This America, to expel voices of opposition and dissent is a signal of authoritarianism,

and it is very dangerous.

And I hope that as a nation watches, that we put this light on Tennessee to say that this

should sound the alarm across a nation that we're entering to very

dangerous territory.

That was one of two Democrats in Tennessee who was just expelled after participating in a gun

violence protest on the floor of the State House.

We'll have much more on this partisan punishment just ahead.

Meanwhile, on Capitol Hill, one of Donald Trump's most vocal allies in Congress

sends a subpoena to a former prosecutor in the Manhattan District Attorney's Office.

We'll explain why this move may backfire on Jim Jordan.

And we'll dig into a bombshell report exposing years of lavish vacations taken by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.

All paid for by a GOP mega donor.

All right, good morning and welcome to way too early on this Friday, April 7th.

I am Sam Stein.

And for the irreplaceable Jonathan Lemire, Republican legislators in Tennessee voted yesterday to expel two black Democrats from the statehouse over their protests on the chamber floor against gun violence last week.

Now, such protests on the floor are forbidden under House rules.

Dubbed the Tennessee 3, Democratic representatives Justin Pearson and Justin Jones were expelled from the body,

while Representative Gloria Johnson, who is white, survived expulsion by a single vote.

Here's what Jones in Pearson had to say before their expulsion votes.

What we see today is a lynch mob assembled to not lynch me, but our democratic process.

We called for you all to ban assault weapons, and you respond with an assault on democracy.

...