"The head of one of the two big political parties in the United States is trying to choose its nominee by reducing input from voters." (Photo: PoolSafely/flickr/cc)
May 29, 2016
More than 40,000 people have signed a petition calling on the Democratic National Committee (DNC) to remove embattled chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz, who has faced increasing criticism over her leadership of the party in the 2016 election cycle.
The petition, organized by the grassroots group RootsAction.org, castigates Wasserman Schultz for what the group describes as an attempt to "minimize competition for her candidate Hillary Clinton" and for her actions in U.S. Congress as "a pro-militarist and corporatist tool of the high bidders."
"The head of one of the two big political parties in the United States is trying to choose its nominee by reducing input from voters," the petition states, charging that Wasserman Schultz blocked the Bernie Sanders campaign from accessing its own voter files.
RootsAction.org co-founder Norman Solomon said Sunday, "Wasserman Schultz has become a key operative and symbol of aversion to democracy at the top of the Democratic Party. Her removal as chair of the national party is necessary--though certainly insufficient--to shift the momentum in a positive direction."
Co-founder Jeff Cohen added, "The results, thus far, have been bad from the perspective of Wasserman Schultz's own party, including domination of the media's extensive election coverage by the other big party."
Cohen also noted that as polls continue to show that Sanders is the most formidable candidate against the presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump, the DNC may only be hurting itself by tamping down the Vermont senator's campaign.
"Another result has been reduced exposure for the Democratic candidate polling strongest against Republican rivals, Bernie Sanders," Cohen said.
The petition circulates as top Democratic Party insiders reportedly continue to discuss whether Wasserman Schultz has become "too toxic" to remain as DNC chair--and whether she should be removed before this summer's nominating convention in Philadelphia.
"There's a strong sentiment that the current situation is untenable and can only be fixed by her leaving," a senior Democratic aide told The Hill last week. "There's too much water under the bridge for her to be a neutral arbiter."
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. The final deadline for our crucial Summer Campaign fundraising drive is just hours away, and we’re falling short of our must-hit goal. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Nadia Prupis
Nadia Prupis is a former Common Dreams staff writer. She wrote on media policy for Truthout.org and has been published in New America Media and AlterNet. She graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a BA in English in 2008.
More than 40,000 people have signed a petition calling on the Democratic National Committee (DNC) to remove embattled chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz, who has faced increasing criticism over her leadership of the party in the 2016 election cycle.
The petition, organized by the grassroots group RootsAction.org, castigates Wasserman Schultz for what the group describes as an attempt to "minimize competition for her candidate Hillary Clinton" and for her actions in U.S. Congress as "a pro-militarist and corporatist tool of the high bidders."
"The head of one of the two big political parties in the United States is trying to choose its nominee by reducing input from voters," the petition states, charging that Wasserman Schultz blocked the Bernie Sanders campaign from accessing its own voter files.
RootsAction.org co-founder Norman Solomon said Sunday, "Wasserman Schultz has become a key operative and symbol of aversion to democracy at the top of the Democratic Party. Her removal as chair of the national party is necessary--though certainly insufficient--to shift the momentum in a positive direction."
Co-founder Jeff Cohen added, "The results, thus far, have been bad from the perspective of Wasserman Schultz's own party, including domination of the media's extensive election coverage by the other big party."
Cohen also noted that as polls continue to show that Sanders is the most formidable candidate against the presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump, the DNC may only be hurting itself by tamping down the Vermont senator's campaign.
"Another result has been reduced exposure for the Democratic candidate polling strongest against Republican rivals, Bernie Sanders," Cohen said.
The petition circulates as top Democratic Party insiders reportedly continue to discuss whether Wasserman Schultz has become "too toxic" to remain as DNC chair--and whether she should be removed before this summer's nominating convention in Philadelphia.
"There's a strong sentiment that the current situation is untenable and can only be fixed by her leaving," a senior Democratic aide told The Hill last week. "There's too much water under the bridge for her to be a neutral arbiter."
Nadia Prupis
Nadia Prupis is a former Common Dreams staff writer. She wrote on media policy for Truthout.org and has been published in New America Media and AlterNet. She graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a BA in English in 2008.
More than 40,000 people have signed a petition calling on the Democratic National Committee (DNC) to remove embattled chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz, who has faced increasing criticism over her leadership of the party in the 2016 election cycle.
The petition, organized by the grassroots group RootsAction.org, castigates Wasserman Schultz for what the group describes as an attempt to "minimize competition for her candidate Hillary Clinton" and for her actions in U.S. Congress as "a pro-militarist and corporatist tool of the high bidders."
"The head of one of the two big political parties in the United States is trying to choose its nominee by reducing input from voters," the petition states, charging that Wasserman Schultz blocked the Bernie Sanders campaign from accessing its own voter files.
RootsAction.org co-founder Norman Solomon said Sunday, "Wasserman Schultz has become a key operative and symbol of aversion to democracy at the top of the Democratic Party. Her removal as chair of the national party is necessary--though certainly insufficient--to shift the momentum in a positive direction."
Co-founder Jeff Cohen added, "The results, thus far, have been bad from the perspective of Wasserman Schultz's own party, including domination of the media's extensive election coverage by the other big party."
Cohen also noted that as polls continue to show that Sanders is the most formidable candidate against the presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump, the DNC may only be hurting itself by tamping down the Vermont senator's campaign.
"Another result has been reduced exposure for the Democratic candidate polling strongest against Republican rivals, Bernie Sanders," Cohen said.
The petition circulates as top Democratic Party insiders reportedly continue to discuss whether Wasserman Schultz has become "too toxic" to remain as DNC chair--and whether she should be removed before this summer's nominating convention in Philadelphia.
"There's a strong sentiment that the current situation is untenable and can only be fixed by her leaving," a senior Democratic aide told The Hill last week. "There's too much water under the bridge for her to be a neutral arbiter."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.