Caucus Chairman Cameron Sexton (left) and Majority Leader William Lamberth address reporters after the no-confidence vote
The House Republican Caucus delivered Speaker Glen Casada his latest blow in recent weeks when the group voted 45-24 on a resolution stating that it had no confidence in Casada's leadership.
The first-year House leader will not step down following the vote, held in a closed meeting at the 21c Museum Hotel in downtown Nashville.
“I’m disappointed in the results of today’s caucus vote,” Casada said in a statement. “However, I will work the next few months to regain the confidence of my colleagues so we can continue to build on the historic conservative accomplishments of this legislative session.”
Republican Gov. Bill Lee, who had previously declined to weigh in on whether he thought Casada should resign, said after the meeting he was “prepared to call a special session if the speaker doesn’t resign.”
Casada’s troubles began on the final day of the first year of this legislative session, earlier this month, when NewsChannel 5 published screenshots of text messages in which Casada’s chief of staff, Cade Cothren, insulted black people and used a racial slur. Additionally, the news report suggested that Casada’s office may have intentionally submitted false information about a black activist in order to have his bond revoked, though Casada has blamed a technical glitch for the alleged miscommunication.
The Tennessean published more text messages the following week, in which Cothren and Casada explicitly discussed different women. The House Democratic Caucus and the Tennessee Black Caucus of State Legislators both called for Casada to resign his leadership post, and nearly a dozen Republicans ultimately followed suit.
But the Monday vote was the strongest sign yet that Casada’s at-times ironfisted grasp over the caucus is waning, possible leaving him among the shortest-serving speakers in state history. Majority Leader William Lamberth and Caucus Chairman Cameron Sexton would not tell reporters how they voted on the no-confidence resolution, but both later issued statements asking Casada to resign or Lee to call a special session.
“We now know how a majority of members of the Republican caucus feel about the allegations that have been made,” Lamberth added.
Tennessee Republican Party Chairman Scott Golden said the Casada situation has been a distraction.
“It is time for the speaker to heed the advice of the majority of his fellow legislators and step down from his position of leadership and allow someone else to begin the process of restoring the trust of all Tennesseans,” he said in a statement.
Golden wasn’t alone among Republican leaders in calling for Casada to resign as speaker. Senate Speaker Randy McNally said before the caucus vote that he thought Casada should step down.
Following the vote, Lamberth took to Twitter to call for Casada to resign and for Lee to call a special session. “There is no place in either the House Republican Caucus, in the House, or in the legislature, or anywhere in which any type of sexist or racist or inappropriate remarks are going to be permitted,” Lamberth told reporters. “He apologized. Sometimes sorry is not enough, depending on what the behavior is. ... I appreciated hearing that.”
