About fifty protestors joined together outside of the Democratic National Committee on South Capitol Street this afternoon to protest the party’s debate rules.
[img nocaption float=”right” width=”300″ height=”225″ render=”<%photoRenderType%>”]25837[/img]Representatives from the Martin O’Malley campaign and their volunteers made up the biggest contingent. Between 6 and 10 fans of Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders attended, as did a few Lyndon LaRouche PAC supporters. (Lincoln Chafee, Jim Webb, and Hillary Clinton did not appear to have any supporters in attendance.)
Protesters were there to complain about the DNC’s lack of debates this presidential cycle: Six, down from 26 in 2008. On top of that, should candidates like Sanders, O’Malley, Webb, or Chafee participate in an outside debate, the DNC could exclude them. Protesters allege this is all an effort to protect Clinton.
Howard, a St. Louis native, and Capitol Hill resident, was there to support O’Malley. He was donning a Clinton cut-out with a sign that said, “Please, let me talk about something other than emails.”
I asked him about DNC chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz’s non-answer to Andrea Mitchell about expanding debates, earlier in the day.
Howard had watched that very clip: “Yeah, she’s not a very good spokesperson. She has not reinvigorated the party, she has given up on the 50 state strategy… so, I hope she resigns. And maybe then, we can have some more debates. I think the Democratic contest does need some, um, excitement.”
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Andrew, a Bernie Sanders supporter from Maryland, was also not enthused by Wasserman Schultz’s recent dodging of the debate question.
“That’s it. Every time, its just, you know, well, this is not about Democrats deciding, we really need to put on a unified face to fight the Republicans. And I think right now, in our own primary, where it’s become some diverse with different choices, really, it really isn’t a question right now at this stage of the game ‘worry about the Republicans.’ I mean, that’s what the general election is for… It’s the DNC that’s bringing us together to fight this issue [of DNC debate rules.]?”
Wasserman Schultz, naturally, was in Simi Valley, California to do opposition spin at the second GOP debate. So, she wasn’t there to accept the 36,000 petitions presented. An aide, looking nervous, accepted on her behalf.
Congresswoman Maxine Waters walked out of the DNC mid-protest, and asked whether she had time for a comment on the protest, she looked away and said “not at the moment.”
As the chants and bongo drummer died down, the crowd dispersed. They hadn’t gotten an audience with the DNC chair, but those with an office window sure got an earful.
