Senator Bernie Sanders called for the resignation of Democratic National Committee chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz on Sunday, not for the first time, but possibly for the last.
Emails leaked by the WikiLeaks watchdog organization a few days ago have raised serious questions about the impartiality of the Democratic National Committee leadership during the primary season.
Wasserman Schultz is under growing pressure to resign her post as head of the Democratic National Committee. The move was spearheaded months ago by Sanders, who maintained the primary campaign in the party was “rigged” by the leadership.
“Does he believe in God. He had skated on saying he has a Jewish heritage. I read he is an atheist,” one of some 22,000 leaked emails said. “This could make several points difference with my peeps. My southern baptist peeps would draw a big difference between a Jew and an atheist,” write DNC chief financial officer Brad Marshall.
In an interview Sunday with CNN, Sanders did not call the email anti-Semitic, but he cited prejudice against his campaign by someone who was supposed to be neutral.
He also firmly denied that he is an atheist, and strongly condemned the email and the tone against “his faith.”
In an interview Sunday with CNN, Sanders did not call the email anti-Semitic, but he cited “prejudice” against his campaign by leadership that was supposed to be neutral.
“Well, I think it’s outrageous, but it is not a great shock to me,” he told CNN. “I think it’s what we talked about six months ago. … the DNC was supporting Hillary Clinton; it was an opposition power campaign, and that is why, many many months ago. I think Debbie Wasserman Schultz should resign, should step down.”
And what about his “personal response to having his faith questioned, as a Democratic candidate by someone supposedly neutral and theoretically on his team,” as CNN phrased the question?
“Well, first of all I am not an atheist, but aside from all of that. It is an outrage and sad,” the Jewish senator from Vermont replied.
“I asked, and demanded, Debbie Wasserman Schultz’s resignation many many months ago,” he said simply, “and I state that again. I don’t think she is qualified to be the chair of the DNC.”