FL DNCer Jon Ausman has been "trying to give" his state "a voice" at the convo by filing appeals with the DNC's Rules and Bylaws Cmte, arguing that it "overstepped its authority in stripping away" FL's delegates. But Ausman is "fed up with the brushoff he says he's getting from the party."
Ausman: "There's obviously a stall going on. ... They're treating Florida worse than their own dog."
"For weeks, Ausman said he has been unable to get calls returned" by cmte co-Chairs Alexis Herman and Jim Roosevelt (neither "could be reached for comment"). Ausman said they either "want to wait until a candidate drops out of the race or don't want to admit they made a mistake in punishing" FL "so severely for setting a primary earlier than DNC rules allowed."
A "party rules maven," Ausman and his appeals "were seen as the fastest vehicle for getting [the] delegate controversy resolved." Ausman: "They need to step up to the plate or they just need to admit what they're going to do, which is nothing. Obviously the process and the rules don't count" (Smith, Tampa Tribune, 4/21).
Trying To Shine Some Light On The Matter
Sen. Bill Nelson and Rep. Alcee Hastings, two FL Dems supporting Hillary Clinton, have asked the DNC "to make public its internal recommendations on how to handle appeals" by FL and MI.
In an 4/3 letter to the Rules and Bylaws Cmte, Nelson and Hastings "criticized the DNC for keeping recommendations on the appeals by its staff confidential. The letter also said the lawmakers understood the DNC 'may choose to adopt the confidential recommendations without a hearing.'" Letter: "The Democratic Party is an open party, [and] it would be inconsistent with the DNC's commitment to openness to keep actions on these appeals under a cloak of secrecy."
In a 4/21 conference call, DNC Chair Howard Dean "declined to discuss the letter or the larger issue" of FL and MI. But DNC spokesperson Stacie Paxton "said in a release that 'staff had two weeks to make their recommendation to the Rules and Bylaws co-chairs, which they have done.'" Paxton: "The co-chairs are now reviewing the recommendation, [and] when they decide how to proceed, it will be made public" (Youngman, The Hill, 4/21).
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