Lenawee County Democratic Chairman Bill Swift’s public comments about acts of violence against Make America Great Again Republicans and President Donald Trump landed him in hot water on Thursday night when he was removed as a member of the Lenawee County Agricultural Society.
The dues-paying membership of the nonprofit LCAS consists mainly of farmers who assist the County Fair Board to promote family oriented activities. Swift’s social media comments last January, which he shared on Lenawee County Democratic Party’s official social media account, stated that supporters of President Donald Trump should be arrested and “hanged by the neck until dead” for treason.
Of the 137 members reported present at the meeting, 121 LCAS members voted to remove Swift.
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In his two-minute “apology” to the LCAS, however, Swift appeared less than contrite.
Bill Swift, chair of the Lenawee Democrats, previously threatened Trump supporters (“Hanged by the neck until dead”).
This was his response when the Lenawee County Agricultural Society was considering removing him (originally posted by Lenawee County Conservatives on FB): pic.twitter.com/QHzcxrvymL
— The Midwesterner (@Th_Midwesterner) March 8, 2025
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“First off, I just want to apologize to everybody for the impression in the community that I called for indiscriminate violence against Republicans or Trump supporters,” Swift began. “Anybody that his received that impression, that’s not true. I didn’t say that. I said something very specific and I said something highly qualified about activities that would be considered treason under the Constitution of the United States of America…. and I feel pretty good about having made that statement.”
He went on to say he was “kind of freaked out” by his interpretation of Elon Musk’s alleged Nazi salutes during Trump’s inaugural celebrations. He added that he disagreed with the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision on presidential immunity, before time was called.
Todd Gillman, District 5 Republican Party representative. attended the event and told The Midwesterner he wasn’t convinced by Swift’s apology. He called Swift’s apology “a non-apology apology where he doubled down on his inflammatory remarks” and stated Swift’s actions “harmed the community.” He continued: “He promotes division, and he’s a bad actor in the community.”
As previously reported by The Midwesterner, Swift made social media posts in his position as County Democratic Chairman that have since been deleted.
“To peeps out there trying find emotional shelter in this storm of radical right-wing Republican terrorism … please know that people in our community are mobilizing for action,” Swift posted on Facebook on January 27. “You can be a part of that … anyone who rejects the hate and terrorism of this Nazi MAGA movement can be.”
Swift also used the Democratic Party account to call for the death penalty for supporters of the 47th POTUS, whom Swift described as a “domestic enemy and domestic terrorist” in a call with Talk Back Radio with Doug Spade and Mike Clement on Saturday.
Swift told the radio program the party removed the posts over concerns Trump’s supporters “might do violence to people in our community,” but made it clear “we as a party and I as an individual absolutely 100% support the statements that we made.”
He also spoke out about Trump’s agenda to deport illegal immigrants.
“We’ve received reports of ICE operating in Lenawee County today. It should be understood that in the context of an illegitimately and unconstitutionally elected insurrectionist president who ran on Nazi rhetoric and who had what was, in effect, a Nazi rally for his presidential inauguration that the agents of ice that are operating in our county today are properly defined as Nazi collaborators,” he wrote on the Lenawee Democrats Facebook page.
“These Nazi collaborators are unconstitutionally operating within the border of the State of Michigan. Invalid Supreme Court rulings are just that, folks. The necessary moral preconditions for the extra constitutional removal of the President of the United States and any elected official at any level of government who professes support for or who provides material support for this man or his administration have just been met. As well, this holds true for the six supreme Court justices who ruled that presidents are above the law. We’re no longer a constitutional Republic. We are a fascist Nazi billionaire oligarchy.”
Swift’s most egregiously offensive comment was about his desire to see Trump supporters arrested and executed.
“They should be arrested, and they should be facing the death penalty,” he said. “They should be hanged by the neck until dead. I believe this is one of the few areas of the law where I believe the death penalty should be imposed.”