Tipsheet

Tongue-tied: DNC Chair Can't Tell the Difference Between Democrats and Socialists

Debbie Wasserman-Schultz stammered when asked about the difference between a Democrat and a socialist. The DNC Chairwoman was on "Hardball" with Chris Matthews, and apparently, his question was a hardball for Wasserman-Schultz. 

Matthews pressed her several times on the question. The only answer she could muster was a vacuous attack on Republicans:

"What is the difference between a Democrat and a socialist?" Matthews asked, leaving Wasserman Schultz at a loss for words.

"I used to think there is a big difference. What do you think it is?" Matthews tried again. "A Democrat like Hillary and a socialist like Bernie Sanders."

"The more important question is what is the difference between being a Democrat and being a Republican," she said.

"What's the big difference between a Democrat and a socialist?" Matthews again asked.

"The relevant debate that we'll be having this campaign is what's the difference between a Democrat and a Republican," Schultz said.

"The difference between a Democrat and Republican is that Democrats fight to make sure everybody has an opportunity to succeed and the Republicans are strangled by their right-wing extremists," she said.

You'd think she could rise above that kind of pettiness and at least provide a rational answer to her own question, especially after shirking the question that Matthews posed. 

Even still, I guess you can't blame her for hesitating at the question. The "difference" between a Democrat and a socialist? Well, let's just say that may be a loaded question. "Difference," after all, is a very strong word.