PHILADELPHIA, Pa. — The chair of the Democratic National Committee “did the appropriate thing” by resigning, according to one of West Virginia’s 18 pledged delegates for U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (D-Vt.), a former Democratic presidential candidate, at this week’s Democratic National Convention.
Submitted in the wake of the release of hacked e-mails showing favoritism for presumptive Democratic Presidential Nominee Hillary Clinton among DNC staffers during primary season, the resignation of Debbie Wasserman Schultz, also a Florida congresswoman, will take effect when the Convention closes later this week in Philadelphia, Pa.
“That’s not the way it’s supposed to work. The party in primaries is supposed to be neutral,” said Senate Minority Leader Jeff Kessler (D-Marshall, 02) who called the revelations of efforts to potentially negatively affect the Sanders campaign earlier this year “disappointing.”
With party primary neutrality, “It doesn’t always work out that way sometimes and it does appear that sometimes there’s always folks that have favorites, but when you’re in a position of leadership, you’re supposed to play by the book and that means a level playing field for the all candidates in the primary process,” Kessler said.
In one of the leaked e-mail exchanges, dated in early May, DNC officials discuss potentially attempting to bring Sanders’ religious beliefs into the campaign.
“It might may no difference, but for KY and WVA can we get someone to ask his belief. Does he believe in a God. He had skated on saying he has a Jewish heritage. I think I read he is an atheist. This could make several points difference with my peeps. My Southern Baptist peeps would draw a big difference between a Jew and an atheist.,” wrote Brad Marshall, DNC chief financial officer.
Sanders won more than 20 states during the 2016 primary season, including West Virginia.
Kessler was scheduled to be part of a meeting with Sanders and other supporters “to get a better feel” for his reaction in Philadelphia on Monday afternoon before the Democratic National Convention opened at the Wells Fargo Center.
On Monday morning, Wasserman Schultz was booed at the Florida delegation breakfast, a day after she submitted her resignation. She planned to maintain some convention presence throughout the week.
Kessler, a DNC attendee in 2008 and 2012, is a pledged delegate for Sanders and said he would be voting for Sanders during the Convention Roll Call this week, but will support Clinton, the presumptive nominee, in the Nov. 8 general election as an alternative to Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee.
During last week’s Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio, Kessler said all he heard was “this hatred and anger and whatever without any type of real vision of where he wanted to go,” Kessler said during a Monday appearance on MetroNews “Talkline.”
West Virginia has 37 Democratic National Convention delegates.
In addition to Kessler, the delegation included U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), Governor Earl Ray Tomblin, Secretary of State Natalie Tennant, state Treasurer John Perdue and West Virginia Democratic Party Chair Belinda Biafore among others.
Jim Justice, Democratic gubernatorial candidate, has said he had no plans to be in Philadelphia this week.
“We do better as a party when we stand up and are not afraid to be Democrats,” Kessler said of that decision from Justice. “I would love to see him here.”
The Democratic National Convention continues through Thursday at Philadelphia’s Wells Fargo Center.