Howard, We Never Knew Ye

[sweetcee]

The trouble with the Howard Dean who today ended his candidacy for president wasn't that he was too liberal, or too crazy, or too much of a Washington outsider to win the Democratic nomination. The trouble was that he didn't exist.

--

Some of the "left-liberal" positions the hologram trumpeted during the campaign were entirely in tune with the real Howard Dean. It was a sober impulse, not a radical one, to oppose sending troops into Iraq while Osama Bin Laden remained at large. Similarly, by supporting civil unions for homosexuals, Dean simply reiterated the support he'd given the nation's first civil union law while governor. As has been widely been noted, lending government sanction to longterm single-sex relationships was a fundamentally conservative gesture.

--


http://slate.msn.com/id/2095715


I never liked Dean and wonder what everyone thinks of this good article; Dean supporters and others alike. Thank you.

[anti-NAFTA]

1. That article sums up my feelings from the beginning

I always felt that Dean was the farthest to the right after Joe Lieberman.

Kerry himself is a neoliberal, not a populist.

[sweetcee]

7. I agree with you.

People should check out candidates' records rather than getting swept away with speeches or media spins.

[Bandit]

2. Dean will not become President this time around but his voice is not

silenced. He has a lot to say and needs to say it. He will keep the other Democrats on the right track.

[sweetcee]

8. What is

'the right track'?

I swear I am not being facetious; I really want to know your beliefs. Thank you.

[Bandit]

9. Standing up for Democratic ideals

Not caving to the GOP on every issue. Like Tax cuts for the wealthy and Going to war for Profits. The Democrats have been accused (and rightly so IMHO) of not standing up to this mis-Administration and Dean has shown that they can stand up and people will like them for it.

[sweetcee]

10. Excellent points.

However, if Dean had been in either house of congress, would this be true?

It's so much easier not to have been faced with it in reality.

Forgive me, but Dean did not come through with the vote in any state; especially where he broke the bank in Iowa.

I'm not sure if I agree with your assessment of Dean, but I do agree with your stance on democratic ideals.

Thanks for responding.

[CatWoman]

3. wrong forum, Sweetcee

this should be posted in GD 2004.

Don't be surprised if this thread is locked.

[sweetcee]

5. Thanks.

I put it here because Dean said he is no longer campaigning; in fact, he is in discussions with Edwards!

[Mass_Liberal]

4. he didn't run as a fake populist

he didn't run as a leftist, or as a centrist. He ran as himself. Howard Dean is his own species of political animal. He has pretty leftist positions on some things, centrist positions on others. It's impossible to classify him.

[sweetcee]

6. It seems he ran

because he couldn't get re-elected in VT, he didn't want to go back to being a physician, and he saw himself as the savior of the dem party.

I give all credit to him for broadening the base and giving people hope again, however, I do believe many of his supporters projected a lot onto him that never was there.

You did read he is in talks with Edwards?

[Moderator]

11. Locking

Rules to start discussion threads in the General Discussion forum.

...

7. Discussion topics that mention any or all of the Democratic presidential primary candidates are not permitted in the General Discussion forum, and instead must be posted in the General Discussion: 2004 Primary forum.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation,
DU moderator