Tennessee House expels two Democrats in historic act of partisan retaliation  —  NASHVILLE — The Republican-led Tennessee House voted Thursday to expel two Democratic lawmakers who halted proceedings last week to join protesters demanding gun-control legislation after a mass killing.

Statement from President Joe Biden on Expulsion of Tennessee Lawmakers for Acting on Gun Safety  —  Last week, three more students and three school officials were gunned down in yet another tragic mass shooting in Nashville.  On Monday, 7,000 Tennesseans, many of them students …

Playbook: McCarthy searches for a scapegoat  —  Presented by With help from Eli Okun and Garrett Ross  —  DRIVING THE DAY  —  EYES ON NASHVILLE — Yesterday, we watched in real time as a procedural issue in a state legislature blossomed into a national flashpoint on guns, free speech, race and democracy itself.

The Stupidity.  It Burns.  —  The Deplorables of the Week  —  We'll get to the rest of the week's worst actors in a moment, but can we talk about what just happened in Tennessee?  —  In a fit of partisan pique, Republicans used their super majority to expel two young African American state legislators.

Abortion, Trump and Swing Voters  —  Democrats are happily watching from the sidelines as the Republican Party continues to be defined by two issues that turn off swing voters: Donald Trump and abortion.  —  The more Trump is in the news, the better for Democrats.

Lawmakers Call for Investigation and Ethics Reforms in Response to ProPublica Report on Clarence Thomas  —  Influential Democratic legislators are pushing for changes at the Supreme Court and a probe into Thomas' undisclosed luxury trips provided by powerful conservative donor Harlan Crow.

Clarence Thomas has reported receiving only two gifts since 2004  —  Eighteen years ago, the Los Angeles Times detailed how Thomas had reported receiving thousands of dollars' worth of gifts — far more than the other justices on the Supreme Court at the time.