logo
episode-header-image
Jun 2024
48m 51s

Supermajority: The Covenant Moms

NPR
About this episode
In 2023, a mass shooter attacked The Covenant School, a private Christian school in Nashville, Tennessee, and three mothers were compelled to act. Their mission: help pass some kind of gun control in one of the reddest states in the country, a state where the Republican Party has a supermajority in the legislature. But these women aren't your typical gun control activists. They're lifelong conservatives, believers in the Second Amendment and – at first – sure that their own party will understand their concerns. In episode 1 of Supermajority from NPR's Embedded, host Meribah Knight follows the women as they enter the state capitol for the first time in their adult lives. Will these political newcomers get what they came for? And what happens if they challenge those in power to do it? To listen to this series sponsor-free and support NPR, sign up for Embedded+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy
Up next
Jun 2024
Supermajority: The Roll Call
It's been four months since the Covenant moms – lifelong conservatives Melissa Alexander, Mary Joyce and Sarah Shoop Neumann – pleaded with their lawmakers to pass gun control measures during a special session at the Tennessee statehouse. Now they're back – for months, not days – ... Show More
48m 5s
Jul 2024
Supermajority: A Common-Sense Caucus
Melissa Alexander came to the Tennessee statehouse to convince members of the Republican party – her party – to adopt gun control measures after a mass shooting at her son's school. A year later, she doesn't feel like she's gotten through to many lawmakers. But there's at least o ... Show More
39m 47s
Jul 2024
Supermajority: The Could-Be Candidate
The end of the 113th General Assembly of Tennessee is fast approaching. Melissa Alexander, Mary Joyce and Sarah Shoop Neumann have reached a new stage in their understanding of the statehouse. But they also face a new challenge: how to square their long-held conservative beliefs ... Show More
50m 15s
Recommended Episodes
Sep 2020
A World Where The NRA Is Soft On Guns
One of the same far-right groups behind this spring's anti-quarantine protests also plays a big role in a burgeoning "No Compromise" gun rights movement. Its members see the NRA as too amenable to gun control measures. Two reporters begin their journey to understand the Dorr Brot ... Show More
32m 52s
Aug 2025
How gerrymandering became a blood sport
Fights over Congressional maps never used to be this intense. On Tuesday, Texas Republicans voted to issue civil arrest warrants for Democrats who fled the state.The GOP is trying to redraw house districts, and the proposed new map could give Republicans as many as five more Hous ... Show More
8m 41s
Sep 2025
LEMON DROP | Is The GOP Trying To Take Guns?!
For decades, Republicans have treated the Second Amendment like it was carved into stone tablets, sacred, untouchable, and immune to compromise. But apparently, there’s a loophole: being transgender. Donald Trump’s GOP, the same party that cheers open carry in churches and defend ... Show More
16m 53s
Oct 2020
A One-Man Propaganda Band
In Episode 6: A battle for the GOP in Idaho. Plus: "confrontational politics." What it is and how the Dorr brothers are popularizing it. And an unexpected update about the Dorr family.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorshi ... Show More
49m 52s
Jan 2025
Why Do Texas Republicans Give the Democrats Power?
Texas is a red state with a strongly Republican legislature and voted for Trump by 14 points. So why do many state GOP leaders work in concert with Democrats to keep moderates in control of the state? Texas GOP Chair Abraham George explains the crucial power struggle in Texas tha ... Show More
34m 48s
Nov 2024
Why Abortion Rights Won Even as Kamala Harris Lost
<p>Last Tuesday, voters across the country approved measures to protect abortion rights, while rejecting the presidential candidate who claimed to champion those same rights.</p><p>Kate Zernike, who covers the issue for The Times, explains that gap and what it tells us about the ... Show More
25m 25s
Jul 2022
"Bennifer Getting Married" w. Hayley Kiyoko
Ira, Louis, and guest host Bolu Babalola discuss Bennifer's wedding, Anne Hathway's celebrity rebrand, Love Island, The Gray Man, the monkeypox vaccine rollout, and more. Plus, Hayley Kiyoko joins to discuss her new album Panorama and what it takes to be vulnerable as a pop star. ... Show More
1h 4m
Jul 2021
Texas Democrats fight back
<p>Texas Democrats fled the state to block Republicans from passing a voter suppression bill and finally held a highly-anticipated meeting with Joe Manchin. Brian interviews one of the Texas Democrats himself, James Talarico, about his viral interview with a Fox News host, his re ... Show More
44m 33s
Dec 2021
Democrats finally show teeth, take on Texas bounty law
<p>Gavin Newsom moves to take on the Texas bounty law banning abortion, what the likely outcome will be and what other Democrats should do moving forward. Brian interviews the US Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy about the new omicron variant, the dangers posed by those who refuse ... Show More
44m 44s