Giving the Thumbs Down on the Democratic Platform

After five minutes of debate by both sides a voice vote, with the holding of a paper in the air indicating the Ayes and Nays, was taken and it was clear to the room that "the ayes had it." At that point the Hillary team went into damage control attempting a series of parliamentary tricks to undo the vote -- which was not supposed to pass -- followed by a specious claim of disenfranchisement of some of their voting members.

[click here to see the video]

Noticeably absent during this period was Wendy Sherman, who one member of the National Nurse contingent stated to me had briefly left the floor to use the restroom. Without her wielding authoritarian control over the Hillary delegation via her thumbs down signal, they were left to think for themselves for the first and only time in the two-day process. You can see initial confusion as several members of the committee were futilely seeking to catch a glimpse of Sherman's absent thumb. But as time ran out they cast their vote as they personally thought they should.

At that time Clinton loyalist Pryor again frantically rushed to the microphone to take control of the meeting from the floor while other Clinton operatives are seen rushing up to the dais to talk with the Parliamentarian and other officials. They sought to have the affirmative vote undone.

Several of the observers in the "peanut gallery" described a man jumping up and down trying to give the thumbs down signal during the vote but the Hillary members did not initially recognize his authority as stand-in for Sherman. This may have been Pryor.

The vote was allowed to go forward with the clear expectation that the amendment would fail. "I think the ayes have it," stated Franklin after an awkward pause, speaking away from the microphone to the other officials on the dais. This was not part of the pre-approved script so a formal recorded vote was required. If you watch carefully at this point you will see that the Sanders camp also employed a set of signals to communicate with their members -- using a green card to indicate that they supported it. This passive signal was not wielded in the authoritarian style of the now momentarily absent Wendy Sherman with her aggressive imperial thumbs down thrusts.

The camera then turns to the screen where you can see again the Hillary delegates were unsure of how they were expected to vote. The Green column on the left, indicating Aye, was significantly higher than the red No on the right, with a number of abstentions initially recorded using their electronic voting device or "clicker."

As Hillary's surrogates scrambled to bring their members into line you can hear the outburst from the Sanders' support in the "peanut gallery" (a domain that was effectively Clinton free -- she had no presence at the hotel in the two days other than those there to do business -- beyond a set of sign holders that it was stated were paid to be outside in a "spontaneous rally" at the opening of the first day.).

As the instructions are slowly conveyed to each of the Hillary delegates the number rises to parity -- then a brief moment of a one vote 79-78 margin in opposition as the abstentions switch to votes -- but then ultimately it reaches an 81-80 majority with one abstention where it holds until the time for voting expired.

Having achieved the first and only real victory of the weekend, a vote passed without prior agreement, the Sanders delegation and supporters erupt jubilantly. Some of the Hillary delegation dared defy the Party bosses and an amendment was won. The Sanders delegation was dancing in the aisles and even several of the Hillary committee members were applauding this brief moment of true democracy in action.

But despite the declaration of Franklin that "it passes" and the attempt to move on to the next issue it took a few frantic moments before Pryor returned to grab the microphone to make a point of order. After a career in politics Pryor seemed to be confused that an abstention does not count as a vote in opposition -- and the one vote margin of victory constituted a simple majority and that was what had been used the entire weekend to pass a vote. Now all of a sudden Pryor is grasping -- at first stating that there was a 1% margin needed that was nowhere in the rules.

Despite the firm and repeated ruling of the Committee's Parliamentarian, that if you chose not to exercise your right to vote by abstaining it was "as if you voted in the majority," Pryor kept up his objections. Throughout you can see certain Hillary surrogates running up to the dais to talk with the presiding officers and running back down to confer with Pryor. The former Senator from Arkansas then tried to get a roll call vote challenging the ruling of the chair.

Then the desperation really set in as the Hillary bosses claimed that after nearly two days of votes, two of their voting members did not have "clickers." Trying to claim that had they voted, the convenient two votes would be what was minimally needed to reverse the majority approval to opposition.

The Committee leadership was clearly in a bind as they were appointed by the DNC to ensure the presumptive nominee's side always prevailed. This was not in the script. Pryor's next parliamentary gambit was to call for a quorum -- when the vote itself clearly demonstrated one existed by nearly twice the number required. They were grasping at straws.

Then Pryor, clearly perspiring, demanded a roll call on the quorum. As the gamesmanship grew ever more creative, the sense of tension in the room rose as jeers of trying to "just make it up" as it goes are clearly audible. The Sanders support grew anxious and angry that again, in front of their eyes, the process was attempting to be rigged.

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