Capitol Police dispute could fuel party shakeup

By John Labriola - Local MAGA Republicans are using the Citrus County GOP's recent decision not to go on record opposing the presence of the U.S. Capitol Police in Florida as a rallying cry to fill vacancies in the local Republican Party organization in hopes of influencing its direction ahead of the 2024 elections.

At the June 19 meeting of the Citrus County Republican Executive Committee (REC), a group of Trump supporters forced a vote on a resolution in support of the Hillsborough County Republican Party's call for Gov. Ron DeSantis to remove the Capitol Police Office in Tampa, which was established in July 2021 to hunt down participants in the Jan. 6, 2021, pro-Trump demonstration on the U.S. Capitol. 

Opponents questioned whether DeSantis has the power to order the Capitol Police to leave, but supporters cited state sovereignty and pointed to the Capitol Police's Tampa office as an example of federal overreach as the Biden administration weaponizes federal law enforcement to advance a narrative casting Trump voters as the gravest threat to American democracy.

The resolution failed on a 32-40 vote, angering the party's Trump faithful, including REC member and Citrus County Trump Club President Billy Cayce, who was among the many thousands of Jan. 6 participants who gathered in Washington to protest 2020 election irregularities before the day was marred by violence.  

"I didn't know what was going on until I got back to the hotel and turned the TV on," Cayce recalled.

"[The violence] was orchestrated by the DOJ and the Capitol Police against the people that were there to show their support for our country," he said, citing reports of undercover FBI involvement in the day's events.

Cayce will present the Capitol Police resolution for a vote at the next Trump Club meeting and will have applications available there for anyone wishing to join the REC. Two notaries will be at the meeting to help people complete the application, he said.

"We want to fill all the vacancies that are in the REC," Cayce said. 

The Citrus County Trump Club will meet on Tuesday, July 11, at 6 p.m., at the Citrus County Realtors Association building, 714 Scarboro Ave., Lecanto, FL 34461. Doors will open at 5:30 p.m. Former congressional candidate and conservative author and activist Laura Loomer will be the guest speaker. 

REC applications also are available online HERE. The application must be signed and notarized and emailed to the county's Republican Party secretary at secretary@rpocitrus.org. Applicants will then be contacted by the party secretary with the date of the meeting when they need to show up with their original application to have their membership voted on. Any Citrus County resident who has been a registered Republican for at least 12 months is eligible for membership in the Citrus REC, which normally meets the third Monday of the month. 

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