Debbie Wasserman Schultz Had to Go
Democratic National Committee Chairperson Debbie Wasserman Schultz announced Sunday that she would step down from her position at the close of this week’s Democratic National Convention, shaking to its very foundations the party she has led for five years. The Florida congresswoman’s sudden decision to quit—amid a firestorm over leaked e-mails that suggested the party apparatus was biased in its approach to the 2016 nominating race between presumptive nominee Hillary Clinton and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders—came after party leaders reportedly made moves late Saturday to strip Wasserman Schultz of her speaking slot at the convention and to replace her as the presiding chair for the quadrennial gathering of the party she has officially helmed since 2011.
The end came quickly for a party chair who just days ago had been looking forward to a triumphal convention.
DNC Protests Reveal Another Party In Crisis
Now we know why the GOP convention in Cleveland last week was so quiet: the protesters were saving their fire for the Democratic National Convention this week in Philadelphia. Bernie Sanders supporters—along with every stripe of left-wing activist, Baby Boomer hippie, and olive-clad anarchist—are pouring into the City of Brotherly Love. They are not happy, and they mean to be heard.
The City of Philadelphia is bracing for about 30,000 protesters each day of the convention this week, although the activists themselves claim many more will show up. A group calling itself Occupy DNC Convention is planning a major demonstration for Monday afternoon, and there are murmurs of a “million man march” on Tuesday.
