Let's Watch Tennessee House Beclown Itself By Expelling Three Democrats For 'Insurrection'

These assholes again.

The Tennessee House of Representatives is at this very minute preparing to vote on expelling three Democratic representatives who stood — without permission — to join students calling for an end to gun murders. It's happening right now, so we're posting the livestream of the proceedings and editing on th fly. Livebloog? Hell yes, it's the Republican supermajority's attempt to undo democracy in a great hurry, so we are LIVEBLOOG.

 youtu.be 

And just like that, we're liveblogging!

2: 17 PM:Arguments over a motion to show a 7-minute video of the accused legislators' crimes; nobody seems to know what the video even is — is it edited, possibly selectively?

2: 22:Rep Joe Towns (D) is arguing for a more deliberate, orderly process to provide the three Democrats a fair process. They haven't even seen the video Republicans want to show.

2: 25:Rep. Johnny Garrett (R), who sponsored the expulsion resolution, says the video doesn't show anything any surprises, since they were all there during the protest, so let's vote on showing the video.

2: 30:The motion to show the video passes immediately.

2: 35:I was wrong! This is the video they showed. It depicts Rep. Justin Pearson, one of the three targets for expulsion, who brought his bullhorn. He was joined by Rep. Justin Jones. They led a chant of "Power to the People" and the galleries joined in. This was all during March 30 protests, and I missed that it was the recording. Dumb me!

2: 43:Democratic Rep. John Ray Clemmons points out that the video they all just watched appears to have been taken by a Republican on the floor of the House. in violation of House rules. Clemons also notes that the video includes clips from a press conference the day after the protest.

House ethics rules also require that anyone who fails to report a violation of House rules has also violated House rules. So maybe half the House should be expelled.

2: 47:Clemmons wants to know when exactly the video was taken. A Republican says it wasn't a violation of the rules since it was recorded while the House was in recess. If that's the case, Clemmons asks, then weren't the three Democrats also speaking during a recess, and not interrupting House business? His motion to refer the matter to the House Ethics Committee is quickly rejected by the Republican majority.

2: 52:Rep. Bo Mitchell (D) notes that he's just been texted pictures showing who was videotaping the three; he "accidentally" names the Republican. After some back and forth, the House moves immediately to vote on the resolution to expel the three Democrats.

2: 54:The resolution to expel Justin Jones is being read aloud. He will now have a chance to speak on his behalf.

2: 56:Jones says the world is watching, and that the majority has already made its verdict known. Calls the proceedings a lynching, "not of me, but of democracy" in Tennessee.

3: 00:Jones notes that the Tennessee Constitution allows members to "protest" and that his intent was to protest the Legislature's failure to do anything to stop mass shootings. He notes that House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R) had called the protest an "insurrection," and that others on TV had falsely accused the three Democrats of violence, when they were calling for an end to violence.

3: 05:"A week after a mass shooting in our community, the quickest action my colleagues across the aisle were able to take is to expel us" (some paraphrase there)

3: 08:Jones lists previous causes for expulsions of House members: A post-Civil War legislator who refused to allow freed slaves to vote, A member who took a bribe to kill a bill, and a member who committed multiple acts of sexual harassment. He asks if the three Dem's actions are really equivalent

3: 10:Jones also pointed out that the House didn't expel a member (former state Rep. David Byrd) who admitted (on a secretly recorded call) to sexually assaulting a minor in the 1980s. Two other women also accused him. Unless I misheard him, he also noted that one member of the House faced no discipline for having "peed in another member's chair." Did you hear that?

3: 13:"Mr. Speaker, how can you bring dishonor to a body that has no honor?" Damn.

3: 14:Jones's mic is suddenly cut in mid-sentence.

3: 15:Rep. Garrett (R), being the prosecutor, asks Johnson a bunch of questions about their actions on the day that they did insurrection by walking to the well of the House without being recognized.

3: 20:Jones says that after he was denied recognition several times, yes, he did go to the well and shout his support for the kids yelling for their lives. Garrett demands that Jones answer specifically if he understands that he went to the well without being recognized, and that Speaker Sexton gaveled him out of order.

Jones answers that he was in the well because he was elected by his constituents, and that Sexton is not his constituent.

3: 24:Rep. Karen Camper (D) points out that Jones has already been stripped of his committee assignments, and that expelling him will be the highest punishment available for a rules violation. She asks if elevating the voices of his constituents rises to the level of admonishment reflected by expulsion.

3: 26:Rep. Camper reminds Republicans that they may someday be in the minority, and that their conduct today will be remembered by history.

3: 32:Rep. Ryan Williams (R) asks Jones about a pin he wore depicting an AR-15 and the words "no more." He notes that when he stepped out briefly to join protesters, his ability to vote was turned off. He points out that no complaint was made about another member wearing a Confederate flag tie. He also wants to know where Jones got his megaphone on the night of the 30th.

Williams also wants to know what Jones meant by the chant "No action, no peace," and Jones refers to Martin Luther King's words about how peace is not merely the absence of violence, but the presence of justice.

3: 35:Rep. Bob Freeman (D) urges his colleagues not to expel Jones, noting that Jones represents 78,000 constituents who clearly wanted him in the House. Yes, he spoke out of order, but he did so because of his passion for his constituents' safety. "I think it scares the people in this room that he speaks [for his constituents] in a way many of us cannot. We need his voice."

3: 38:Garrett again: You know that this body has the right to make its own rules, don't you? Jones notes that's true, but that nobody has ever been expelled for a rules violation in the history of the House.

Garrett: But House business was interrupted! We must have discipline! Rules must be followed and the House must enforce them to pass legislation! One more question for Jones: Were your actions last week disorderly and disruptive?

3: 41:Jones rejects the premise, pretty much, but yeah, "my presence here as one of the youngest Black members is itself disruptive." Says that's what's disorderly is the behavior of the majority, silencing opposition.

3: 44:Rep. Harold Love Jr. (D) notes that Tennessee has declared the Bible the state book, and suggests the House might consider the Bible's many invocations of grace.

3: 45:Rep Gino Bulso (R) explains that Jones must be expelled, because he admitted that he and the other two Democrats committed mutiny, and he doesn't even admit he was wrong! It's pure Republican bile, insisting that Jones is demanding to be expelled as a mutineer. Rules are rules, and it's right there in the state constitution.

3: 50:Bulso offers a strategy for Jones and his constituents: since the constitution also says that no one can be expelled twice, so if he's reelected later, he's good.

Jones notes that there wasn't a question, but what he heard was Bulso saying what we have here is an "uppity Negro." He recalls Bulso getting in his face in an elevator and calling him "a disgrace" — but that he wouldn't say it again when Jones got out his phone.

3: 53:Jones says he'll apologize for speaking out of turn when Bulso and other Republicans apologize to the victims of mass shootings for proliferating weapons of war in Tennessee. "I broke a rule," he says, "but I did not break my oath."

3: 58:Rep. Joe Towns Jr (D) says that there's entirely too much anger in the chamber, and that the members would do well to recall that "democracy is messy." So why "crucify" these three members when other actions were available? Says the House is using a nuclear option for a minor infraction. Notes that the members are in their 20s, and who doesn't get a little shouty when they're young and passionate? "They should not be expelled for something many people believe in."

4: 05:Rep. G.A. Hardaway (D) recalls when Tennessee's first Black speaker of the House, Kent Williams, faced threats from members of the House and had to be escorted by police to leave safely. He calls on members to remember that this is all about three murdered children and three adults, and that Rep. Jones was calling for justice for the victims.

4: 08:Rep. Bo Mitchell (D) recalls two times that Republicans lost their tempers and threatened him, and that that's something that happens in democracy. Breaking rules about decorum is more common than most people want to admit, he says. In other cases, he notes (mentioning Byrd again), people did terrible things but kept their seats. "If you're going to set this precedent, you'd better think long and hard about it." He notes again that the video shown earlier includes the speaker calling recess, so the Republican holding the phone was definitely recording during the session.

4: 13:Rep. Sabi "Doc" Kumar, who shares my nickname but spells it wrong, asks Rep. Jones to not see everything through the lens of race, and is very upset that Jones called him "brown" and that Jones told him that "they will never accept you" while shaking his finger at Kumar. Says that in the 50 years he's been in America he's never experienced racism, and Jones has insulted the House, the Speaker, the people of Tennessee, and Rep. Kumar. "Join the society that will celebrate your achievements."

4: 15:Jones points out that what he'd said was that, as the only person of color in the GOP caucus, Rep. Kumar was "putting a brown face on white supremacy," and he's immediately called out of order and reminded to refer only to the expulsion resolution.

4: 17:Jones is not sticking to the resolution, saying he cares about the approval of people in his district, not the other side of the aisle.

4: 22:Rep. Jason Powell (D) notes his district adjoins Jones's, and that it's very clear his constituents are very supportive of him, and they know his personality. "They know who Rep. Jones is, and I have all the confidence in the world they believe his message and what he believes in." Powell notes he was visiting another third-grade class the day of the shooting, and didn't initially know whether the shooting might have involved his own child, in another school. Notes that his son's little league ball field Monday was surrounded with red ribbons to remember one of the shooting victims. Gets very angry, shouts that expelling Jones will not address the real problem.

4: 25: Motion to end debate and vote passes. Rep. Clemmons explodes, point of order: how can 75 people just throw out a member when children are dying of gun violence. He's gaveled out of order.

4: 28:Rep Yusuf Hakeem (D) protests, notes that many people have signed up to speak so cutting off debate is premature. He too is out of order. A third Democrat asks that the call to end debate be reversed. Nope, rules are rules and debate is over. Jones still gets five minutes to close, why are you so upset? Clerk points out that the vote was final, no more discussion or questions.

4: 30:No, no more debate: Jones gets his five minutes before being expelled.

4: 35:Jones says the reason the nation is watching Tennessee now is that this could happen anywhere. This isn't about me, he says, it's about the young people begging for their lives. "The world is watching"

The lightning fast vote expels Jones 72-25.

Jesus fuck why did they bother?

4: 36:Clemons moves to adjourn, speaker Asshole asks if he wanted to ever reconvene, maybe in two years. Clemons asks for until Monday, and the motion is rejected.

4: 40:Rep Bulso brings up the expulsion resolution against Gloria Johnson, the longest-serving member of the three. You know where this will go, I'll keep liveblooging anyway.

4: 42:Won't be surprised at all if there's a vote to cut off debate immediately after Johnson gets her 20 minutes.

4: 47: Democratic RepresentativeAn attorney for Ms. Johnson whose name I missed notes that today is Maundy Thursday, the "Day of Betrayal" in the Christian calendar. Accuses the author of the expulsion resolution of lying, since it's a copy of the charges against Jones and Pearson. Rep Johnson is accused of things that didn't happen: She did not yell, she did not pound the podium, and she did not display a sign.

Any court in Tennessee would throw this document out on a simple motion, he says, because the charges are completely false.

Oh, he is PISSED and I am here for it. "America was born in protest, and I am grateful it was!"

4: 50:Another Democrat, (or attorney?) unsure who he is (where'd the captioner go?) points out that anyone who's served in this body have violated rules when tempers ran high, including near fistfights and in none of those moments were sanctions applied, certainly not expulsion.

4: 55:He notes that the murders at the church school are a very personal matter for people in Nashville, calls the expulsion unprecedented, anywhere in any Legislature in the US, and has been reserved for only the worst behavior.

5: 00:Idaho makes it into the record as our guy points out that a legislator was expelled — but only after being convicted of fraud. Calls for a step back, and an orderly investigation, not a rushed expulsion. The members have "committed no crimes, no acts of moral turpitude," and no acts that deserve expulsion. A vote for expulsion, he says, is a vote against due process, against rule of law, and against the will of the people.

5: 08:Looks like the attorneys' comments will come out of the 20 minutes that Rep Johnson is allowed. Clerk, in response to a question, explains that according to the rules everyone voted to adopt, the attorneys cannot answer questions asked by the members. Sexton notes that there were no objections when the rules were adopted, the end.

5: 12:Rep. Towns moves to suspend the rules to allow attorneys to answer questions for Johnson; it'll need a 2/3 vote, Bulso objects because how can you change the rules now? Besides, the resolution is about Johnson, not her attorneys, so she needs to answer. (The Rs will vote down the notion, I predict psychically)

5: 14:Rep. Clemmons clarifies that the motion would allow the attorneys to answer questions asked of them, not in place of Johnson. And the vote goes against the motion faster than I can type.

5: 16:Bulso asks Johnson to clarify that she and her colleagues went to the well, and she agrees. As to shouting, she notes that when the microphone was still on, her colleagues were speaking in normal tones. They only resorted to a megaphone after the mic was cut, and after the recess was called. But she agrees that she chanted, without yelling, "Enough is enough." She emphasizes that she stood with her colleagues, and that she never raised her voice.

5: 21:Bulso wants Johnson to confirm that even though she may have spoken during the recess, she went to the well without being recognized. What a monster!

5: 24:Rep. Sam McKenzie (D) notes that Democrats in the House have put up all session with having their mics cut, and that it's nice today that they're allowed to speak. He adds that the local Republican leaders in Knoxville are planning to replace Johnson with a Republican, big surprise. McKenzie calls for the members of the House to treat each others with grace.

5: 30:Johnson recalls having held hand up for 45 minutes, waiting to be recognized, and that Speaker Sexton told her it was retaliation for some slight she was guilty of. Notes that if regular sessions of the House were as orderly as today's maybe her colleagues might not have approached the well without permission. She recallsteaching on the dayof the shootingCorrection: a shooting death of a child at her school in 2008, and how traumatized her students were. She said that she stood with Reps. Jones and Paulson, and that "they spoke for me."

5: 35:Bulso continues to badger Johnson about the details of the protest. She replies, "What is my crime, sir?" Bulso continues to demand she answer whether she heard the speaker gavel her out of order, then asks her to confirm that she continued to disrupt the session even after they were gaveled out of order. She notes again that the House was in recess, and then they left the floor.

Bulso changes tack, asking "Isn't it true that you expected to be disciplined for your conduct?" Johnson says she's seen far worse, as if that were any excuse for INSURRECTION.

5: 40:Rep. Hakeem (D) again asks what the good of this proceeding is anyway, noting that minor rules violations are common in the House, and arguing that the need to do something, please, about gun violence just might be more important than a House rule. Asks, rhetorically, what Jesus would do (he will send us all to hell for every rule we break).

5: 45:Johnson notes that just this week, on Monday, one member shoved another (Jones, though she doesn't name him) and grabbed his phone. She again reminds the House about the faces of the children the day of the shooting, recalls the shooting death of a special education student in 2008.

5: 51:Bulso again asks Johnson if she agrees that her behavior was disruptive and broke rules. Johnson: "I don't think I'm going to agree with you at all." He tries a new badgering tactic, trying to get her to agree that she and the other Democrats had planned in advance to disrupt the session. No she did not. Bulso also asked if she and her colleagues had brought a megaphone to the House floor, She asked if the resolution is about her or her colleagues.

Bulso: Do you not understand the question? Johnson: "Oh, I understand pretty well"

Bulso then said it's very clear that if she isn't expelled, Johnson will surely speak without being recognized again. Johnson: "You're reading minds again, and I don't like having my mind read."

5: 55:After another Dem recalls the Bible story of the woman taken in adultery, Rep. Darren Jernigan (D) asks Johnson if she shouted or held up a sign, which she did not. He urges the House to vote no on the resolution, since it's factually false.

5: 59:Bulso again, says you can't invoke the Bible and forgiveness, since Johnson has shown no contrition or even acknowledged she broke a rule. Nobody has ever done anything so terrible in 200 years in the House. Also, please ignore claims that the resolution isn't factual, because all three were disruptive collectively. Let's not get too het up about whether she did something as long as the other two did.

Fucker literally calls it a CONSPIRACY to ... be disruptive.

"They tried to shred our constitution with a bullhorn, but they failed."

6: 01:Johnson points out that if these were group charges, it should be a group resolution, not three individual resolutions.

6: 05:Rep Clemmons points out that, of the charges in the resolution, the only one that applies to Johnson is that she walked "from there to there" — to the well. He again points out that group guilt is not a thing in America, and once more says it's ridiculous to expel anyone for that. This expulsion proceeding, he says, is an insult to the law, to the House, and an insult to the children killed by gun violence, who are the people they should all be talking about instead.

6: 10:Johnson again points out that Jones and Pearson were speaking during the recess, and that they were speaking for their constituents, and for kids who are terrified of being shot in school. "We are looking for solutions so it will never happen again. It can't happen again." Notes that many in the House walked past kids begging for change without even making eye contact. And that's why she stood with her colleagues.

6: 11:And there's the call to end debate and vote; it passes, and Johnson has five minutes to close before she's expelled.

6: 13:Johnson begins by saying the first names of the children and school staff killed last Monday, plus the full name of her special ed student who was killed in 2008.

6: 15: Johnson recalls talking with an acquaintance who worked at a gun manufacturer in Massachusetts, who detailed the state's rigorous gun laws, and who told her those laws are good for the gun industry, too.

"We want action. Our hearts demanded that we come up here to call for action." And nowshe's expelled.

6: 17:HANG ON! Vote was 65-30, and the resolution FAILED.The galleries go wild, chanting Gloria! Gloria!

6: 25:Rebecca here, Dok had to step out on account of "been liveblogging four hours." We come upon Rep. Justin Pearson, of Memphis (perhaps Evan's representative?), singing, a capella, "Power to the People." Well, not so much today. He has some parliamentary questions, as to when evidence can be presented against him. Pearson says he has served the people for 10 days; was not ever given any rules; and now is told he has "broken the constitution." That doesn't seem like "due process," but we all know the saw about those whom the law protects but does not bind and those whom the law binds but does not protect.

6: 30:Pearson reiterates he did not disrupt any proceedings because the House was innnn recessss. (He's got a pastoral cadence, it's lilting and lovely.)

6: 35:Pearson has some lawyerly invocations of what actually the House rules were, and what the rules say punishments (censure, not expulsion) should be for breaking them. He cites the state constitution. I do not live in Tennessee, and I cannot speak to the amount of racism that exists in the vote to keep white woman Gloria Johnson but expel the young and Black Justin Jones, but it is entirely obvious that she didn't do what she was accused of in their group charges. It will be "interesting" (infuriating) to see how entirely they expel Pearson despite (waves hands around wildly) ALL OF IT.

6: 40:Pearson: "The move for justice can never die because the heart for justice can never be killed." Much crucifixion and Jesus talk, as is seasonally appropriate.

Does Pearson know why he is there, they ask. Indeed he does. Because he used his First Amendment rights to speak for the beautiful humans murdered with an assault weapon.

Nope, not that they say. It's rules of decorum. Pearson is not in fact buying that. He comes from a long line of people seeking justice, he has stood up for people who cannot speak, the House prosecutors are ignoring their own House rules in moving to expel him. He takes full accountability and responsibility for his actions he says, and he wrote a letter saying so because he is speaking for those who cannot, and it is not a crime, it is an obligation and a calling.

THIS ALL HAPPENED DURING FUCKING RECESS he does not say because he is tender and gentle and lovely and not yelling and cussing like a common Wonkette. He does though point out that for all the sobriety and dignity of today's proceedings, and their adherence to rules and such, it's usually a FUCKING CLUSTERFUCK. (Does not say fucking clusterfuck.)

6: 50:Rep. Jesse Chism goes with "he is young and full of beans and just didn't know, let's forgive him" instead of FUCK ALL YALL. Who knows, maybe they will, they already got one, maybe their bloodlust will be sated.

6: 55:Pearson says this is the first day there's been even any semblance of democracy in the Tennessee House since he's been in it.

Rep. Justin Pearson 

He says today is the first day he's heard the voice of the minority, in both ways: the party and he and Jones as young Black men. He takes responsibility for his actions; and he also takes responsibility for the voiceless of his constituents. Hang on, gotta show you an asshole:

An asshole. 

He is pretty pissed that Pearson and Jones MADE HIM expel them, with their "temper tantrum" and attention-seeking, and I have never seen such an abusive dad in my life. Okay Dok's back, I'm out.

7: 02:Dok is back, and OMG Pearson is handling Farmer's snotty tantrum perfectly. "You all heard that. How many of you would want to be spoken to that way?" He's perfectly modulated, and now gets angry, saying that he would far rather be having a debate on ending gun violence than arguing about whether he broke a minor rule. He would rather speak for the dead who will never have a temper tantrum, ever.

This nation was founded by people having a temper tantrum, you.

7: 06:Pearson takes responsibility for his actions, which were in service of his constituents who sent him to the Lege. He knows why he's here. Because he was sent by voters. Adds that if he is expelled, he may not be able to fight for them in the legislature, but he will absolutely keep fighting for his district and for the safety.

7: 10:Rep Bill Beck (D-Nashville) recalls the very different process — with DUE process — in the expulsion of a member a few years ago for sexual harassment. Says maybe some due process would be a good idea in these proceedings.

Beck asks the clerk if there is a House rule requiring representatives be recognized before approaching the well, is told there is not.

7: 12:Here's a clip from the start of Pearson's speech. It's a barn-burner.

“Wow”

— Acyn (@Acyn) 1680821749 

7: 15:After the vote against her failed, Gloria Johnson took some questions from the press. Asked why she thought she survived the expulsion attempt and Justin Jones was booted, she gave an honest answer: "It might have to do with the color of our skin." She got booed.

“Johnson: It might have to do with the color of our skin”

— Acyn (@Acyn) 1680820111 

7: 19:Rep. William Lambeth (R), a slimy fucking bastard, is accusing Pearson of the Deadly Sin of Pride, for having elevated his voice and drowning out everyone else, silencing them, as if he believed he's more important than anyone, more important even than the poor dead children he claimed to speak for?

7: 22:Pearson is not standing for Lambeth's phony emotional appeal, pointing out that Lambeth ignored the kids who came to protest, dismissed them, and was generally an asshole (our words not his).

7: 27:Rep. Torrey Harris (D-Memphis) is basically giving Pearson a pep talk, encouraging him not to give up the fight. He too has been silenced and not heard. He praises Pearson for speaking up, saying that people are now having conversations about guns they wouldn't otherwise have had. He closes with a Bible verse: "Well done, good and faithful servant."

7: 30:Pearson says that the whole point of a legislature is to hear the people who are suffering, not to make them act as if only they are responsible for their trouble. He's wonderful. "Just because you have power doesn't give you the right to abuse it." Democracy won't work if the majority silences the opposition. "This house has not been a place of debate."

7: 37:Rep. David Hawk (R) explains that when he was a new member of the House, he didn't get everything he wanted, and what is with the kids these days? He laments Harris's mention that in the future, many members of the House will be gone from the body, and he's very sad that people outside cheered and laughed, and that is so sad and mean. He was willing to learn the rules, but why are these children so unruly? He's apparently still mad about someone in the media calling him bad names at some point in the past? He is very philosophical, and so thoughtful, and what were those three Democrats even thinking?

7: 42: Pearson doesn't appear to appreciate Rep. Hawk's sufferings. He says that the House is reacting to having its norms challenged, by people demanding justice, by slapping down the dissenters, not rethinking what it's doing. Pearson says that America is changing in wonderful ways, beautiful ways. "I suggest that this chamber change too."

7: 45:Video of Pearson's brilliant reply to Farmer:  

“Rep. @Justinjpearson: “You all heard that. How many of you would want to be spoken to that way?” Pearson responds to Rep. Farmer’s belittling, disrespectful rant. #TennesseeThree”

— The Tennessee Holler (@The Tennessee Holler) 1680822184 

7: 45:Rep. Towns again: We should be in mourning for the lives lost, not pursuing trumped up charges against our members who called for something to be done.

7: 50:Pearson: We have too many guns and a proliferation of gun violence. This expulsion process is taking us away from that reality. If members are just repeating their pat positions, they're not listening to the people. He calls for transformation of attitudes. "It is possible for this body to pass more just laws. It's up to you to decide" whether to pass red flag laws, safe storage laws, something to keep AR-15s out of the hands of people who have no business having them.

7: 55:Debate is closed in an instant vote, and Rep. Pearson gives his last words.

7: 58:Surrounded by Black Democrats, Pearson says that he will keep fighting, points out it's Holy Week, recalls the government lynched Jesus on a cross. I can't possibly summarize. "We are still here and we will never quit." Thunderous applause from the gallery, and Pearson is expelled by a 69- 26 vote. We're looking for video for you.

8: 05:As the crowd in the galleries chants "Shame on you! Shame on you!" the House adjourns until Monday. What a disgusting display of raw, cynical, indifferent power. I'd like to believe this might just repel enough people that it'll shake something loose in Tennessee voters. I'm also certain the racist memes are already flying all over Twitter.

“The reaction, as members walk out of chamber”

— David Weigel (@David Weigel) 1680791256 

Here are a couple of excerpts of Pearson's final speech. We'll replace them when we find a copy of the whole thing.

“Powerful speech by Pearson”

— Acyn (@Acyn) 1680825722 

“Pearson: We will never quit”

— Acyn (@Acyn) 1680825952 

And that's it for our liveblog tonight. Thank you for sticking with us all day; this was history being made. If you can, please help us keep this thing running with a monthly donation of $5 or $10.

 Also, housekeeping: once you're all done discussing today's travesty of justice, please remember that the open thread is here, without all the Disqus burps that happen to a long livebloog! Goodnight, friends. 

 Do your Amazon shopping through this link, because reasons .