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Tennessee Reps. Jones and Pearson each haul in nearly $1.1M, capitalizing on brief expulsion
Reps. Justin Jones and Justin Pearson raised $1.8 million collectively in their week-long absence from the state House after Republicans expelled them over protests about gun violence. The removal of Jones, D-Nashville, and Pearson, D-Memphis, allowed the two freshman lawmakers to raise money during the legislative session, which is normally banned. Jones raised $1,079,688.86 over […]
Harm of anti-LGBTQ laws includes economic pain for communities, families
Roberto Che Espinoza had been thinking about leaving Tennessee after the 2024 election, but in June they noticed that the state attorney general was seeking medical records on gender-affirming medical care, which Espinoza, a nonbinary transgender man, said included their own records. “Being on any kind of list … I knew after the release of […]
Appeals court temporarily reinstates Tennessee ban on transgender youth care
Editors note: This story has been updated to include additional reactions to the appeals court decision. A federal appeals court has temporarily reinstated Tennessee’s law barring gender-affirming medical care for transgender minors, allowing a recently enacted ban on treatments that include puberty blockers and surgery to take immediate effect. In a divided opinion, the three-judge […]
Nashville Pride 2023
Thousands celebrated the rights of LGBTQ Tennesseans on Saturday and Sunday in Nashville, including First Lady Jill Biden, who spoke to crowds on Bicentennial Mall in the shadow of Tennessee’s Capitol. “We know there are those who wish to undo the hard-won progress that this community has made and tomorrow we will brave those battles […]
AG made sweeping demands for Vanderbilt transgender clinic records as part of fraud inquiry
Editors note: This story was updated Thursday to include an additional response from Vanderbilt University Medical Center. New details about the state attorney general’s inquiry into gender-affirming care at Vanderbilt University Medical Center reveal a sweeping demand for documents at all levels of care, from patient records to volunteers’ resumes, communications with outside therapists […]
Alive Hospice CEO steps down after pushback over rumored sale to for-profit health provider
Kimberly Goessele, chief executive officer of Alive Hospice, has stepped down from her role in leading the nonprofit, the organization said in a news release issued Thursday evening. Alive Chief Operating Officer Joe Hampe has been named interim CEO, the release said. “Goessele will continue to support the organization for several weeks to ensure a […]
Environmental groups sue Tennessee Valley Authority over proposed new power plant
A trio of environmental groups has filed suit against the Tennessee Valley Authority, claiming the utility violated federal law by failing to properly evaluate climate, environmental and financial impacts of a proposed new gas-fired plant in Cumberland City, Tenn. The lawsuit, filed Wednesday in a Nashville federal court, also claims that TVA quietly inked a […]
T.J. Ducklo, Nashville mayor’s communication head, to join Biden 2024 team
Three years after stepping down as White House deputy press secretary, T.J. Ducklo is returning to President Joe Biden’s team as a communications advisor to his 2024 re-election campaign. On Friday, Biden’s campaign confirmed to the Lookout Ducklo, 34, will serve as Senior Advisor for Communications to the campaign, which is expected to be based […]
D.C. spending standoff ahead as U.S. House Republicans demand $130 billion in cuts
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans outlined Wednesday how they would cut $130 billion from the dozen annual government funding bills — producing a plan with significantly lower spending than the level both parties agreed to in the debt limit deal just two weeks ago. The spending levels likely set up a stalemate later this year […]
Judge sets Thursday deadline on state to answer subpoena in Cothren case
U.S. District Court Judge Eli Richardson set a Thursday deadline for federal prosecutors to respond to the defense’s request for a pre-trial subpoena of House Speaker Cameron Sexton’s communication records in the corruption case against former chief of staff Cade Cothren, court records show. Cothren, who is under indictment on bribery and kickback charges, claims […]
University of Tennessee report quantifies the staggering costs of child abuse
A new report attempts to tally the staggering economic costs of child abuse and neglect in Tennessee, where an estimated one in eight children will have been found to suffer abuse or neglect by the time they reach the age of 18. Child abuse costs the state between $3 and $5 billion each year, a […]
Nashville’s Alive Hospice to remain nonprofit
Alive Hospice will remain a nonprofit, the Nashville hospice organization announced through its board of directors on Tuesday. Following is the announcement, sent in an email from its director of communications and marketing, Liz Haas: “The Alive Board of Directors has determined that Alive will remain a not-for-profit, independent organization providing hospice, palliative care and […]