The Democratic Party is About to Break its Own Rules

By Victor Landa, NewsTaco

Someone at the Democratic National Committee should grab a cup of coffee, sit in a quiet place, and read their bylaws.

They’re interesting, and lengthy. Twenty-two pages of club rules, do’s and don’t for members of the Democratic Party.

Page six is the most extraordinary – it’s where you’ll find Article 5, Section 4. It reads:

“Section 4. The National Chairperson shall serve full-time and shall receive such compensation as
may be determined by agreement between the Chairperson and the Democratic National Committee. In
the conduct and management of the affairs and procedures of the Democratic National Committee,
particularly as they apply to the preparation and conduct of the Presidential nomination process, the
Chairperson shall exercise impartiality and evenhandedness as between the Presidential candidates and
campaigns. The Chairperson shall be responsible for ensuring that the national officers and staff of the
Democratic National Committee maintain impartiality and evenhandedness during the Democratic Party
Presidential nominating process.”

This matters because several Democratic bigwigs, like Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), are pushing Congressman Keith Ellison (D-MN) for the top DNC post. Ellison, an African-American Muslim, is considered a top draw for progressives. Others have tossed their own hats in the ring, like former Governor and former DNC Chair Howard Dean, and Arizona Congressman Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) has also been mentioned as a possibility.

It would seem that only Dean fits the rules, unless Ellison or Gallego resign their congressional post to manage the party.

Or, and this seems to be the most plausible route, someone not in office, someone with spare time, could step-in to salvage the Democrats’ future.

This is no small wrench in the works, and it might be good for the DNC muckety-mucks to read their own rules of the road before they take-off on this next jaunt.  And this isn’t considering the past – the immediate past chair, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, was a sitting member of congress when she led the party.

If they’re looking for them, they can find the rules HERE.


[Photo by DonkeyHotey/Flickr]

 

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