Bernie Sanders is not happy with the way he is being treated and is making demands of the Democratic National Convention. Despite Hillary Clinton believing that she indeed is the sure fire win for the democratic nomination, Sanders is refusing to give up.
In recent weeks Sanders has faced losing his California state director, being shut down in Nevada, and constant criticism from members of his party. Party members like Ken Martin, chairman of Minnesota Democratic Farmer Labor Party says, “It’s very clear now that the longer they stay in this race the more damage they’re doing.”
With the Democratic National Convention quickly approaching in July, voters question whether the Bern has burned out. Sanders’ camp along with many of his supporters feel as though they are being prohibited and limited in their ability to campaign by the national democrats. He recently accused Nevada democrats of preventing fair and transparent processes. In an effort to gain greater inclusion at the Philadelphia convention he wrote a letter to the Democratic National Committee chair, Debbie Wasserman Schultz. In the letter Sanders threatened to bring his fight to the floor of the convention, demanding that she appoint more of his loyalist to the platform, rules, and credentials committees. He also demanded that composition of the 155 person drafting committee, with members appointed by the chair, be evenly split between his loyalist and Clinton loyalist with one person being a neutral appointment. Both campaigns are expected to reach an agreement with the committee on today.
Despite the committee concession regarding seats on key convention committees, Sanders is still expected to aggressively argue platform issues such as a national minimum wage of $15 and for the party to take a more balanced position regarding Israel and Palestinians.
Taking on these issues aggressively may in turn further divide a party that needs to be unified in order to take on Donald Trump.
Many may not feel the Bern but it looks as though, Bernie Sanders is willing to set a few fires to make sure he gets to the convention and has a fair shot at winning the Democratic nomination.
