Members of the Chatham County Republican Party apparently had an unsuccessful convention last weekend in Savannah as witnesses said a rift between pro-Trumpers and the party establishment provoked a shouting match that ended business prematurely.
These events transpired at a restaurant last Saturday.
The Georgia Star News made repeated attempts this week to interview Chatham County GOP Chair Don Hodges and party official Carl Smith for their perspectives. Those attempts ended unsuccessfully.
Robert Taylor, who said he belongs to the GOP’s pro-Trump wing, said the fracas began when people realized they couldn’t nominate new officers from the floor.
“They didn’t want any of us conservative people to have anything to do with this,” Taylor said, adding the people in charge were Republicans-in-Name-Only (RINOs).
“It got real loud. Everybody was yelling. They wanted a point of order. What they were trying to do was get them to nominate from the floor. Carl Smith said it’s not in our rules that we have to do that. That is when the meeting broke down completely. All of it was yelling and screaming from then on.”
Members of the Chatham County Republican Party select delegates to represent their area at GOP state and national conventions.
“We are done with the good ole boy system, and we are apt to change it,” Taylor told The Star News.
Savannah resident Debbie Broderick said last weekend’s melee never reached outlandish proportions.
“I didn’t see anybody rioting. I didn’t see anybody standing on tables. Nobody yelled profanities. There was nothing of that sort that went on,” Broderick said.
“There were just people strong in their convictions, and they didn’t want to be railroaded. They wanted to have a voice, simple as that.”
Broderick told The Star News that the convention needs more transparency.
“It’s time for new blood and some new thoughts. Probably maintaining the status quo is not exactly what is needed right now, in order to broaden the scope of the chances for other conservative patriots to come in and be a part of the organization. There are a lot of grassroots people that are looking to come in and assist with the things that are going on. The party needs to ensure we have proper candidates,” Broderick said.
“There are challenges with the processes, because there are rules written that seem to come from the party. Then there are state rules. Then there are Robert’s Rules of Order. People weren’t sure which ones were supposed to be maintained or carried out during that meeting. I definitely think the rules need to be clarified.”
Broderick said the party must move forward and that members should find a way around this conflict.
“We will have to unite, and if we don’t [then] we have a great chance of the party not surviving,” Broderick said.
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Chris Butler is an investigative journalist at The Tennessee Star. Follow Chris on Facebook. Email tips to [email protected].
