Editor’s Note: Jack DeVries is a junior at UNCW studying business. Jack also works as a staff writer for The Seahawk and is a frequent writer for the Political Perspectives column. All opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author. All suggestions and inquiries may be sent via email to [email protected]. 

Donna Brazile, the ex-interim chair of the DNC is about to open up old wounds for democrats. Her new book, Hacks: The Inside Story of the Break-ins and Breakdowns That Put Donald Trump in the White House, was published Nov. 7. In the book, Brazile breaks down Donald Trump’s win, and the unethical dealings of presidential candidate Hillary Clinton that may have helped him. Last week, Politico posted an excerpt of the work, and Democrats aren’t happy.

The Politico excerpt makes wild claims about the atmosphere inside the DNC. With its release, Hillary and many top Democrats have been burned. Brazile claims she inherited a mess, and that the DNC “was beset by infighting, scandal, and hubris.” She notably deflects blame to her predecessor, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, and even to Barack Obama.

According to the excerpt, Schultz ran the DNC carelessly, letting the Obama campaigns leave the DNC drowning in debt. Brazile also claims that Hillary’s headquarters, whom she refers to simply as “Brooklyn,” took control of the party a year before the primary and only months after declaring a presidential run. Hillary allegedly repaid the debt from Obama’s campaigns in order to influence the Democratic primary, and party as a whole.

In order to orchestrate this, Brazile claims that a deal was cut between Hillary’s campaign manager, Robby Mook, and former DNC chief executive, Amy Dacey. The agreement gave Hillary full control of DNC finances. With financial control, Hillary was able to send donations meant for down-ballot state races directly to the Clinton campaign. According to Hillary defectors, this deal let Hillary steal the primary from her opponent, Bernie Sanders.

With the DNC in turmoil, Democrats have been picking sides. Staunch Hillary supporters claim betrayal, even after Hillary financially resuscitated the DNC. While non-Hillary supporting Democrats allege cheating and want Clinton (and her family) as far away from the DNC as possible. In some ways, both factions are right to be outraged.

Just like he left the country, Obama left the DNC deeply in debt. Unfortunately, without a Clinton presidential run, the DNC may not have been able to recover Obama’s $24 million debt. Hillary, while fatally flawed, was a necessary candidate to bring the party finances out of the red. Unlike her competition, Bernie Sanders, Hillary’s deep pockets and ability to woo donors were exactly what the DNC needed.

On the other hand, DNC officers were not only aware of the Clinton campaign’s deeds, they were complicit. While this revisionism from Donna Brazile is pleasant, she too helped Hillary defeat Bernie. The Podesta emails, posted by WikiLeaks, show that Brazile was more than willing to help Hillary wherever she could.

Hopefully the book will go into more detail, but for now, Democrats need to purge as much of the 2016 election from their party as possible. Make no mistake, this book is an effort by Brazile to help the DNC, not attack it. As more rumors from the 2016 election are proven true, the DNC will surely cut further ties with the Clinton family. For the party’s survival, the DNC has a lot to overcome in order to be ready for future elections.