5:41 PM ET5:41PM ET
By Patrick Healy and Maggie Haberman
MINNEAPOLIS – Martin O’Malley had one clear chance to make waves within the Democratic National Committee, and he seized it, delivering a fiery speech Friday that condemned his party’s leadership for what he called a process “rigged” to help Hillary Rodham Clinton — namely, curtailing the number of presidential primary debates.
Accusing party leaders of trying to keep Democratic ideas hidden as the Republican presidential candidates spew “racist hate” from their debate lecterns, Mr. O’Malley, the former Maryland governor and mayor of Baltimore, questioned the decision to hold “four debates and four debates only” before the first four states finish voting.
“This is totally unprecedented in our party’s history,” Mr. O’Malley said. “This sort of rigged process has never been attempted before. Whose decree is it exactly? Where did it come from? To what end? For what purpose? What national or party interest does this decree serve? How does this help us tell the story of the last eight years of Democratic progress?”
While Mr. O’Malley never named the party’s chairwoman, Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida, his remarks about the debates were clearly aimed at her – and she sat looking grim throughout, barely clapping, and appeared angry when she shook his hand once he finished.
He did not name Mrs. Clinton in his speech, either, but Mr. O’Malley was asked afterward if he thought the debate schedule had been arranged for her benefit. “Yes, I think so. Don’t you?” he replied.
Sounds like the same complaint by some from the republican side. By the way does anyone know who this person is?
@12.30pm: Hardly. The Hillary machine is being given the easiest path to the nomination process I’ve ever seen in my long life. In order to make it seem like there’s some competition, the DMC allowed in that other old guy who’s name you have to Google just to remind yourself. It’s the complete opposite on the Republican side, so I’m kinda hard pressed to understand your logic of it being “the same complaint on the Republican side”.