Remember back in 1995, when GOP Assemblywoman Doris Allen denied her fellow Republicans control of the Assembly by allowing the Democrats to make her Assembly Speaker?

The same thing has has happened to Tennessee Republicans, per today’s Political Diary:

Tennessee Republicans may soon find out if the public thinks a willingness to relinquish political power on principle is a reason that Republicans ought to be trusted with more power down the road. In effect, the Tennessee GOP has denied itself the speakership of the State House by kicking the speaker out of the Republican Party.

Here’s the backstory: In November, the GOP won control of both houses of the state legislature for the first time since Reconstruction. That victory was one of the few bright spots for Republicans across the country in 2008 and seemed to set the stage for a GOP resurgence and possible capture of the governor’s mansion in 2010. Then, on Jan. 13, the wheels started to come off. Republicans had rallied behind Rep. Jason Mumpower for House Speaker, and he appeared to be a lock as late as the morning of the vote, when every House Republican prayed together. When it came time to vote, however, it became clear that GOP Rep. Kent Williams had cut a secret deal with Democrats to elevate himself with unanimous support from across the aisle to the Speaker’s chair. Mr. Williams was booed in the process, with at least one person shouting out "Judas," but he was unfazed, telling a reporter that he had "been booed before." He went ahead and organized the House chamber, splitting committee chairmanships between Democrats and Republicans.

But then came another twist: allegations of sexual harassment against Mr. Williams. In a memo circulating among Republicans, he was accused of having approached GOP Rep. Susan Lynn and told her he would give a week’s salary to see her naked. In another incident he allegedly came up behind Ms. Lynn and gave her a tight embrace. Both complaints were referred to the House ethics committee in recent weeks, which declined to take them up.

This week, Republicans took matters into their own hands. In a move that forced the party to give up control of the House, Republicans voted to boot Mr. Williams from the GOP. "The politically expedient thing to do would be to overlook whatever he’s done," GOP Chairwoman Robin Smith said in explaining the decision to oust Mr. Williams. "We’re either going to stand for something or we’re no different from Kent Williams."

California Republlicans were able to solve the problem by recalling Doris Allen. I wonder if Tennessee have recourse to the recall process?

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 11th, 2009 at 12:00 am and is filed under Blog Posts.