If you watch the footage provided (below article) this meeting of the Michigan GOP looks more like a night in a dive bar than a political meeting. The “main characters” in the video are Kalamazoo Republican Party Chair Kelly Sackett and Macomb County GOP Secretary Melissa Pehlis. After they exchanged words, Sackett appeared to knock a cigarette and phone from the hand of Pehlis, who responded by thrusting an open hand at Sackett’s head.
The rivals are supporters of two different candidates who ran for the State Chair. Of course, one won and one lost and now there is bad blood. One (Sackett) was supportive of new state GOP Chair Kristina Karamo and the other (Pehlis) a supporter of former ally Matthew DePerno who ran against her.
According to insiders, the new regime is trying to purge the party of the loser’s supporters, whom they claim just want to “burn everything to the ground.” Of course, the other side says that the current leadership is “just trying to divide everyone.”
For now, we’ll leave that debate aside and get back to what actually happened.
The video begins with a confrontation between Pehlis and Sackett, who seem more like two high school girls fighting over a boy. After some “back and forth” and others trying to make peace and separate the girls, Sackett decides to slap Pehlis’s phone, along with an unlit (appears unlit) cigarette from her hand. Pehlis reacts by slapping Sackett in the face.
Interestingly enough, it is obvious that the others in the area are on “Team Karamo,” as they only react when Pehlis reacts to being struck by hitting back. One man erupts, saying, “oh NOW we have a problem!!!”
Apparently, Sackett has filed a complaint to the police over the incident, but she refused to comment further or offer any other details. Perhaps the police told her that she hit first as the video clearly shows.
In any case, violence at what is supposed to be a meeting among people who are supposed to be on the same side isn’t very healthy and reflects the declining state of our discourse. A state where people can’t seem to do anything but threaten each other with prison and sink into violence.
As someone once said, the 1st person to raise a hand is the first person to run out of ideas. It appears the Michigan GOP has run out of ideas.
You can check out the full unedited video below …
