What Happened at the Clark County Convention?

9 Comments

Information filtered through social media on Saturday, April 2 that something was amiss at the Clark County Democratic delegate convention held in Nevada. Several days later, that something was still not entirely clear.

CK sitdown
CHRISTINE KRAMER, Credential Chair of Clark County Democrats, holds a sit down demonstration when asked to leave the Executive Committee meeting.

The puzzlement comes in part from the way a caucus system works as opposed to a primary. In primaries, voters cast their votes and a winner is determined. Delegates are then apportioned to the candidates.

The Nevada caucus is a multi-part system that began with precinct level caucusing in February. Hillary Clinton won that with a 53-47% advantage. Stage two came on April 2 when delegates met at the county level.

This article from The Moderate Voice helps explain why the Clark county convention became a something:

“ethically…county convention delegates should have remained true to the candidate they said that they were supporting in February, otherwise they would disenfranchise the people who voted for them as a delegate. However, these are non-binding affiliations.”

The activity at the Clark county convention will take on different meanings depending on whether you are a supporter of Independent Senator Bernie Sanders or his opponent, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. It looks as though the chaos of April 2 can be divided into three main areas:

  1. Sanders’ supporters prepared and coordinated a strategy for acquiring more delegates through a Reddit group.
  2. Some members of the Clark County Democratic Party, apparent supporters of Sanders, were involved in this pre-planning.
  3. A memo and email were sent to delegates which provided misinformation, and resulted in fewer Clinton delegates in attendance.

There was scant media coverage of the events other than an announcement that Sanders had “won” additional delegates. A newspaper also reported that Clinton’s legal team had filed a complaint regarding the something, though that is still not a fully developed news item.

Here then, are fragments of the chaos at the Clark County convention, as pieced together from social media.

The Daily News Bin was the first source with detailed information, posting an obviously biased headline and story on 2 April: Serial cheater Bernie Sanders tried to retroactively steal Nevada from Hillary Clinton today

By 10PM, the delegate count was completed and sporadic tweets began appearing. The video below shows the packed hall, the final count announcement, the impatience of Sanders’ supporters, as overheard in the videographer, and then cheering as the numbers are announced.

Tweets surfaced late Saturday and into the early hours of Sunday, as people tried to knit together the facts and exclude the rumors.

Another YouTube video, posted on a Sanders support channel, shows the Clark County Democratic Executive Committee attempting to hold an “emergency” meeting. There is protest by Christine Kramer, the credentials chair, who is responsible for selecting delegates for the Nevada state convention (stage 3 of the caucus process).

In the raw video, Kramer tells the videographer that she is being removed, complains about not being invited to the meeting, about it being unscheduled and at one point, protests about being touched as she is asked to leave. Kramer sits on the floor in protest, and calls for singing “We Shall Overcome.”

The entire scene lasts less than ten minutes. The committee breaks up. The videographer follows Executive Committee members, asking repeatedly if they are “trespassing,” even after being told the committee is locking up the building.

If you’re familiar with tactics of Sovereign Citizens when confronted by authorities, you’ll notice similarities in response. The “offended” or challenged individual tries to invoke legalities in an accusatory manner against the authority. The challenged person states his/her case, often videotaping the entire episode. The challenged person then resorts to some kind of action when all else fails.

Watch the video.

Here’s the description of the video published on the Bernie Sanders channel:

“Published on Apr 2, 2016

Christine Kramar has been removed as Clark County’s chair of credentials committee after an Emergency meeting by Hillary Clinton supporters on the executive board.

At the convention, she was removed from the convention center and is currently being arrested.” [emphasis added]

There is no confirmation that Kramer was arrested. However, Ralston Reports wrote that the Clinton campaign demanded her removal in a letter just prior to the Saturday convention (see below). Kramer was accused of “releasing confidential Clinton information to the Bernie Sanders campaign.”

Kramer admitted to sending out email but presented her activity as the tireless work of a volunteer who was “not part of the establishment,” a description associated with Bernie Sanders.

As the series of tweets indicate, delegates for Clinton accused Kramer and others of “rigging” the convention, blocking Clinton delegates from entering and refusing to recognize them for an official objection on the floor of the convention.

Other tweets showed the Bernie Sanders website and its detailed call to action, along with correct information regarding delegate attendance. A digital “invite” sent by Kramer stated that delegates did not need to show up. It is this crucial piece of misinformation that led to a higher attendance of Bernie supporters and the change in delegate count, which favored Sanders.

The juxtaposition between Kramer’s email and the call to action on the Sanders’ website support Clinton’s case:

  1. The Sanders’ campaign had the correct instructions regarding attendance of delegates.
  2. The Sanders’ campaign was planning to mass individuals to take the place of any no-show Clinton delegates.

Lastly, a tweet from a Sanders supporter praises the overwhelming show of “new” Bernie delegates, per the website instructions. Kudos is given to the Reditt group, which links its involvement in the Clark County action.

NV Scam

Letter Demanding Removal of Christine Kramer:

Clark County Democratic Party Executive Board

Chris Miller, Chair
6233 Dean Martin Dr.
Las Vegas, NV 89118

chrisisademocrat@gmail.com

Re: Removal of Christine Kramer as Credentials Chair

Dear Chair Miller:

I write as general counsel to Hillary for America to request the immediate removal of Christine Kramar as Credentials Chair of the Clark County Democratic Convention to take place this Saturday, April 2.  Throughout Hillary for America’s attempts to engage with Ms. Kramar regarding the credentialing of convention delegates and other matters, Ms. Kramar has publicly engaged in a series of egregious, disruptive and biased behavior that irreparably undermines her credibility to administer a fair and successful convention on Saturday.  

First, in an email sent today, March 30, Ms. Kramar exposed confidential Hillary for America (“HFA”) campaign information and data by unilaterally adding a representative of Senator Sanders’ campaign into a chain of email correspondence between HFA, the Clark County Democratic Party and the Nevada State Democratic Party.  As you know, the confidentiality and propriety of data is paramount to any campaign.  Ms. Kramar’s carelessness – or worse – in exposing HFA’s data is plainly unacceptable and must not be tolerated. 

Second, in another email sent today to both campaigns, Ms. Kramar engaged in a series of unwarranted and inexcusable personal attacks against HFA representatives, and frivolously accused HFA of engaging in unethical practices in its preparation for Saturday’s convention.  Indeed, it is apparent from Ms. Kramar’s email that she is advocating for positions in her role as credentials chair based on candidate-specific grounds, rather than making impartial decisions that are in the best interest of the tens of thousands of Clark County Democrats who turned out to caucus last month and who wish to participate as delegates to the Clark County Democratic Convention.  Ms. Kramer’s behavior is at odds with the values of Nevada Democrats and the spirit of the primary campaign between Secretary Clinton and Senator Sanders.  

In her latest email to both HFA and the Sanders campaign regarding the credentialing of delegates, Ms. Kramar issued HFA an ultimatum: either the county convention proceed on Saturday under the terms agreed upon by both campaigns or the convention be delayed for further discussion and resolution of various credentialing rules.  To be clear: it is and always has been HFA’s position that the Clark County Democratic Convention proceed as scheduled and under the agreed-upon rules and procures.   However, it is my strong belief that Ms. Kramar’s behavior demonstrate that she is not suited to administer the convention in an impartial way according to those rules and procedures.  As a result, I respectfully request that this board immediately relieve Ms. Kramer from playing any role related to the credentialing of delegates or any other party procedures to take place at this Saturday’s county convention.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if it would be helpful to discuss this matter further.

Very truly yours,
Marc E. Elias
General Counsel to Hillary for America

9 Comments

  1. Thank you for your through account of this incident. Many of us were confused by the event and the media barely reported on it, thus those of us interested were left in the dark.
    I am a Clinton supporter in Portland Oregon. I know I’m not alone but given the amount of abuse I’ve received via social media I’ve started to feel isolated and like a castaway. It’s nice to know I haven’t imagined the systemic culture of intimidation I’ve witnessed from the Sanders campaign.

    Liked by 1 person

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  2. I am writing to tell you that I was extremely impressed with your connection between the methods of Sovereign Citizens and the methods of Sanders supporters. I have been saying this for several weeks now, but couldn’t get anyone traction because most people don’t have first hand experience with it. I live in Oregon, and our own encounter with the Patriot Movement is all to fresh in my memory. The connections I have made include the Sanders supporters online omnipresence, use of threats, and cult/siege mentality. So I just wanted to thank you, for reassuring me that it wasn’t just me!

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    1. Laura, first I followed Malheur (and wrote about it here), and one thing that stuck out for me was the divisiveness that came about – it was awful! Townspeople who’d coexisted for years, filled with anger & hate… so I hope you did not have to go thru that. That’s so traumatic and long-lasting. This is exactly what I see happening with Bernie’s people. Just today, one of his soldiers tweeted to me that they were at “war” and “spying on the enemy” was part of war.

      As for the Sovereign Citizen tactics, the Bernie’s have apparently been taught this. They mimicked it at the Clark Co Convention. Those who’ve never encountered it are dumbfounded & have no immediate way to turn it back. I did see a video put out by a police department for law enforcement that explained the tactics, and showed LE how to counter it. Looks like Democrat party leaders will need this training now.

      Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts & experience, Laura. I really appreciate it.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  3. I was a Bernie delegate at the convention, and I also received that e-mail saying I didn’t need to attend if I attended the early check-in. Anyone who actually followed the directions contained in their e-mail (show up on Friday and check-in, but, don’t show up on Saturday) had their vote counted. If there had been a second ballot on Saturday, it would have effected the outcome, but, because their was only one ballot (which people cast when they checked in), that e-mail had zero impact on the outcome of the election.

    You can see a screen shot of the e-mail I received here:

    http://sierradeagua.blogspot.com/2016/04/clark-county-democratic-convention-2016.html

    There is, to my knowledge, no evidence that Christine Kramer sent out that e-mail. And, again in contrast to the claims made above, if you checked-in at the convention (whether it was Friday night or Saturday morning) and then left, you vote counted.

    Also, there was a motion made for a recount that was accepted by the chair, and voted upon by all the people in attendance. Anyone saying that the motion to hold a recount was ignored by the chair is flat out lying.

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    1. I wasn’t there, so I want to give you the opportunity to share your experience. However, your experience does not jive with the info from Clinton delegates. Also, Kramer admitted sending out the email, and there is a screenshot in my article showing this.

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      1. “I was not there” I suggest the eyewitness report from someone who was there (Jeff Baker) must be weighed heavily here. He admits that he’s not sure of whether Kramer sent the email, but given the fact that the email was sent to both Bernie and Hillary supporters, exactly who sent it is irrelevant. The fact that Hillary’s supporters demanded and received the dismissal of the credentials chairman is readily admitted by Hillary supporters. They say they did it because of her actions, but it is also possible (regardless of what their attorney may say) that they did it because she was a Bernie supporter in a key position at the convention. One of my operating principles of life is that one should never blindly accept the statements of an attorney because they are paid to present their clients in the best possible light.

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      2. I think you’re missing my point. Kramer ADMITTED sending the email. Her admission is incontestable. If you also compare that with the Bernie Sanders website with “correct” information then it’s reasonable to assume that:
        1. Kramer intentionally sent out misleading information and
        2. Bernie delegates knew it was misleading, and thus
        3. Bernie delegates showed up whereas
        4. Hillary delegates were told by Kramer that attendance was not required and
        5. Some portion of Hillary delegates did not appear.

        Sending out misleading information in and of itself is enough to have someone removed, regardless of who their candidate of choice might be. When that action results in a benefit for their candidate, as it did, then there is definitely a problem.

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      3. Your entire account is far too biased.

        [Comments Edited]

        Actions Hillary should take:

        [Comments Edited]

        Failure of Mrs. Clinton to take these steps immediately must be taken as evidence that she lacks the integrity and the communication skills necessary to perform the duties of the office of President of the United States.

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      4. I’ve edited most of your comments and suggest you reprint them in your own blog. While I value feedback on my posts, this is not an arena for folks to use as a soapbox.

        Your demands on Hillary Clinton (also edited) demonstrate that you do not understand how the world works, unless you want that world to be an authoritarian one in which you order people around and they obediently submit.

        Good Luck out there!

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