A common theme at Friday's DNC meeting was the clear intention by the Democratic Party elite--principally, the chair of the party, Debbie Wasserman-Schultz, to prevent much debate during the primaries. This is a pretty obvious tactic to prevent the "presumed front-runner" from having to answer many questions along the way and prevent the voters from having maximum ability to decide between the candidates.
Martin O'Malley made that point very well. So, did Bernie. Now, a small idea: they should stand together (include Lincoln Chafee, why not?) in front of the Democratic National Committee HQ, with throngs of their supporters, and demand that the party elite stop shutting down the process of discussion.
O'Malley:
In the fiercest speech of his candidacy so far, Mr. O’Malley condemned his party’s leadership for curtailing the number of primary debates to six and scheduling them at times when few people would see them. (He went even further in a news conference afterward when asked if the party had “rigged” the debate calendar to benefit Mrs. Clinton and lower the visibility of her rivals. “Yes, I think so,” he replied. “Don’t you?”)
Mr. O’Malley’s repeated demand for more debates drew standing ovations from the audience and scowls from the party chairwoman, Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida, seated a few feet away.
And Bernie:
“In my view, Democrats will not retain the White House, will not regain the Senate or the U.S. House, will not be successful in dozens of governor races across the country, unless we generate excitement and momentum and produce a huge voter turnout,” he said. “With all due respect — and I do not mean to insult anyone here — that turnout, that enthusiasm, will not happen with politics as usual.”[emphasis added]
"Politics as usual" is refusing to have an open, broad process. No one doubts that the sole reason more debates are not scheduled is because the chair of the party is doing the bidding of the "presumed front-runner". Everyone knows it--the elites know it, the voters know it.
This has been a pretty typical standard operating procedure of the presumed front-runner...and I understand the problem, as I said to a reporter at the Netroots Nation party in 2014 (though I thought we were just having a beer not thinking Dave Wiegel would actually quote me): "“Whenever [Hillary] opens her mouth, there’s enough people who say: ‘I just don’t believe her.’ ”
That's the presumed "front-runner's" problem.
Bernie has no fear of debates--and I suspect he would be perfectly fine with many more debates if he was the "presumed front-runner". He is not in the position of having to be careful about what he says, trying to remember what his new positions are and what the best poll-tested lines are. His views are etched deep in his soul because he's held them for decades.
He's not worried about gaffes or being exposed to voters.
The presumed front-runner is hiding. Every moment is a moment where the campaign risks a "I'm dead broke" statement. It is a sign of weakness, not strength, to run from debates.
And it doesn't do much to energize voters, as Bernie pointed out.
Bernie and O'Malley should join forces on this issue.
Stand together at the DNC and say: what is the party afraid of?
I'd go to a rally like this.
Would you?
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