DNC says minorities’ firing was a mistake

The termination of 10 minority employees at the Democratic National Committee this week was a mistake that never received formal approval, a party official said yesterday.

But some Democratic leaders are still seeking an explanation from committee chairman Terry McAuliffe for an episode that sent staffers into meetings all day yesterday.

“If the Republicans were to do this, you know what would happen,” said Donna Brazile, who chairs the DNC’s Voting Rights Institute. “You know I would be kicking them where they need to be kicked.”

She added that Mr. McAuliffe assured her that “the list [of those terminated] never crossed his desk and that he never would have signed off on that.”

“This is still the party that I belong to,” Miss Brazile said. “I was afraid it had taken a wrong turn.”

She said Mr. McAuliffe told her he had not received her repeated phone calls Wednesday night after she found out about the firings.

The DNC told some of its members and party lawmakers Wednesday that they were cutting 10 positions to save money and streamline operations in preparation for next year’s presidential election. The DNC refused to comment on the episode, which caught several black leaders off guard.

A prominent Democrat, speaking on the condition of anonymity, hinted that Mr. McAuliffe’s explanation was less than genuine.

“It doesn’t take all day to simply explain that there was some kind of clerical error,” the official said.

“Whatever the rationale … it appears that somebody did not give this decision as much thought as would be expected,” said Rep. Danny K. Davis, Illinois Democrat and secretary of the Congressional Black Caucus.

“Now that it has been brought to their attention, there will be some rethinking and some effort to reconcile the decision with political interest and what is fair,” he said.

Several Democrats speculated that the DNC made the move to cut costs in preparation for its 2004 campaign.

When Miss Brazile served as presidential-campaign manager for Vice President Al Gore in 2000, she took a pay cut rather than eliminate jobs on the campaign.

“You start at the top,” she said. “This layoff took all of us by surprise.”

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