Jerry Sexton (politician)

Jerry Sexton (born March 9, 1957) is an American politician, currently serving as a Republican member of the Tennessee House of Representatives. Sexton represents District 35, a seat which he has held since 2015. This district consists of Grainger, Claiborne, and part of Union counties.[2]

Jerry Sexton
Member of the Tennessee House of Representatives
from the 35th[1] district
Assumed office
January 2015
Preceded byDennis Roach
Chair of the House Public Health Subcommittee
Assumed office
January 2019
Personal details
Born (1957-03-09) March 9, 1957
Claiborne County, Tennessee, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)Marsha Sexton
Children2
ResidenceBean Station, Tennessee
Alma materWalters State Community College
ProfessionFurniture manufacturing facility owner, former Baptist minister
WebsiteOfficial website

Sexton is also nationally known controversially for his fundamentally religious and socially conservative bills opposing LGBT rights,[3][4] the separation of church and state,[5] and abortion rights.[6][7]

Legislative initiatives

In 2016, Sexton introduced a bill that would have designated the Holy Bible, as the state book of Tennessee.[8] The bill received controversy from both Democratic and Republican state politicians. Sexton's bill was criticized by Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery, stating that the bill would violate the separation of church and state as stated in the Establishment Clause of the Constitution of the United States and the Tennessee Constitution. The bill would be vetoed by then Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam, who saw the bill as a trivialization of the Bible.[8]

In 2017, Sexton opposed an increase on diesel and gasoline taxes that redirected over $200 million of tax revenue towards transportation infrastructure projects in Tennessee.[9]

In February 2019, Sexton, along with State Senator Mark Pody of Lebanon, introduced the "Tennessee Natural Marriage Defense Act" in their respective legislative chambers.[10] The anti-LGBT bill would have barred the permitting of same-sex marriage in Tennessee. The bill aimed to "defend natural marriage," and recognize the ruling of pro-LGBT legislature and legal decisions, including the United States Supreme Court's ruling in favor of Obergefell v. Hodges, as "void, and of no effect."[11]

In 2020, Sexton's "Bible bill" was re-introduced into the Tennessee House of Representatives by Sexton.[8] It would fail again, unable to pass through the Tennessee House of Representatives.[12]

In April 2020, during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Sexton made a deal to have the Tennessee state government purchase over $165,000 in hospital gowns manufactured by Sexton Furniture LLC, his place of business. Fellow legislators saw complications with his motives, citing the price per gown almost double to other vendors, and the possible conflict of interest on buying materials from a state legislator.[13]

On January 5, 2021, Sexton was one of 29 Republican lawmakers in the Tennessee General Assembly that signed a letter to the United States Congress members representing Tennessee supporting the attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election on the behalf of falsely supported claims of election fraud by United States President Donald Trump.[14]

Nathan Bedford Forrest bust controversy

On June 9, 2020, Sexton voted as a member of the House Naming, Designating, & Private Acts Committee against removal of a bust honoring Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard Nathan Bedford Forrest from the Tennessee State Capitol building.[15]

During the discussion of the bill regarding the removal of the bust, Sexton received heavy criticism from fellow state representatives and social media for an allegedly racist statement he had made attempting to excuse the actions of Forrest,[16][17] stating:

It was not against the law to own slaves back then. Who knows, maybe some of us will be slaves one of these days. Laws change.[18]

— Jerry Sexton

References
  1. State of Tennessee. "Representative Jerry Sexton". capitol.tn.gov. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
  2. "Jerry Sexton". VoteSmart.org. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
  3. Shelton, David (February 8, 2019). "Same-sex marriage rights attacked again in Tennessee". The Leaf Chronicle. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
  4. Aviles, Gwen (February 12, 2019). "'Tennessee Natural Marriage Defense Act' seeks to strip gay marriage rights". NBC News. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
  5. Ebert, Joel (February 5, 2020). "The Bible the official book of Tennessee? Four years after a failed effort, a Republican lawmaker tries again". The Tennessean. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  6. "Tennessee House passes bill calling for monument for unborn children". CBS News. April 20, 2018. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
  7. Allison, Natalie (May 27, 2020). "House committee approves abortion bill that Senate speaker does not intend to pass". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
  8. Koch, Mitchell (February 7, 2020). "Bill introduced again to designate Holy Bible as Tennessee's official state book". WREG-TV. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
  9. Sher, Andy (March 31, 2017). "Tempers flare among Tennessee House GOP members over gas tax bill". Chattanooga Times Free Press. Retrieved August 13, 2020.
  10. Allison, Natalie (February 8, 2019). "Tennessee's 'Natural Marriage Defense Act' is making a comeback, would prohibit same-sex weddings". The Tennessean. Retrieved August 13, 2020.
  11. "HB 0892". Tennessee General Assembly. Retrieved August 13, 2020.
  12. "Tennessee bill to make Bible official state book fails". WZTV. June 19, 2020. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
  13. Williams, Phil (September 8, 2020). "Tennessee goes on $80 million, no-bid spending spree for COVID-19 supplies". NewsChannel 5. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  14. Mojica, Adrian (January 5, 2021). "29 Tennessee lawmakers support efforts objecting Biden's electoral victory over Trump". WZTV. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
  15. 'HJR0686 by Staples',
  16. "Tennessee governor says 'something should be done' about Nathan Bedford Forrest bust". WMC Action News 5. June 10, 2020. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
  17. Palma, Sky (June 11, 2020). "'Everybody was just astonished': Tenn. Republican's comments on slavery leave his colleagues stunned". RawStory. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
  18. Golgowski, Nina (June 11, 2020). "Tennessee Lawmakers Vote To Keep KKK Leader's Bust In Capitol, Igniting Protests". Huffington Post. Retrieved November 15, 2020. Rep. Jerry Sexton (R), who voted against the bust’s removal, appeared to excuse the state’s history of racism. “It was not against the law to own slaves back then. Who knows, maybe some of us will be slaves one of these days. Laws change,” Sexton, who is white, told the legislative panel. “But what about the people that I represent, that it will offend them if we move this? They’ll be offended. They won’t like it. But it doesn’t seem to matter.”
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.