A Saturday meeting of Michigan's GOP state committee reportedly resulted in one person being sent to the emergency room after a brawl broke out at the host hotel.
As reported by The Detroit News, Wayne County Republican James Chapman was trying to get into the state party's meeting room at the Doherty Hotel by jiggling the door handle when Clare County Republican Party Chair Mark DeYoung opened the door from inside.
"He kicked me in my balls as soon as I opened the door," DeYoung told the outlet while being interviewed in the ER, adding that he had suffered a broken rib and intended to press charges against Chapman.
Chapman, however, said DeYoung was the one who swung first after threatening to kick Chapman's ass. DeYoung denied that, though, claiming Chapman squared up first — rushing DeYoung and slamming him into a chair.
One of the individuals involved in the fight gave Detroit News' Craig Mauger a warning for any would-be future Michigan brawlers:
"When you see me taking my glasses off, I'm ready to rock," Chapman said.
A physical altercation broke out at Saturday's Michigan GOP state committee meeting, bringing police and sending a person to the ER.
— Craig Mauger (@CraigDMauger) July 8, 2023
"When you see me taking my glasses off, I’m ready to rock," one of the individuals involved in the fight told me today. https://t.co/ahhAoFmCig
Although the dust-up took place outside the actual meeting room, members inside got an eye full.
"From my clear vantage point a kerfuffle occurred outside our meeting room. We recessed for 5 minutes. It had nothing to do with the content of our meeting," said committee member Kristin Lee.
https://twitter.com/kristinlee103/status/1677800111835889666
This isn't the first time, some members of the Michigan GOP got froggy — nor the first time one of them was jumped at the Doherty Hotel.
As pointed out by HuffPo on Monday, an April meeting of the Michigan Republican Party leadership in the same building also turned to party infighting. The incident resulted in significantly less ball-kicking, however, with the spat ultimately defused after one woman sloppily shoved the face of another.
