Can This Guy Knock Off Queen of the Dems?

Things are heating up in Florida. The Democratic Party is on the brink of a civil war and many are dissatisfied with party leader Debbie Wasserman Schultz, who now faces a serious primary challenger.

“Well, the party is divided — that’s very clear. My opponent has not done all that much to help the situation. She herself has been very divisive as the head of the Democratic National Committee.”

The challenger is progressive candidate Tim Canova, whose candidacy made headlines last week when he was publicly endorsed by Sen. Bernie Sanders. Canova’s candidacy is fueled by the popularity of Sanders and the discontent with Wasserman Schultz as the party chair.

What’s more, Sanders is now fundraising for Canova. A fundraising pitch sent via email to Sanders supporters netted Canova more than $250,000 in less than two days — adding to his more than $1 million war chest against Wasserman Schultz.

LifeZette caught up with Canova for an exclusive interview about his candidacy and the impact of his race, as well as his thoughts on the future of the progressive movement inspired by Bernie Sanders.

Q: Why are you running for Florida’s 23 congressional district seat? What was the impetus for running?

A: I got involved lobbying against the TPP [Trans-Pacific Partnership] last year with the Citizens Trade campaign and Wasserman Schultz was the only House Democrat to fast-track it, so we were frustrated with her lack of responsiveness and her vote and discovered she was taking hundreds of thousands of dollars from lobbyists lobbying for the TPP. She has been neglecting her constituents.

Q: Do you think that more progressives should primary incumbent Democrats?

A: Yes, absolutely — and incumbent Republicans. Ninety percent of these House seats are very safe districts because of gerrymandering. If you don’t have primary challengers you don’t have much of a democracy. When they don’t have challengers the incumbents become safe and stop responding to the needs of constituents.

Q: Can Hillary Clinton can beat Donald Trump in Florida (presuming they are the two nominees)? 

A: From what I gather, for any Democrat to win Florida in the presidential race, it will require the Democrats winning Broward County by a couple hundred thousand votes. Where my district is key to a big turnout for Democrats and up until now my district was one of the bluest districts in the state.

Q: In your opinion, do you think there is a “civil war” within the Democratic Party?

A: Well, the party is divided — that’s very clear. My opponent has not done all that much to help the situation. She herself has been very divisive as the head of the Democratic National Committee.

Q: If there’s one thing you want people to know about your opponent and her record, what is it?

A: She’s been taking millions of dollars from big corporations and voting along their lines. My opponent has taken money from private prisons and opposed medical marijuana. She has also voted as a House member for a bill to prevent the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau [from] regulating against racial redlining in auto loans. Issue after issue, it seems she’s not very reliable — and there’s always a price to be paid.

Q: Do progressives have a chance at altering the platform of the Democratic Party at the convention in July? What would be some of the changes you’d like to see?

A: I think with Bernie Sanders getting nearly half the pledged delegates at this point, and maybe a majority after California votes — I would assume that progressives would have a significant role to play in the shaping of the platform. I would like to see the platform of the party embrace proposals for a full-employment economy, where there are jobs for everybody and there are public sector jobs. I would like to see a federal infrastructure bank to help us reform the economy.

Q: What’s the biggest takeaway from Sanders’ candidacy?

A: Whether he’s the nominee or not, I think Bernie Sanders’ legacy will be quite significant. I think he’s inspired untold thousands if not millions of people to get involved in politics at every kind of level, whether its running for office, working as a volunteer, phone banking — people are getting more involved up and down the line. It’s not just people getting involved, it’s people getting involved to try to push a progressive agenda.