Conservatives need a reason to move away from Trump? Just look at the Horry County GOP
Is it about to get bloody in the ballroom where the Horry County GOP meets just in time for Halloween?
The party appears to have been building up to it.
A man said he was assaulted by Horry County GOP members in a lawsuit last year, one member reported to police that he was spit on by another member, a meeting almost came to blows last month, and now the new claimant to the chairmanship says he’s in a “Texas cage match.”
Reese Boyd made the statement about his power struggle with Roger Slagle, who is also claiming to be the Horry County GOP chairman. Slagle is calling Boyd’s ascent to chair a “coup,” making one wonder if a guillotine might be rolling out soon.
The lack of leadership, squabbling and egomania in the Horry County GOP is the result when Republican Party extremists are allowed to take over. The chaos should serve as a warning to South Carolina Republican leaders. If you let the people with red hats glued to their heads run things, you’ll get nothing done while making yourself a laughing stock.
Rewind to last year, a trio in the Horry County GOP’s most MAGA obsessed faction, Slagle one of them, were elected to lead the party, bolstered by a former conservative radio host who was also mainlining MAGA juice.
They chased imaginary RINOs, fought and censured the state party’s chairman, got themselves and their party sued for defamation and, in doing all that, fractured the party they’re supposed to be leading.
After the chaos, the trio resigned in early September, the state party accepted the resignations, only to have Slagle rescind his resignation as chair and claim the position once again, which the state party did not accept. A quorum of the Horry County GOP elected Boyd as its new chair.
Slagle backers are set to meet in November to try to legitimize his chairmanship.
So the Horry County GOP is set up to be split, with both factions likely to be vying for consideration as the rightful party.
If Republican leaders want to keep their chokehold on South Carolina, they would do good to study the Horry County GOP. The lesson they would take away is that the GOP has to move away from Trumpism if the party wants to avoid the kind of lunacy that might do the unthinkable — turn some South Carolina Republican voters away and, maybe, send them to the Democrats.
While some Democrats might be cackling at the situation in Horry County and wishing for more turmoil, they might want to be careful what they wish for. Republicans aren’t going anywhere in South Carolina. Democrats won’t be laughing if the extreme right of the party take over.
Like it or not, South Carolina is a conservative state that Republicans dominate and Democrats have to eek out pockets of resistance. Maybe one day that will change, but until then the least we should have is a conservative party guided by reason and principles rather a cult of personality adhering to an authoritarian like Trump waiting in the shadows to grab power.
The South Carolina Republican Party being run by people like those leading the Horry County GOP? Now, that would be a horror movie come to life.
This story was originally published October 26, 2022 at 3:19 PM with the headline "Conservatives need a reason to move away from Trump? Just look at the Horry County GOP."