The DNC has changed the qualifying threshold for the next Democratic primary debate, supposedly targeting no one specifically, but ensuring Tulsi Gabbard – the last remaining woman and person of color in the race – is excluded.
The rule change was announced by the DNC on Friday for the upcoming debate in Arizona later this month, requiring candidates to rack up 20 percent of convention delegates to qualify. While Gabbard had met the previous threshold, having won two delegates in American Samoa on Super Tuesday, the new standard guarantees that she will not make the cut – a move that was blasted far and wide across social media.
Way to go Dems. Eliminate the only woman left. For no good reason, other than that you don’t like her and she’s honest/not beholden to your power structures. @TulsiGabbard deserves better, and y’all should be ashamed. https://t.co/HybHgsOCrC
A DNC spokesperson teased the new rules last Tuesday, on the very night Gabbard passed the previous threshold, noting the stricter standard would “reflect where we are in the race.” Supporters of the Hawaii rep and anti-war stalwart weren’t buying it, however, pointing out the convenient timing of the decision.
So, let me get this straight? You arbitrarily changed rules to allow Bloomberg into the debates, and now you will change them again to keep Tulsi out? Right on cue. #DNCisCorrupt#LetTulsiSpeak
Though Gabbard still has a chance to win additional delegates before the March 15 cutoff – with voters heading to the polls in six states next Tuesday, including delegate-rich Michigan – she is unlikely to meet the 20 percent threshold, currently polling at under 2 percent on average, according to Real Clear Politics.
You have just witnessed the Dem Party, the same entity that paints itself as the “party of inclusivity”, make their last great attempt to erase the LAST woman of color in the race, after pretending that losing Warren was a blow to “feminists”. F*** the DNC & ur fake “diversity” https://t.co/D1hUFhqlPr
An earlier overhaul of the rules in January eliminated an individual donor requirement – a common measure of grassroots support – allowing billionaire media mogul Michael Bloomberg to easily qualify for subsequent debates, spending hundreds of millions to saturate the airwaves with campaign ads. But after a dismal showing on Super Tuesday, Bloomberg was forced to drop out of the race.
