Enough Is Enough TN PAC is a political action committee that targets largely Republican men accused of sexual assault in Tennessee. Enough Is Enough TN PAC is affiliated with the nationwide organization Enough Is Enough Voter Project launched by Michele Dauber, a Stanford Law School professor and prominent figure in the #MeToo movement. ¹

Enough is Enough TN PAC is primarily focused on advocating for the removal of Tennessee State Representative David Byrd (R-Waynesboro) over accusations that he sexually abused teenage girls as a high school girls basketball coach in the 1980s. Several of the PAC’s protestors have been arrested during demonstrations at the state capitol over Byrd’s refusal to resign. ²

Enough is Enough TN solicits public donations on its website, processing payments using the ActBlue platform for Democratic fundraising, the same platform used by the Enough Is Enough Voter Project. ³

Founding and Key People

The national Enough Is Enough Voter Project was launched in September 2018 by Michele Dauber, the Stanford Law School professor who led the successful effort to recall former San Francisco judge Aaron Persky for his allegedly lenient sentencing of Stanford swimmer Brock Turner who was convicted of offenses related to sexually assaulting an incapacitated woman. ⁴ According to the Stanford Daily, the Enough Is Enough Voter Project “aims to end the careers of politicians who have been accused of sexual misconduct.” ⁵ Dauber listed five initial targets, including David Byrd in Tennessee. As of 2019, the targets have expanded beyond politicians accused of misconduct to those not supportive of left-of-center social policy, most prominently U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX). ⁶

The launch of Enough Is Enough TN PAC was announced in September 2018 by Tennessee State Representative Sherry Jones (D-Nashville), who was also listed as the group’s treasurer. ⁷ The Enough is Enough TN PAC website features the same branding as the Enough Is Enough Voter Project website, though it does not mention its affiliation.

Sherry Jones is a Democratic politician in Tennessee who represented the Nashville-based District 59 in the Tennessee House of Representatives from 1994 to 2018. ⁸  While serving in the State House and also running for Davidson County Juvenile Court Clerk in 2018, Jones was accused of violating state law after using public funds to send a letter touting her candidacy for the clerkship. She later reimbursed the state $2,400. She lost her race for the clerkship and no longer serves in public office. ⁹

While the donation page on Enough Is Enough TN PAC’s website continues to list Sherry Jones as treasurer, the homepage now lists Emily Tseffos as treasurer. ¹⁰ Tseffos’ LinkedIn profile describes her as a community organizer and lists her start date with Enough is Enough TN as September 2018. ¹¹

Advocacy against David Byrd

While Enough Is Enough TN PAC was originally launched with the broad focus of targeting any Tennessee lawmaker accused of sexual misconduct, it has so far focused almost exclusively on opposing State Representative David Byrd (R-Waynesboro). Its Twitter handle is “@stopbyrd” and its website features posts on Byrd and his allies. ¹²

Despite being unsuccessful in its attempts to defeat Representative Byrd in the 2018 elections, it has vowed to try again to defeat him in 2020 or have him expelled sooner. ¹³ In its efforts to have him expelled, Enough is Enough targeted then-House Speaker Glen Casada for remaining a staunch supporter of Representative Byrd. ¹⁴

The PAC submitted a formal complaint accusing Speaker Casada of violating ethics laws by authorizing his political fundraising group to pay for Facebook ads supporting Representative Byrd without disclosing the group’s financial involvement in the campaign. Speaker Casada called the accusations “frivolous.” ¹⁵

Enough is Enough also paid for a billboard on Interstate 65 in Nashville that read “Speaker Glen Casada Protects Abusers” and urged the Tennessee Republican Party to “do the right thing” by removing Casada and Byrd from office. ¹⁶

Ultimately, Speaker Casada asked Representative Byrd to step down as chairman of the House’s education administration subcommittee, saying that his chairmanship had become “a distraction.” ¹⁷ Later, Speaker Casada himself resigned as speaker.

Enough Is Enough TN PAC then went on to launch a billboard campaigns against Casada’s replacement, State House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R-Crossville), again urging the expulsion of Representative Byrd. ¹⁸

1. “Impact – David Byrd.” EnoughisEnoughVoter.org. Accessed October 4, 2019. https://enoughisenoughvoter.org/impact/
2. Baker, Jackson. “Byrd Protesters Arrested at Capitol, but Aren’t Deterred.” The Nashville Scene. April 18, 2019. Accessed October 7, 2019. https://www.nashvillescene.com/news/pith-in-the-wind/article/21065076/byrd-protesters-arrested-at-capitol-but-arent-deterred
3. “Help Us Stop Byrd.” Enough is Enough TN PAC. Accessed October 5, 2019. https://secure.actblue.com/donate/enough-is-enough-tn-pac-1
4. Dastagir, Alia E. “Survivor in the Brock Turner Rape Case Has Revealed Her Identity.” USA Today. Gannett Satellite Information Network, September 4, 2019. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2019/09/04/brock-turner-stanford-rape-case-chanel-miller-survivor-emily-doe/2207106001/.
5. Woo, Erin. “Dauber announces PAC aimed at political candidates facing allegations of sexual misconduct, sporting records undermining women’s issues.” The Stanford Daily. September 27, 2018. Accessed October 4, 2019. https://www.stanforddaily.com/2018/09/27/dauber-announces-pac-aimed-at-political-candidates-facing-allegations-of-sexual-misconduct-sporting-records-undermining-womens-issues/
6. “Impact – David Byrd.” EnoughisEnoughVoter.org. Accessed October 4, 2019. https://enoughisenoughvoter.org/impact/
7. Ebert, Joel. “New PAC targets Tennessee lawmakers facing sexual misconduct allegations. First up, Rep. David Byrd.” Sept. 27, 2018. Accessed October 7, 2019. https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/politics/2018/09/27/pac-targets-tennessee-lawmakers-facing-sexual-misconduct-allegations-first-up-rep-david-byrd/1442400002/
8. “Sherry Jones.” Ballotpedia. Accessed October 4, 2019. https://ballotpedia.org/Sherry_Jones
9. Garrison, Joey. “Tennessee Rep. Sherry Jones likely violated law with campaign email, reimburses state.” April 27, 2018. https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/2018/04/27/tennessee-rep-sherry-jones-likely-violated-law-state-funded-campaign-email/553647002/
10. “Help Us Stop Byrd.” Enough is Enough TN PAC. Accessed October 5, 2019. https://secure.actblue.com/donate/enough-is-enough-tn-pac-1
11. LinkedIn profile for Emeily Tseffos. Accessed October 1, 2019. https://www.linkedin.com/in/emily-tseffos-39911099/
12. “Enough Is Enough TN twitter profile.” Accessed October 4, 2019. https://twitter.com/stopbyrd?lang=en
13. “Byrd Must GO.” EnoughIsEnoughTN.com. Accessed October 4, 2019. https://www.enoughisenoughtn.com/
14. Allison, Natalie. “’If I was raped, I would move’: Speaker Glen Casada doubles down on support of Rep. David Byrd.” February 19, 2019. Accessed October 7, 2019. https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/politics/2019/02/19/tennessee-house-speaker-defends-rep-david-byrd-accused-sexual-assault-if-i-was-raped-i-would-move/2915021002/
15. Martínez-Beltrán, Sergio. “Complaint Claims Tennessee House Speaker Glen Casada Violated Campaign Laws.” Nashville Public Radio. May 16, 2019. Accessed October 7, 2019. https://www.nashvillepublicradio.org/post/complaint-claims-tennessee-house-speaker-glen-casada-violated-campaign-laws#stream/0
16. Mojica, Adrian. “Tennessee organization launches billboard calling for legislator to be removed by GOP.” Fox 17 Nashville. May 22, 2019.Accessed October 7, 2019. https://fox17.com/news/local/tennessee-organization-launches-billboard-calling-for-legislator-to-be-removed-by-gop
17. Mojica, Adrian. “Tennessee lawmaker accused of inappropriate contact out as Chair of subcommittee.” Fox 17 Nashville. March 28, 2019. Accessed October 7, 2019. https://fox17.com/news/local/tennessee-lawmaker-accused-of-inappropriate-contact-out-as-chair-of-subcommittee
18. Facebook post from Enough Is Enough TN. August 22, 2019. Accessed October 4, 2019. https://www.facebook.com/enoughisenoughtennessee/