Speaking Of Emails...

[Lord Jim]

Sun Sentinel exclusive: Wasserman Schultz won't open Democratic National Convention

Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Weston, chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee, won't gavel her party's national convention to order on Monday afternoon.

In a brief phone conversation with the Sun Sentinel, she said:

"I have decided that in the interest of making sure that we can start the Democratic convention on a high note that I am not going to gavel in the convention," Wasserman Schultz said.

"I stepped down the other day because I wanted to make sure that having brought us to this momentous day and to Philadelphia and planned the convention that is going to be the best one that we've ever had in our party's history that this needs to be all about making sure that everyone knows that Hillary Clinton would make the best president," she said.

Wasseman Schultz declined to answer further questions.

Earlier Monday, mayhem exploded against Wasserman Schultz when she made her first public appearance after being forced out as chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee.

Angry Democrats heckled her with boos and cries of "Shame!" as the party tried to move past embarrassing leaked emails that suggested DNC staff favored Clinton over Bernie Sanders during the presidential primaries.

Wasserman Schultz might have expected a warm embrace at the breakfast of the Florida delegation to the Democratic National Convention. Instead, she found herself hardly able to speak over the boos.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/browa ... story.html

[RayThom]

MSNBC just reported that "talks are underway" to not have Pinocchio-Schultz open the convention today...
After what I saw this morning, that sure looks like the right move...

It looks like she's toast:
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/democrat ... d=40857597

[Lord Jim]

DNC apologizes to Sanders for 'inexcusable' emails

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) on Monday apologized to Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) for internal emails that appeared to show party officials plotting against his presidential bid.

“On behalf of everyone at the DNC, we want to offer a deep and sincere apology to Senator Sanders, his supporters, and the entire Democratic Party for the inexcusable remarks made over email," DNC officials said in the statement.

"These comments do not reflect the values of the DNC or our steadfast commitment to neutrality during the nominating process. The DNC does not — and will not — tolerate disrespectful language exhibited toward our candidates," it continued.

"Individual staffers have also rightfully apologized for their comments, and the DNC is taking appropriate action to ensure it never happens again."

The statement was issued on behalf of seven top DNC officials but did not include the name of Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (Fla.), who announced Sunday she'd step down as DNC chairwoman at the end of the party's convention this week in the wake of the email leaks.

Monday's statement included Donna Brazile, the interim DNC chair; Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake; DNC treasurer Andrew Tobias; vice chairs Raymond Buckley, Maria Elena Durazo and R.T. Rybak, the former mayor of Minneapolis; and Henry Muñoz III, the DNC's national finance committee chair.

http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/pre ... ble-emails

Amid DNC 2016 unrest, Sanders urges supporters not to protest on convention floor

PHILADELPHIA — Amid unrest from Bernie Sanders supporters on the floor of the Democratic National Convention, the Vermont senator texted his supporters Monday night and urged them not to protest during the convention.

Sanders, who's scheduled to speak at the convention in Philadelphia later in the night, urged his supporters to unite. He sent the message via text to the leaders of his delegation, according to Yahoo news.

"I ask you as a personal courtesy to me to not engage in any kind of protest on the floor," he wrote in the text message to his delegate whips. "(It's) of utmost importance you explain this to your delegations."

The text was signed, "Bernie."

News of the text message came amid a rocky start to the DNC as the party hoped to promote a message of unity on its opening night. But instead, Sanders' supporters continuously drowned out speakers with boos when presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton's name was mentioned and routinely broke out in chants of "Bernie! Bernie! Bernie!"

Earlier in the day, Sanders' supporters booed when the senator mentioned Clinton's name during a rally.

Sanders urged supporters to support his former rival, who the Vermont senator said must be elected because Republican nominee Donald Trump "must be defeated."

http://www.nj.com/politics/index.ssf/20 ... to_pr.html

[Gob]

Ok, WTF is this all about?!?!?

[Long Run]

Our crazy politics is the short answer. Longer answer: key people in the Democratic party actively worked to derail the Sanders campaign in an effort to help Hillary Clinton win the primary. Emails showing some of these efforts surfaced, apparently found through a hack of the DNC computer system. This has led to: 1) supporters of Sanders being even more angry at the Democratic-MOTU; and 2) the administrative head of the DNC resigning.

[Guinevere]

I saw another similar commentary somewhere, if I find it again I will link to it, basically it went through all of the supposedly conspiratorial emails, and with the exception of Marshall's completely batshit one about Sanders's religious beliefs (NEVER acted on), the rest were reactions to attacks or other ridiculous crap from the Sanders camp.

Exactly right. But it's easier to just scream conspiracy without actually checking the facts, because these petulant little brats didn't get their way.

Grow the fuck up, children.

[Gob]

Our crazy politics is the short answer. Longer answer: key people in the Democratic party actively worked to derail the Sanders campaign in an effort to help Hillary Clinton win the primary. Emails showing some of these efforts surfaced, apparently found through a hack of the DNC computer system. This has led to: 1) supporters of Sanders being even more angry at the Democratic-MOTU; and 2) the administrative head of the DNC resigning.

Thanks L-R.

Your system is wierd.

[Guinevere]

That's actually not really the answer, but I guess Republicans can't be bothered with the facts either.

[Lord Jim]

petulant little brats didn't get their way.

That's a characterization I'm inclined to agree with...

I wonder if they'll boo when Sanders says it's important to vote for Clinton when he speaks tonight, the way they booed him earlier today...

[BoSoxGal]

Guin you were really pissy 8 years ago when you didn't get your way, the total lack of empathy for Bernie supporters is a bit extreme. They're young and fired up and calling them 'petulant little brats' is not going to win the stalwarts over to Hillary. If for that reason than no other, maybe tone down the contempt a notch or two?

[Scooter]

Sure, but a bunch of supposedly progressive yet obviously entitled white people booing to drown out one black speaker after another is probably not the image that Sanders would want to see projected of his supporters.

[MajGenl.Meade]

Exactly right. But it's easier to just scream conspiracy without actually checking the facts, because these petulant little brats didn't get their way.

But is it vast? Is it Right wing?

[Guinevere]

Sure, but a bunch of supposedly progressive yet obviously entitled white people booing to drown out one black speaker after another is probably not the image that Sanders would want to see projected of his supporters.

Another uncomfortable truth the BernieBots refuse to accept -- they are largely white and very privileged (this, btw, is also mostly my personal experience with them as well). For example, in MA, he did best in the toniest of the suburbs, while HRC kicked his butt in the cities and the towns with more mixed, diverse, and blue collar populations. And *that* is why she won the nomination, and he did not.

ETA: Anyway, the point being, the only person dis-unity helps is Trump. Be the solution, as Bernie asked, please don't be the problem. And for the record, the 2008 HRC supporters, even the PUMAs, were well in line and supporting Obama by the time the convention rolled around -- which is what our candidate asked when she dropped out and endorsed him in June (only 4 days after the primaries concluded). None of them booed his name on the floor, or threatened to walk out, or screamed at three US Senators, calling two of them "sell-outs." I checked my own records last night, and I sent him my first contribution in August before the convention, and signed up for his legal protection team (I had been on the HRC legal and finance teams) in September. There is a world of difference with how the BernieBots are acting today.

[rubato]

The historical record shows that Hillary supporters were petty and ungracious and mostly interested in one issue when they didn't get what they wanted eight years ago. It also shows that they pulled together and elected Barack Obama.

Bernie supporters are being petty and ungracious and mostly interested in a single issue today. I believe enough of them will work to support Hillary for her to beat the weakest Republican candidate in many decades. But we will see.


Yrs,
Rubato

[BoSoxGal]

Duly noted, Guin, and I don't dispute that the behavior of Hillary supporters in 2008 - and her own behavior - was miles better than Bernie's most ardent supporters. Although it is noteworthy that 16% of McCain's voters in 2008 told pollsters they would have voted for Hillary had she gotten the nomination - perhaps not unsurprisingly, 84% of them were white.

In the June 22 Bloomberg poll, nearly 50% of Bernie's supporters said they wouldn't vote for Hillary, with 22% saying they'd vote for Chump. That was before the endorsement so hopefully between the endorsement and Bernie's speech last night and (hopefully) his placing her in nomination this week, more will swing her way.

I've been watching more coverage of the convention since getting home today and I'm quickly growing tired of the Berniebots being interviewed and pledging to vote for Jill Stein. I don't know much of anything about Ms. Stein, perhaps she's a fine person, but it is foolhardy to throw away a vote when someone as dangerous as Chump is the opponent. And I can't believe that anybody who wanted to elect Bernie could throw their vote to Chump; I keep seeing statements like "he's not going to owe anybody," - but have they listened to what he's saying he wants to do policy-wise????

So I guess I'm retracting my criticism because 'petulant little brats' might, in fact, be a very accurate descriptor of some of these folks. My apologies!

I wish I had extra $ to throw Hillary's way, but since I don't, I'm signing up online today to join the on-the-ground movement here in my corner of MA. I suppose it's not a terribly important contribution in this state, but it's all I got to give.

[Lord Jim]

There is a world of difference with how the BernieBots are acting today.

One major factor that figures into this difference is that no matter how unhappy the Clinton folks may have been in 2008, most of them (certainly most of the ones at the convention) were strongly committed democrats, whose allegiance to and involvement with the Democratic party long pre-dated Hillary Clinton's candidacy...

Local party leaders and activists who had been in the trenches for Democratic candidates at all levels through multiple election cycles...

This is fundamentally not the case with most of the Bernie Bros...

Most of them are political novices, with no more allegiance to the Democratic party then their candidate has had...(though Sanders does seem to be making a serious effort to get them to cease and desist; in addition to everything else he's said, I understand he's going around today meeting with his state delegations to personally plead with his delegates to STFU)

Many of them seem to have an almost Tea Party like attitude, where if they don't get 100% of what they want, they don't give a fuck what happens...

the only person dis-unity helps is Trump

That's absolutely correct, but I get the impression that a lot of them don't care...

It will be interesting to see what happens today, particularly during the nomination roll call, and also what kind of reception Bill Clinton gets from this crowd...

They dislike him even more than they dislike Hillary...

As the Trump nomination has put me in the bizarre and surreal position of wanting Hillary to win the election, personally I very much wish they would STFU...

Of course if we'd had a different nominee, I'd be cheering them on...

ETA:

"he's not going to owe anybody,"

Except of course, the Russian oligarchs...

[rubato]

I have never seen, nor expected that there was, a requirement that individuals working for the party have no opinion and never act on that opinion nor express it.

Can anyone show me such a rule?

If there isn't then this would be nothing more than an opportunity to change leaders for a different motive entirely.

One part of getting nominated is to earn the support of the party leadership. Admitted that Bernie was sailing against a heavy wind trying to get the support of a party he had spurned for 40 years.


Yrs,
Rubato

[Bicycle Bill]

As the Trump nomination has put me in the bizarre and surreal position wanting Hillary to win the election, personally I very much wish they would STFU...

Of course if we'd had a different nominee, I'd be cheering them on...

Jim, I feel for you; I really and truly do.

However, once the Republicans began cozying up to the Tea Party faction back in 2009 and adopting many of their attitudes and goals into Republican policy, the die had already been cast and the wheels had been set into motion.  The Republican Party is now reaping what it has sowed as a result of that policy over the eight years of the Obama administration in the form of Donald Trump as their national standard-bearer.  Seriously, and speaking as a staunch Democrat myself, this guy is the best you could come up with?

Your only hope is that, after you take your lumps in the November general election, your party realizes that an ultra-conservative path is one that leads nowhere and takes steps to get back onto a more stable, viable course.

-"BB"-

[rubato]

-- they are largely white and very privileged ...

A condition about which you can speak with personal authority.


Yrs,
Rubato

[Guinevere]

Comments below in red....

There is a world of difference with how the BernieBots are acting today.

One major factor that figures into this difference is that no matter how unhappy the Clinton folks may have been in 2008, most of them (certainly most of the ones at the convention) were strongly committed democrats, whose allegiance to and involvement with the Democratic party long pre-dated Hillary Clinton's candidacy...

Local party leaders and activists who had been in the trenches for Democratic candidates at all levels through multiple election cycles...

This is fundamentally not the case with most of the Bernie Bros...

Most of them are political novices, with no more allegiance to the Democratic party then their candidate has had...(though Sanders does seem to be making a serious effort to get them to cease and desist; in addition to everything else he's said, I understand he's going around today meeting with his state delegations to personally plead with his delegates to STFU) Yes and no -- I know many Bernie people in Massachusetts who are long time Democratic activists, who don't like HRC, who have gotten drunk on the Bernie Koolaid, who see conspiracies everywhere. Some of whom have left the party and are cheering on the booing and the yelling and the lack of respect for the process.

Many of them seem to have an almost Tea Party like attitude, where if they don't get 100% of what they want, they don't give a fuck what happens...Yes, pretty much. And then balme it all on HRC and the party. They just cannot see their noses .....

the only person dis-unity helps is Trump

That's absolutely correct, but I get the impression that a lot of them don't care...

It will be interesting to see what happens today, particularly during the nomination roll call, and also what kind of reception Bill Clinton gets from this crowd...

They dislike him even more than they dislike Hillary...He is a man who you love or hate, there is very little room in between

As the Trump nomination has put me in the bizarre and surreal position of wanting Hillary to win the election, personally I very much wish they would STFU... It's a mad, mad, mad, world!

Of course if we'd had a different nominee, I'd be cheering them on...

ETA:

"he's not going to owe anybody,"

Except of course, the Russian oligarchs...