Republican at fundraiser says ‘no complaints’ from distilleries despite anonymous post
Organizers of a trip for North Carolina state legislators that led to allegations of drunken and “unruly” behavior at a Kentucky distillery over the weekend issued a statement on Tuesday addressing the allegations.
Greater Carolina, a conservative, free market group based in Mooresville, organized the trip, which appears to have included Republican House members of the Alcohol Beverage Control Committee and others.
In the news release acknowledging Greater Carolina hosted the trip, the group said that it ”hosts events throughout the year to educate interested parties about ongoing public policy debates. And, like all similar organization, Greater Carolina also hosts fundraising events throughout the year.
“One of those events was this past weekend in Kentucky and has generated interest due to an anonymous social media post.”
As The News & Observer first reported on Monday, the North Carolina political world has been swirling with questions after a Reddit post titled “Disappointing behavior from NC legislators.” A Reddit user identifying themselves as a “representative” of a Kentucky distillery wrote that the facility recently hosted a group of 33 people from North Carolina, including legislators and government officials.
The post’s author wrote that the group — “already inebriated from drinking bourbon on the bus” — arrived an hour late. Their presence was “marked by loud, unruly conduct that disrupted other guests and tarnished the atmosphere we work hard to maintain,” the post said.
The Reddit user also wrote: “What was perhaps most disturbing was their lack of accountability for their actions. Despite being extremely rude, disruptive, not tipping the bartenders and tour guides, and even VOMITING in our bathroom sinks, not a single apology was offered…despite our efforts to provide them with a pleasant experience by preparing cocktails and offering tastings,” the post continued.
Response to allegations
N.C. Rep. Jason Saine, a Lincolnton Republican who serves on the ABC committee, told The N&O in a text on Monday that “I don’t respond to anonymous posts on the internet.”
On Tuesday, Saine confirmed to The N&O that he was at the event sponsored by Greater Carolina. He said he does not serve on the group’s board.
“I know of no complaints from anywhere on the trip we visited. This sounds like a disgruntled employee,” Saine told The N&O in a phone interview on Tuesday.
Jonathan Felts, a well-known Republican operative in North Carolina, is serving as the spokesman for Greater Carolina. In the group’s news release, answering a slew of self-written questions on the event, he wrote that attendees were in Kentucky as the organization was hosting a fundraising event.
In a few weeks, the state will also hold its annual Kentucky Derby, which “a lot of folks like,” making it “a good fundraising destination location this time of year,” Felts wrote.
Felts wrote that because “Greater Carolina is not a government entity,” that “no taxpayer dollars were used.”
Felts also wrote that legislators were at the events but did not name them. But he sought to discredit the credibility of the writer of the post calling out lawmakers’ behavior, and said a tip was provided to the venue.
He wrote that “one attendee was was a bit queasy upon arrival due to getting car sick enroute because the air conditioner was not working on the bus.” This attendee “made it to the first thing that had a drain and vomited,” Felts wrote. He said this vomit was cleaned up by the person and colleagues.
The original poster listed the Stitzel-Wetzel Distillery as one of the distilleries the lawmakers visited. An email to the distillery from The News & Observer on Monday has not yet be returned.
House Minority Leader Robert Reives, a Chatham County Democrat, told The N&O on Monday that no Democratic House members were invited or attended. Leslie Edwards, the communications director for N.C. Senate Democratic Leader Dan Blue, said “to our knowledge,” no Democratic senators were invited or attended.
An invitation obtained by The N&O lists state Republican Party Finance Director Sarah Newby as its contact. The NCGOP did not respond to questions about Newby.
NCGOP spokesperson Matt Mercer told The N&O on Monday that he had seen the post and “can confirm it was not an NCGOP event or affiliated with the state party.” Mercer referred questions about it to Greater Carolina. The news release by Greater Carolina says the event was not hosted in coordination with the NCGOP.
Luciana Perez Uribe Guinassi, Danielle Battaglia and Dan Kane contributed to this report.
