Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D., Fla.), the chair of the Democratic National Committee, claimed Wednesday that the Colorado Republican Party "canceled their caucus" on Super Tuesday, a statement that was met with swift pushback by the state GOP.
Wassermann Schultz made the remarks when CNN host Wolf Blitzer asked her about the wide disparity in turnout between the Republican and Democratic parties in primaries across the country, suggesting there was more enthusiasm on the GOP side.
Wasserman Schultz opted to talk about "panic" on the Republican side of the aisle.
"Even last night, Wolf, with Colorado, the Republicans are in such disarray and it's so chaotic there, that in Colorado, the Republican Party canceled their caucus," Wasserman-Schultz said. "So the only delegates going to the convention from Colorado on the Republican side are superdelegates. That's how much disarray is going on on the Republican side."
In fact, the state GOP scrapped the presidential straw poll due to a new RNC rule. Spokesman Kyle Kohli said the party "felt they couldn't manage what in essence is a binding presidential primary with all the transparency and integrity an election needs," adding it decided to wait until the state convention to elect national delegates.
In a statement, Colorado Republican Committee chairman Steve House denounced Schultz’s remarks as "completely false."
"DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz’s claim that we ‘canceled’ our caucus is probably news to the over 60,000 Colorado Republicans who showed up last night," House said. "Not only was her characterization of the caucus being canceled completely false, she also bizarrely claimed Colorado Republicans would only be represented by ‘super delegates’ at the convention."
House added that the method of delegate allocation by the Republicans in Colorado is similar to the Democrats, except the Democrats send 12 unelected superdelegates to their convention to the Republicans' three.
"Chairwoman Wasserman Schultz may be surprised to learn national delegate allocation in Colorado is actually quite similar to the Colorado Democrats’ process," he said. "However, as a party that respects the will of voters Colorado Republicans will have only three unelected ’super-delegates’ at the national convention, compared to the Colorado Democrats’ 12."
"The rest of the Colorado GOP’s national delegates will be determined by Congressional assemblies and the state convention, bodies that will be heavily influenced by the very caucuses Wasserman Schultz dishonestly asserted were canceled."