The 2016 Democratic national convention has opened in
Philadelphia in an atmosphere of some unanticipated
tensions as the release of Democratic National Committee
(DNC) e-mails reveal possible bias in the presidential
nomination campaign by the DNC. Chair Debbie
Wasserman-Schultz has resigned, effective this Thursday,
and will apparently not appear at all at the convention (in
contrast to GOP chair Reince Priebus who spoke frequently
at his convention in Cleveland.
Although Senator Bernie Sanders has endorsed Secretary
Hillary Clinton following their bitter nomination battle, many
of the Vermont senator’s supporters who are DNC convention
delegates are not yet likewise resolved to vote for Mrs. Clinton,
and the e-mail controversy has seemingly exacerbated this.
The media made much of several prominent Republicans who
deliberately avoided the GOP convention, but there are a number
of Democratic U.S. senate candidates (in tight races) who are
avoiding Philadelphia.
Donald Trump, according to several polls just released, has
received a larger-than-expected bounce from his convention,
although most of the media was quite critical and skeptical
about the events in Cleveland and Trump’s own acceptance
speech which was almost universally described as “dark” and
pessimistic (and unfavorably contrasted with Ronald Reagan’s
speeches decades before).
There was a welcome lack of disturbance and violent protest
in Cleveland, and the Lake Erie city received many kudos for
its performance in hosting the convention. It is hoped this benign
hospitality will be repeated in Philadelphia, a city which votes
overwhelmingly Democratic in presidential elections.
Hillary Clinton will be making, as did Donald Trump at his
convention, the most important speech of her political career
on Thursday. Many prominent Democrats and Hollywood
figures are expected to make remarks.
This year the contrast in national conventions and the
contrast in presidential nominees might be particularly
instructive to the result of the contentious election campaign
that will almost certainly follow.
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Copyright (c) 2016 by Barry Casselman. All rights reserved.
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