Despite a SHOCKING AUDIT & WITNESS TESTIMONY revealing TN’S PRISONS/CORE CIVIC misreport deaths/abuse, mistreat inmates – Core Civic donation recipient Sen. Kerry Roberts & the TN GOP vote to do nothing, extend the Dept 4 years.
Watch the HIGHLIGHTS:
On Fox Nashville’s Politics in Focus Sunday, Republican strategist and Trump 2020 Davidson County Co-Chair Rick Williams came out against private prisons, which flies in the face of Republican policy.
WATCH: “Keeping Prisoners Should be Done BY GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES”
Davidson “Trump 2020” Co-Chair @ricknashlimo comes out AGAINST private prisons (!) on @FOXNashville’s Politics in Focus.
FULL: https://t.co/Wf199aECbR @HarrietvWallace @jlhthe3rd @BillRPhillips1 @chrisjollyhale pic.twitter.com/DqxBJq9q16
— The Tennessee Holler (@TheTNHoller) January 1, 2020
ALSO – Davidson Democrats black caucus chair Jasper Hendricks wondered aloud why private prisons get more per inmate than state-run prisons. A good question.
WATCH: “CORE CIVIC gets $66/inmate. If @NashSheriff Hall ran the jail he‘s only get $37. WHY?? —- @CoreCivic has a suite @Titans STADIUM.” @jlhthe3rd posing good Q’s about private prisons in TN & lack of accountability on “Politics In Focus”. @FOXNashville @HarrietvWallace pic.twitter.com/yyqdpHTvJv
— The Tennessee Holler (@TheTNHoller) January 1, 2020
Tell your local reps it’s time to stop letting people profit off of the incarceration of human beings, especially at the border. President Trump has increased the investment in private prisons tremendously, as has the state of Tennessee under Governor Bill Lee.
Tennessee is finally taking a provision that seemed to allow slavery in its prisons out of the constitution, while still allowing inmates to work by choice.
As Rep. Joe Towns says, this probably should’ve been done a long time ago.
Watch the VIDEO:
According to the Daily Memphian:
Rep. Joe Towns was “shocked” a few years ago when he found out slavery still exists in Article I Section 33 of the state Constitution, which tracks the U.S. 13th Amendment and narrows the category of slaves to those convicted of a crime.
“It was deliberately left in the Constitution. That’s still a dig in the wound, the sore wound of enslaved people or prisoners of war, however you want to term it, 150 years since (the Emancipation Proclamation),” Towns said in an interview this week. “It shouldn’t be there, not in a democracy we tout ourselves to be around the world. It never should have been there, and it should not be there.”
Towns passed a resolution 95-0 on the House floor in 2018 to remove references to slavery and involuntary servitude from the Tennessee Constitution. But the measure’s Senate companion failed to start moving in that chamber soon enough to be considered before the Legislature adjourned.
Said Towns: “Just like we’re doing certain cold cases, we’re trying to clean up some of this stuff that’s not been purged and gotten rid of and brought into modern thinking. It’s just something that should not exist.”
The senate bill was carried by state Sen. Raumesh Akbari, a Memphis Democrat.
In an interview with The Tennessean’s “Grand Divisions” podcast about Criminal Justice reform, Tennessee Republican House Majority Leader William Lamberth was asked about the possibility of decriminalizing marijuana here in Tennessee. These types of questions have been popular in this political campaign because of the legalization of marijuana in Canada, the popularity of stores like cannabudpost and Buy My Weed Online, and the reported benefits it’s having on their economy. If you would like to find out more about a successful Canadian vendor, you may wish to click here to get info. Along with weed itself, products like bongs, dab rigs, and bubblers are also selling at an extremely fast rate, making the cannabis industry as a whole a way to make good money and improve the economy. Due to the increased popularity in both the medicinal and recreational marijuana industries, there is an increased need for businesses to advertise for cannabis jobs to ensure that they can keep up with the growing demand for its products and services. Not only will it help decrease the rates of unemployment, but it can also help to build up the economy. With online sites similar to Fat Buddha Glass selling items like bongs and dab rigs, the online accessibility of products like these color changing pipes makes sales even easier. So, with such an important question being asked, you’d think Lamberth would have a good answer ready to give. But, instead, he gave some head-scratching answers.
First he was asked about Private Prisons, and whether or not they’re a good thing for Tennessee. He made it very clear he believes they are, and that the widely-discussed issues lie with state lawmakers and the policies they set.
“Private prisons are not the problem. The problem needs to be solved in the legislature.”
The Tennessean then went on to ask Lamberth whether or not he supported decriminalizing marijuana, which overwhelmingly affects the African-American community, after waxing poetic about “personal accountability” the House Majority Leader dropped this gem:
“Legalizing certain drugs is a really dangerous road to go down. If you just start legalizing behavior, we have states that have legalized prostitution, certain drugs… you can’t legalize your way out of a criminal issues.”
“You can’t legalize your way out of criminal issues.” There’s one to chew on.
As a reminder, drinking alcohol was once illegal in Tennessee. (Also, the sale of it still is in 10 counties)- But Lamberth gets donations from the Malt Beverage Association, so they’re probably safe.
Holler at Lamberth HERE.