Breaking: DNC chair Debbie Wasserman Shultz resigns over Wikileaks scandal

in #politics8 years ago (edited)


Democratic National Committee Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz is resigning after a wikileaks email dump showed her and other DNC aides exchanging catty messages about Bernie Sanders and brainstorming about how to sabotage the Vermont senator's campaign.

But she appears to already have another position in politics: on Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's campaign.

Source:https://news.vice.com/article/breaking-dnc-chair-debbie-wasserman-shultz-resigns-over-wikileaks-scandal

"There's simply no one better at taking the fight to the Republicans than Debbie," Clinton said in a statement. "Which is why I am glad that she has agreed to serve as honorary chair of my campaign's 50-state program to gain ground and elect Democrats in every part of the country, and will continue to serve as a surrogate for my campaign nationally, in Florida, and in other key states."

"I look forward to campaigning with Debbie in Florida and helping her in her re-election bid--because as President, I will need fighters like Debbie in Congress who are ready on day one to get to work for the American people."

Wasserman Schultz's resignation comes just one day before the Democratic convention kicks off in Philadelphia. The Florida congresswoman said she will step down after the convention. Her role in the convention itself has also been significantly scaled back.

President Barack Obama said in a statement that he called Wasserman Schultz on Sunday and thanked her for "having my back."

"Her leadership of the DNC has meant that we had someone who brought Democrats together not just for my re-election campaign, but for accomplishing the shared goals we have had for our country," the statement said. "Her critical role in supporting our economic recovery, our fights for social and civil justice and providing health care for all Americans will be a hallmark of her tenure as Party Chair."

Outside the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, Bernie Sanders' supporter Shana Lin, 46 said Wasserman-Schultz "should have stepped down a long time ago when Bernie first asked her to resign."

"We now have the Wikileaks emails showing that the Democratic party was working against Bernie Sanders the whole time," she said. "It gave us validation for what we've been saying for several months."