“As president, I will need fighters like Debbie in Congress who are ready on day one to get to work for the American people”, she said.
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Engulfed by a political firestorm over damning leaked emails, U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz said Sunday she will step down as chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee, throwing her party’s convention into turmoil just as it’s set to start.
The final push to derail her came from an email leak last week, which revealed that DNC staffers actively tried to obstruct Sanders’ primary campaign against eventual nominee Hillary Clinton.
Late Saturday night, news emerged that Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz would not preside over or speak at the DNC in Philadelphia this week.
The decision comes out of negotiations among Democratic Party officials, in consultation with the campaign staffs of Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders. That truce appears to still be in effect despite the revelations in the DNC emails, as Sanders declined Sunday to urge his supporters to support another option, like Green Party candidate Jill Stein.
Sanders was critical of the Florida congresswoman throughout the primary, accusing the party of rigging the process in favor of Clinton. Liberal groups and Sanders supporters were dismayed by the pick of Kaine, who could appeal to independents and moderates but has never been aligned with party liberals.
Clinton’s campaign has previously criticized Trump for his praise of Russian leader Vladimir Putin, a point that was highlighted this past week when Trump suggested that without sufficient financial contributions, the United States under his leadership may not honor North Atlantic Treaty Organisation commitments to defend European allies against attacks from Russian. Sanders campaign manager Jeff Weaver said Saturday someone would have to be “accountable” for what the emails show.
“The allegations, the e-mails, the insensitivity, the stupidity, needs to be addressed, and it will be addressed”, she said.
She added, “I know that the chair will hold those employees accountable if they’re found to have acted outside of that neutrality and even-handedness”.
There are now 4,763 total delegates, and 712 of them are superdelegates.
How the emails were stolen hasn’t been confirmed. Sanders has 1,893.
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Sanders endorsed Clinton two weeks ago after pressing for the party platform to include a $15-an-hour minimum wage, debt-free college and an expansion of access to health care. The state-by-state roll call is scheduled for Tuesday. He later told reporters outside the church: “We needed some prayers today and we got some prayers, and we got some support and it really feels good”.
