False Outrage, Real Process: WCC’s Alinsky-Style Meltdown After Transparent SEC Review

By TruthWire News | April 2025

After being decisively defeated in every race during the March 4th Williamson County GOP reorganization convention, the Williamson County Conservatives (WCC) have turned to a now-familiar page in the activist playbook: if you can’t win on the merits, delegitimize the outcome.

In a breathless post that alternated between conspiracy and hyperbole, WCC leaders denounced the Tennessee Republican Party's State Executive Committee (SEC) as "communist," declared the outcome “rigged,” and claimed that their appeal was “dismissed in a Soviet-style vote.” But the reality—rooted in process, transparency, and due diligence—tells a much different story.

The Legal Standard: Facts, Not Feelings

One of the most important points that the WCC either doesn’t understand—or is banking on their followers not understanding—is that once you contest an election result, the burden of proof is on you.

The SEC's Political Committee, which spent hours on four separate conference calls hearing from both sides, made clear that their standard for overturning a convention was aligned with that of the Tennessee judiciary: Were any procedural irregularities shown to have materially affected the outcome of the vote? And were there facts—verifiable, documented, credible—that proved malice, intent, or misconduct?

WCC failed to produce any such evidence.

Their complaints focused largely on procedural quibbles: a convention date set two days after the preferred January 31 deadline (with prior notice to the state), and a venue change properly noticed more than two weeks in advance. These aren't violations. They're administrative footnotes—and none came close to meeting the standard required to throw out the votes of over 1,500 qualified Republican participants.

As one committee member aptly summarized, “Even if there were minor irregularities, unless it can be demonstrated that they changed the result of the election, the election stands.”

That’s not tyranny. That’s due process.

No Malice. No Fraud. No Case.

The WCC also failed to show malice or intent—two essential elements in proving that misconduct was not only accidental but strategic and deliberate.

In fact, the committee heard testimony from multiple SEC members who were physically present for the vote, the credentialing, and even the post-election recount. Ballots were counted, recounted, and separated by hand under observation. Representatives from both slates were invited to watch, and no objections were raised at the time. Wristbands were cut at the ballot drop to prevent double voting. Voting machines were used. All procedures passed scrutiny.

And still—nothing in the WCC’s appeal packet amounted to more than innuendo, suspicion, or general dissatisfaction with the result. That’s not a legal case. That’s political sour grapes.

The Attendance Lie: No, 35% of the SEC Was Not Missing

Among the many misleading claims made by the Williamson County Conservatives in their post-appeal statement was the dramatic assertion that “roughly 35% of the SEC was not in attendance” during the vote on their appeal — implying the decision lacked legitimacy due to low participation.

This is simply false.

The vast majority of the Tennessee Republican Party’s State Executive Committee was present for the meeting—either physically or by proxy. In accordance with long-standing party rules, any SEC member who could not attend had the ability to assign a voting proxy to another member in good standing, ensuring their vote and presence were represented.

And they did.

According to those present, only one or two members out of the entire SEC body were absent without sending a proxy. That’s not 35%. That’s closer to 2–3%.

Even factoring in the handful of members who attended via proxy—perhaps 7 or 8 at most—there was full voting representation across the committee. Every contested appeal was heard. Every motion was deliberated. And every vote was conducted by proper parliamentary procedure.

The “35% missing” claim is a fabrication, designed to create a false appearance of procedural illegitimacy. In reality, the SEC’s Political Committee followed both the letter and spirit of the bylaws—and ensured that all parties, including the WCC, had ample opportunity to present their case.

The bottom line: no votes were stolen, no seats were empty, and no corner was cut.

The only thing missing from the room on Saturday was credible evidence to support the WCC’s allegations.

Radical Rules in Conservative Camouflage

If this all sounds familiar, it should. The WCC’s post-election meltdown reads more like a Saul Alinsky field manual than the words of a conservative organization grounded in constitutional process.

Let’s break it down:

• Rule #5 – “Ridicule is man’s most potent weapon.”
  The WCC labeled the entire SEC “communist,” mocked Chairman Steve Hickey as a puppet of “Tennessee Stands,” and equated the process with Obamacare. This wasn’t critique. It was caricature.
• Rule #10 – “If you push a negative hard enough, it will push through and become a positive.”
  They lost badly. Now they’re attempting to frame the loss as a betrayal of justice, hoping the narrative sticks more than the facts.
• Rule #13 – “Pick the target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it.”
  The target? Steve Hickey. The tactic? Brand him as “illegitimate” and accuse him of plotting to “cancel elections.” The intent? Polarize their followers and split the local party.

But these are not the strategies of constitutional conservatives. They’re the tactics of a group that believes rules matter only when they produce the outcome they want.

The Establishment Boogeyman—Or a Failing Cover Story?

Let’s not ignore the broader political context.

Williamson County isn’t an isolated story. In the last several months, Knox, Hamilton, Shelby, and Williamsoncounties have all seen their GOP boards flipped to grassroots conservatives through open conventions and energized local participation.

And what do they have in common? The victories were clear. The results decisive. The establishment outmaneuvered.

So ask yourself: If the base is turning on the old guard, is the solution to earn back their trust—or is it to undermine the process that empowered them in the first place?

With allies like Sen. Jack Johnson, Rep. Lee Reeves, and Ward Baker, the WCC is now backing legislation like HB0855, which would force all county GOP organizations to use state-run primaries—eliminating conventions altogether, and stripping counties of the flexibility to operate within their means.

A Bigger Threat Looms: Forced Nonpartisan Races

And here’s where it gets even more dangerous.

If HB0855 passes and a county can't afford to fund a $30,000+ partisan primary, what happens? They're pushed toward nonpartisan ballots, where candidates don’t have to declare a party affiliation at all.

That’s a gift to shapeshifter candidates and opportunists—who can now market themselves to Republican voters with zero vetting. No convention. No GOP standards. No proof of principles. And maybe, just maybe—that’s the whole point.

Bottom Line: No Evidence. No Malice. No Merit.

WCC had every opportunity to make their case. The SEC listened. They reviewed documents. They conducted a full recount. They applied the legal standard. And they rendered a unanimous decision.

WCC lost. Not because of corruption. Not because of collusion. But because they failed to meet the most basic burden of proof.

And now, in a final act of irony, they’ve borrowed the tactics of the radical left to attack the very party they claim to defend.

They say they're not going anywhere. But at this rate, it’s not hard to see why many Tennessee conservatives wish they would.

—

🗳 Follow TruthWire for exclusive updates as HB0855 heads to the floor and the grassroots fight to defend GOP autonomy intensifies statewide.

If you support what I do, please consider donating a gift in order to sustain free, independent, and TRULY CONSERVATIVE media that is focused on Middle Tennessee and BEYOND!