Letter: Republican Party showing despotic tendencies (original) (raw)

June 2, 2026, 3:39 p.m. ET

To the Editor:

The recent Supreme Court misruling on the Voting Rights Act does not just affect people of color, but Tennesseans and Americans of all political leanings. This is a clear affront to the intent of the U.S. and Tennessee Constitutions. The Republican Party is trying to ensure that there’s only one political party in this state, only one set of ideas to consider in our political discourse. This is no different than Russia, China, Iran, and many (too many!) other despotic countries; it is hallmark of dictatorships.

Are we, at our country’s 250th birthday, now to lose the benefits of democracy? The Republican push to redistrict is not honest, it is cheating. And that illustrates what the Republican Party has become: the voice of fraud, lies, and cheats.

Chris Wieland

Oak Ridge