At a breakfast meeting at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia this week, boos and catcalls met Wasserman Schultz when she spoke to the Florida delegation. “I know she’s tried hard, but as some people probably know, I thought Bernie deserved somebody that was not critical to[ward] him”.
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At least one thing is clear: The email uproar is an unwelcome distraction at the launch of the Democratic National Convention, inflaming the rift between supporters of Hillary Clinton and primary rival Bernie Sanders just when the party was hoping to close it.
Whether she did anything wrong – and the emails seem to show more snarkiness and entitlement and arrogance more than anything – Wasserman Schultz is the DNC’s top person.
The Democratic Convention got off to a rather bumpy start.
Since Sanders’ endorsement, Canova has nearly caught up with Wasserman Schultz in fundraising.
But the theme of the party in Cannon was unmistakably Jewish. Several members of Wasserman Schultz’s senior staff were apparently strategizing on Clinton’s behalf, and the personal correspondence of the United States representative from Florida’s 23rd congressional district treated Sanders’s candidacy dismissively. While her resignation won’t take effect until the convention ends Thursday, Ms. Wasserman Schultz opted not to carry out a party chair’s traditional role of convening the event by gaveling it to order. A typical refrain for her was that she considered her policies not merely as a lawmaker but as a “Jewish mother”. The stories that drove the week – chaos at the Democratic National Committee, disgruntled Bernie Sanders supporters, Donald Trump’s comments about Russian Federation – had faded away. She and her husband had their time in the spotlight; they spread their influence over the country by living in the White House for eight years.
Tim Canova’s campaign coffers got a big boost this week – thanks to the negative attention focused on U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz.
Trump dismissed that idea as laughable, tweeting: “The new joke in town is that Russian Federation leaked the disastrous DNC e-mails”. Republicans pounced and Democrats and feminists winced in 2014 when she likened Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker to a wife beater while criticizing his policies.
The four-day convention is being held at the Wells Fargo Center in south Philadelphia, well removed from City Hall and the skyscrapers of Center City.
These pressures mounted as differences between Obama and the pro-Israel community sharpened, especially during the debate over the Iran nuclear deal. She became the face of the Democratic party after President Barack Obama.
The message was met with chaos though, as people in support and opposed to Wasserman Schultz crowded up to the stage, holding signs, chanting, and ignoring calls to quiet down to allow the program to continue.
For Clinton supporters, it was another aggravating show of disrespect for their nominee, who won both the popular and delegate votes during the primaries, at a time when the party is trying to unite ahead of November to defeat Republican Donald Trump.
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Two problems emerge: First, Democrats of the Sanders’ persuasion-many of them not Democrats at all-have had their suspicions confirmed that the DNC was taking the low road.
