Trump supporters not welcome at elite Republican club
Members of a storied Manhattan Republican club were booted during a heated meeting at its Upper East Side headquarters — because of their support for President Trump, sources told The Post.
Tensions at the Metropolitan Republican Club on East 83rd Street — which counts state Republican Committee chief Ed Cox and former Mayor Mike Bloomberg as members — had been festering for months over Trump’s ascent to the presidency.
After his surprise victory in November, sources said, the club’s old guard launched a campaign to cleanse Trump supporters.
“They hate Donald Trump, and they were really pissed when he won,” said expelled executive board member Sandra Chase.
Club President Debbie Coughlin, former club President Peter Hein, Bob Morgan III and Ian Reilly colluded to boot Trump backers — and flagrantly violated longstanding bylaws in doing so, the sources allege.
Dismissed members likened the move to a Soviet political purge.
Dismissed members likened the move to a Soviet political purge.
One ousted member, Allan Stevo, said he was shocked to find a security guard stationed at the meeting last week.
“He was there to be a show of force and intimidation,” he said.
During the primary campaign, Coughlin, Reilly and Morgan gave then-Trump rival Sen. Ted Cruz and his wife, Heidi, the “keys to the club,” said ousted member Michael Javelos.
Stevo said many rank-and-file members were concerned that the club was being used to materially back a specific candidate, rather than the GOP nominee.
“I was frustrated by how many people were ‘Never Trump’ on the board of the club,” he said. “The general membership was a different story. There were ardent Trump supporters.”
Chase said the purge was enabled by violations of the club’s bylaws, including failing to give 30 days’ written notice to members marked for removal.
At the end of the meeting, Javelos, Georgia Palmieri, Alain Palmieri, Stevo and Chase were removed from the committee. Georgia had been on the committee since 1998, she said.
Coughlin did not return requests for comment.
Coughlin did not return requests for comment.
“The Met Club replaced its board members according to its bylaws. It was simply the replacing of the ‘old guard’ by younger blood, something that happens in any organization,” said club Chairwoman Adele Malpass. “This had absolutely nothing to do with Donald Trump.”
Why we’re outraged
Allan Stevo, 37, has been a member of the Met Club for five years and served on the board for one:
The cronyism of the Met Club board, like similar county and state boards, is a perfect example of a swamp that needs draining.
Met Club members should be outraged because a small group of extremists have created needless discord in their club and have taken over their board, removing dedicated members who demanded change and called for more accountability in the club and in our country.
On Jan. 31, I was thrown off the board of the Metropolitan Republican Club, along with four other Donald Trump supporters.
While no one can be certain what another person thinks, the reason we were thrown off a Republican board appears to be our support for Trump.
The low level of support for Trump among some that remain on the board, and the high enthusiasm for Hillary Clinton well into the fall of 2016, was disappointing.
One of the people who helped throw us off, club President Deborah Coughlin, according to federal records has donated four times to “Friends of Schumer” in amounts over $1,000.
Whatever happened to politely agreeing to disagree?
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