A West Virginia school bus driver who was placed on leave for attending Donald Trump’s rally on January 6 has announced that she is running for Jefferson County Circuit Clerk.
Bus drivers Tina Renner and Pam McDonald were suspended from their jobs as Jefferson County School Superintendent Bondy Shay Gibson launched an investigation into their attendance at the rally.
Speaking to the Gateway Pundit, Renner said that they were banned from school property for going to a “deadly rally” and that they were informed that the school board would be holding a meeting to determine their termination or potential disciplinary actions. They were also told not to tell anyone about it.
“I just went down to my knees because I had thought I lost my job,” Renner said.
The drivers ended up suing Gibson.
“Five or six of the women walked together and watched President Trump’s speech on a big TV,” John H. Bryan, the attorney for the women, told The West Virginia Record. “They walked to the Reflecting Pool at the National Mall. One of the women was tired and cold, so she ended up sitting on some steps at the reflective pool. The other walked a little closer to the U.S. Capitol, but neither one of them was that close to the Capitol.”
The drivers did not enter any restricted areas.
The lawsuit pointed out that Gibson is “a known anti-Trump, left-wing activist” who “instructed school employees to engage in surveillance of the social media accounts of Jefferson County Schools employees to see if any of them attended the rally.”
Additionally, the complaint pointed out that teacher Grant H. Prillaman, “occupied” Senator Joe Manchin’s office at the U.S. Capitol on February 14, 2019, and was arrested by Capitol Police for blocking doors and hallways, according to the Record. Gibson took no disciplinary action against him.
“The reason (Gibson) did not do so to Prillaman is because she agrees with Prillaman’s left-wing politics and activism, whereas she does not personally agree with the plaintiffs’ support of President Donald Trump,” the complaint stated. They also alleged that the superintendent had leaked the story about the drivers attending the rally to local media.
The lawsuit was ultimately settled out of court.
Last week, Renner filed to run for office after seeing the outpouring of support for her during her battle with the school district.
In a Facebook post on her campaign page, Renner wrote “The past two years have been difficult for all of us. I’m sure that there’s not a single person in Jefferson County who hasn’t been affected in some way by COVID-19, but I believe that our experiences have made us stronger and that it’s now time to move forward. This includes ending mask mandates and returning to in-person, face-to-face meetings.”
Renner promised to end mask mandates, which are still in place in Jefferson County Schools and government buildings.
“As you know, some of our elected officials have become petty tyrants and have used COVID-19 as an excuse to exert unnecessary control over their employees and the public. As your Circuit Clerk, I promise to work with the Jefferson County Commission to remove all mandates and restrictions enacted by my opponent in response to COVID-19,” the post continued.
“I realize that not many people look forward to a trip to the courthouse but as Circuit Clerk I will do my best to make all of your experiences with the Jefferson County Court system as pleasant as possible.”
Renner told TGP, “I want to change that building to be more inviting. I think you should be treated with respect. The people coming into the courthouse are the people who pay your salary. I’m not sure who put up signs saying ‘no mask, no entry,’ but that’s not how you treat people.”
“I was going to get through it, Lord willing, and he led me in the right direction to run for office,” Renner said.