Kentucky GOP Chairman exits post asking party to “move on” from Trump

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) – After serving eight years as the Chairman of the Republican Party of Kentucky, Mac Brown is appealing for party unity.

“The key to our future success,” Brown said in a letter to committee members, “is for the Republican Party to come together and not fight each other.”  Brown said he is moving on, and he cautioned the party to do the same.

“I think President Trump did some good things in his administration,” Brown said. “And I think it’s time to move on. And I think the sooner the party moves on from him, the sooner it will succeed.”

In a rare interview Wednesday, Brown criticized “drama and chaos” of the Trump administration.

He said the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol divided Republicans.

“I’m sure there are a lot of people in Kentucky that don’t agree with what I’m saying right now, because they are very dedicated to President Trump,” Brown said. “This is a strong Trump state. But I’ll also say this, we cannot live in this havoc.”

Brown served during one of the most prosperous times for state Republicans.

Republican registered voters now outnumber registered Democrats.

“Now it is time for me to step down from the Chairman position to allow new and fresh leadership to take the party to the next level,” Brown said in his letter.

Brown leaves behind statewide offices swept by Republican candidates, except in the race for Governor. But he does not call losing to Beshear a failure.

“Well, he was popular to start with. I mean, real popular,” Brown said. “They never referred to him as Beshear did they? They referred to him as Andy.”

A list of thanks in his letter included Senator Mitch McConnell “for so many things; his advice and counsel, his leadership and guidance, the constant financial support of our candidates, his proactiveness that not only helped the party grow but become a party that worked closely together, and most importantly for his patience and ability to teach us patience.”

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