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A Tennessee Democrat pushed a state trooper and screamed in his face as tempers flared when lawmakers gathered to approve new Republican-backed congressional maps on Thursday.<\/p>\n
Tennessee state Rep. Justin Pearson (D), known for his tirades<\/a> against the state\u2019s conservative majority and his shapeshifting personality<\/a>, got into a confrontation with state troopers who were attempting to secure the state capitol as leftist protesters converged on the area. In a video captured by ABC\u2019s Nashville affiliate WKRN, state troopers appeared to be attempting to detain a man when Pearson stepped in and shoved the trooper\u2019s arm away.<\/p>\n \u201cMove the f*ck back!\u201d Pearson shouted as he stared down the law enforcement officer.<\/p>\n The state trooper backed away and held his arms in the air as Pearson continued to berate him and call him \u201cboy.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat the f*ck is wrong with you?\u201d Pearson screamed. \u201cWhat the f*ck is wrong with you? You stupid motherf*cker!\u201d<\/p>\n Warning: explicit language<\/p>\n Rep. Pearson came to the gallery as troopers appeared to arrest a demonstrator. There\u2019s a heated exchange. pic.twitter.com\/Dq76zVrTtW<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Tori Gessner (@ToriGessnerTV) May 7, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Pearson\u2019s meltdown\u00a0occurred just before Tennessee Republicans\u00a0voted<\/a> on Thursday to approve new congressional maps <\/span>that will likely wipe out the Democrats\u2019 only U.S. House seat in the state. Republican Governor Bill Lee signed the bill into law shortly after the vote. The special session in Tennessee\u2019s capital was quickly organized after the Supreme Court ruled that certain majority-black districts put in place by the Voting Rights Act amounted to unconstitutional racial gerrymandering.<\/p>\n During the special session, hundreds of protesters entered the state capitol and claimed that state Republicans were enacting \u201cJim Crow 2.0\u201d and \u201cModern Apartheid.\u201d Another video captured by WKRN showed leftist protesters refusing to leave the Capitol building after state troopers began clearing the gallery.<\/p>\n Some protestors are now refusing to leave and chanting in the gallery. pic.twitter.com\/uYtLGiltOq<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Tori Gessner (@ToriGessnerTV) May 7, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Rep. Steve Cohen, who currently serves the lone Democratic district in Tennessee that has been upended by the new map, accused<\/a> Republicans of \u201cenforc[ing] a racial gerrymander of Memphis.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cTrump knows he HAS TO rig the game to keep his majority in November. And the TN GOP was willing to go along with it. It\u2019s shameful. Next stop is the courts,\u201d Cohen added.<\/p>\n Republican state leaders celebrated the vote as the party will likely boast a 9-0 advantage in Tennessee\u2019s Congressional delegation come November.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a great day for Tennessee! Thank you to President [Donald Trump] for leading the charge, Governor [Bill Lee], and to the legislators who worked quickly and diligently to make this possible,\u201d Blackburn posted on X. \u201cThis is how we cement President Trump\u2019s agenda and usher in America\u2019s Golden Age here in Tennessee, and how we become America\u2019s conservative leader.\u201d<\/p>\n Leif Le Mahieu contributed to this report.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n
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