Wasserman Schultz booed off stage in Philadelphia

Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz was repeatedly interrupted and booed Monday as she sought to speak to Florida’s convention delegation.

The Florida lawmaker, who is resigning from the DNC this week after leaked emails showed top members of the organization working to boost Hillary Clinton’s presidential primary bid, had to strain her voice to yell over the flurry of protestors who showed up to interrupt her speech.

Video of @DWStweets booed at Florida delegation breakfast pic.twitter.com/BADWZfIkjs

— Patricia Mazzei (@PatriciaMazzei) July 25, 2016

“We need to make sure we move together in a unified way,” she said over shouts from the crowd. 

As she spoke, people stood on chairs holding up signs that said “emails,” “No!” and “Thanks for the ‘help,’ Debbie.”

Others repeatedly shouted: “Shame.”

The heckling didn’t stop even as Wasserman Schultz mentioned last night’s shooting in Fort Meyers, Fla., that left two dead and more than a dozen injured. 

The Florida congresswoman was defiant, insisting delegates would see more of her.

“We know the voices in this room that are standing up and being disruptive, that’s not the Florida we know. The Florida we know is united, the Florida we know will continue to create jobs,” she said.

Yet the remarkable scene raised more questions about the wisdom of having Wasserman Schultz formally preside over the convention.

She has also said she plans to address the hall of delegates in Philadelphia. If she does, she will almost certainly be interrupted again by her opponents, but on a much larger scale.

Former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell on Monday said that were it up to him, Wasserman Schultz would not address the convention.  

“Debbie is very single-minded, very dedicated,” Rendell said. 

“She worked very hard, but she’s stubborn and she wants to see this thing through. I just think it’s wrong for her and it’s wrong for us.”

Emails posted by WikiLeaks appeared to show DNC officials looking for ways to tip the scales against Bernie Sanders during his race with Clinton for the party’s presidential nomination.  

One email showed a top DNC official calling for someone to corner Sanders on his religious beliefs, arguing that he’s “skated on saying he has a Jewish heritage.” And another showed a press official talking about pitching a negative story about Sanders’s organization.