During the first official meeting of the Democratic Party since their trouncing at the polls on Election Day, Donna Brazile wanted to give a rip-roaring speech on the future of the party.
But Zach had a different idea.
“Why should we trust you as chair to lead us through this?” he asked, according to two people in the room. “You backed a flawed candidate, and your friend [former DNC chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz] plotted through this to support your own gain and yourself.”
Some of the people in the room started to boo Zach, yelling at him to sit down, but he had more to say:
“You are part of the problem,” he continued, blaming Brazile for clearing the path for Trump’s victory by siding with Clinton early on. “You and your friends will die of old age and I’m going to die from climate change. You and your friends let this happen, which is going to cut 40 years off my life expectancy.”
Zach picked up his things and walked out. Brazile called after him. He yelled at her to follow him outside and she could “tell people there” why should be leading the party.
The exchange was confirmed to The Huffington Post by two Democratic staffers.
Asked for comment, Brazile said in an email, “As you can imagine, the individual involved is a member of the staff and I personally do not wish to discuss our internal meetings.”
As has been reported, not only has the Democratic National Committee orchestrated a campaign to ensure Hillary’s victory in the primaries, but Brazile herself admitted to helping the Clinton campaign by feeding her debate questions in advance while a panelist on CNN.
Neither of the DNC staffers who spoke to HuffPost knew Zach’s last name, or much about him. They noted that he wasn’t alone in his sentiments. Some in the room nodded as he spoke, they said, and after he left, some talked about him being right on some points (perhaps not his claims about imminent death by climate change).
A third attendee told HuffPost that, despite Zach’s blow-up, there was “overwhelming” support for Brazile in the room. Her motivational words “had some staffers in tears,” per this attendee, and Brazile spoke to Zach’s concerns after he left. “If he had stayed, he would have heard that,” this person said.
