A special session of the Tennessee General Assembly on Monday reflects the way in which the aggressive conservative agenda of President Trump is already encouraging Republicans to pursue its priorities at a state level.
Governor Bill Lee has proposed new measures to enhance the imposition of immigration, including creating a position in the state government that will coordinate directly with Trump’s administration.
And he has asked legislators to review his plans to expand the use of public funds for private schools throughout the State.
What will happen later in Tennessee can mark the extent to which the conservative states will carry out a wider policy agenda of Mr Trump. The regular legislative sessions of many states are just starting.
Republican supermajorities, especially in the south, have spent years gathering behind a liturgy of conservative policies. Biden’s administration often condemned their decisions or questioned them in court, but Trump’s administration is much more likely to be on the same page with them.
“During Biden’s administration, Red State laws were disappointed with what they saw Biden’s administration to do or not do,” said David Shonerd, senior state -owned manager in a multi -, state and local government company. . “Now they have a willing and excited partner.”
Added, “they will be able to push the folder if needed.”
Mr Lee also asked Tennessee’s legislative body to take on a third issue at the special meeting: Aid for disasters for communities in the eastern corner of the state, which were destroyed by the end of last year by floods caused by the rainy remains of Hello Hellne. Supporters say they use a special session to address the three issues is a way of rapid high priority legislation, limiting what can be discussed.
“People are going to complain about anything, whether they are visually or what they may be, so it’s just part of it,” said Cameron Sexton, Republican. He added: “It allows us to focus on some issues in a very short time and really dive and explore these issues.”
Mr Trump called on other rulers to follow his example of targeting immigration policy. Florida’s Ron Desantis Governor has already called on state legislators at a special meeting on Monday. He asked them to examine the legislation that would extend the power of local officials to keep and displace people in the country illegally. Legislative leaders said they would only consider a few of the governor’s proposals.
Individual state legislators made their own proposals to promote Mr Trump’s repression against immigrants without documents. In southern Carolina, state legislators are pushing the requirements for some hospitals to report data on their patients’ immigration status. Legislators in both agriculture and Tennessee have called for more penalties for cities and local governments that defy state bans on the jurisdiction of the “sanctuary”.
A bill introduced in Mississippi last week would create a $ 1,000 generosity hunter program. In Tennessee, a bill will charge students without documents to attend public schools.
It is too early to say which of the accounts will have the opportunity to become laws.
In Tennessee, Mr Lee supported the creation of what he described as a new head of immigration for the state. He has also supported the accounts that would further punish cities and local officials who did not work wholeheartedly with the imposition of immigration. Legislators can also enter other accounts on the matter.
“We see the ruler alignment with Trump’s short -sighted and narrow vision of what it means to belong to this country,” said Judith Clerjeune, director of the defense of the Tennessee’s immigrant coalition and refugees. He added, “it is absurd that we would use local funding to move forward after immigrant families.”
The Democrats, who are widely opposed to such policies, accused Mr Lee of playing politics with Hurricane by reinforcing it with the same special session as the most divisive proposals for migration and school coupons. Although covered by separate accounts at the Tennessee meeting, some legislators in other states and Congress are increasingly trying to attach critical emergency aid to gain policy changes.
“Providing delayed and very necessary financial assistance and relief for Tennessee families and communities destroyed by floods in September should be our focus and only priority during this special meeting,” his spokesman said. State John Ray Clemmons, President of the Democratic Group.
But with the Republicans in controlling an over -exploitation, there is usually little need for democratic support to pass legislation.
On Monday, hundreds of students rally out of the state Capitol in favor of the stricter guns on firearms after a female student was killed in a Nashville Gymnasium. They condemned the limited scope of the special meeting, chanting them “cowards”, as Republican legislators were walking beyond them.
The approval of Mr Lee’s long -term ambitions for a state school coupon program is perhaps the weakest of the three policy elements. Mr Lee’s office has highlighted the support from various mayors of Eastern Tennessee, but some school councils in the state have voted to publicly oppose the plan.
Conservative activists worked to fund coupon programs and increase the elected officials who support them. Republicans pushed a pilot version for Tennessee’s largest counties in 2019, despite concerns about undermining public education. But a very funded impulse to spend millions of dollars on a state plan has so far failed to overcome objections from rural conservatives who protect their local public school areas.
After falling last year, Mr Lee marked that he would push the legislators to take over the matter again. The prospects of his proposal for crossing this year were partly reinforced by Mr Trump, who has repeatedly stated that he favored the creation of a federal school selection program. Mr Trump recently took advantage of Penny Schwinn, a former Tennessee Education Commissioner, who overseered the early stages of the State Coupon Program to serve at the US Department of Education.
In the days that led to the special session, Republicans circulated the glittering approvals for the coupon plan, including one of America’s First Policy Institute, a right -wing team that is deeply involved in the drafting of Trump’s administration’s policy. It remains unclear, however, if this support will be enough to pass the legislation.
“President Trump is in favor of school selection has really helped us,” Mr Sexton said.
The proposal will initially distribute about $ 7,000 to scholarships per year to each of the 20,000 students, about half of whom they would be students with disabilities or students from families well below the income threshold to qualify for free or reduced school price meals . Thousands of more students will be added in the coming years. It will also provide a $ 2,000 lump sum bonus for public school teachers who teach this school year.
Dana Goldstein and Patricia They contributed reports.