This also means, in some cases, it’s time for compromise.

There's a very real possibility that the Tennessee legislature will vote to expand Medicaid this year, though not to cover the working poor. Rather, this expansion is meant to rescue middle-class and upper-income families from financial ruin, as they care for children with severe disabilities.