PHILADELPHIA — She was ousted from her job as party chief, shouted down by enraged delegates — and now Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz has given up the gavel at the convention, which kicks off Monday afternoon.
Ms. Wasserman Schultz told the Florida Sun-Sentinel she doesn’t want to be the cause of a scene as the convention begins.
She was likely to face a fierce round of jeers, particularly from delegates backing Sen. Bernard Sanders, whose belief that she was working against their champion appeared to be confirmed by leaked DNC emails over the last few days.
“I have decided that in the interest of making sure that we can start the Democratic convention on a high note that I am not going to gavel in the convention,” Ms. Wasserman Schultz told the newspaper.
A day earlier, she announced she would step down as party chairwoman once the convention ends on Thursday. She had already been stripped of duties overseeing the convention, but was still expected to gavel the proceedings in on Monday and close them out Thursday. Her announcement Monday changes that.
Ms. Wasserman Schultz is now trying to save her congressional seat, where she faces a challenge in the party primary from a Sanders-backing Democrat.
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• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.
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