Terry Neal DESTROYS Gep's spin on Dean as enemy of Medicare

[Jim Sagle]

<snip>

For months, the rap on Dean was that he was too liberal to win the general election. Lieberman has been leading the Dean-is-a-liberal-baddie charge for weeks. Now along comes Rep. Richard A. Gephardt (Mo.), who is fending off a challenge by Dean in the crucial state of Iowa (see Sept. 17 Talking Points), firing away from the governor’s left flank with charges that he cozied up to GOP bogeyman Newt Gingrich in the mid-1990s. Gephardt was on NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday repeating charges that Dean sided with Gingrich in trying to cut Medicare.

It's somewhat of an odd charge, given that Dean, then chairman of the National Governors Association, first caught the eye of the national media with his exceedingly harsh denunciations of the new Gingrich-led Congress in 1995, the year after the historic Republican Revolution. The Dean campaign has noted that Dean appeared at several press conferences and events with Gephardt in 1995 to protest GOP plans to overhaul the welfare system and press for a balanced budget amendment.

In the archives of The Washington Post we find this story that (Dan) Balz wrote in January 1995:

The chairman of the National Governors' Association, Democratic Gov. Howard Dean of Vermont, yesterday ripped into the Republicans' welfare reform plan as a policy 'to starve children and kick old people out of their houses’ and attacked Republican governors in extraordinarily harsh language for helping to negotiate it.

Dean said the plan, outlined Friday in Washington, is the work of 'extremists who have taken over Congress.' In a telephone interview, he vowed, 'I'll be damned if I'm going to let extremists take over the National Governors' Association.'

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A17608-2003Sep29.html

[Jim Sagle]

1. Game. Set. Match. Say goodnight, Dumbshit Dick.

[WilliamPitt]

2. Outstanding

Do yourself and your fellow Dean supporters a favor: Bookmark this article right now. This issue will come up again and again and again, especially if Gephardt is flogging it. Have this on deck to bat the charge down.

[StopTheMorans]

3. crawl back to the Rose Garden Gep

and continue licking shrub's boots :mad:

[Rose Siding]

4. I had just posted this on another thread

but no one seems to have read it yet :shrug:

Glad you've posted it here!

[Capn Sunshine]

6. Oh, they've read it all right

it just doesn't fit with the "general " tenor of Deanbashing today...............
:nuke:

[CMT]

5. thank you for finding this.

I will bookmark it as well.

[dajabr]

7. Nice work Sagle...

(high five)

Appears that Dean has had a longstanding dislike for "extremist" politicians.

:toast:

[revcarol]

8. You should read Oliphant's article.

It's in "Editorials." Dean wanted Gingrich's Medicare cuts.

But Deaniacs don't want to hear the whole history, who was for what, Gingrich's positions,Dean's actual quotes...Gotta support this guy, no matter what.We ended up with Domenici's cuts of payments to hospitals, doctors, etc, but Dean was FOR Gingrich's cuts.Both Gephart and Kerry got it right.

Disclaimer: I am for KUCINICH and also for truth in campaigning.

[StopTheMorans]

10. already read it

it's good to see both sides, and I didn't think oliphant presented both (i.e. why didn't he include any of Dean's statements AGAINST Gingrich, he made it seem like he and Newt were old buddies and their positions were exactly the same). Sorry, don't buy your perpetuating the myth that Deanies "are blinded" or "must protect Dean at all costs".

[revcarol]

13. Of course Dean was against Gingrich.

EVERY Dem was against Gingrich, except maybe Breaux(don't wanna go there.)

But we are talking about an issue, ONE of
TWO issues that were the core of Gingrich's "Contract Against America." And Dean took the side of Gingrich.

And if you STILL feel that you can vote for him, go for it!!Just for accurate information getting out there on EVERY candidate.

[Jim Sagle]

11. Hey rev, THIS article has actual quotes TOO.

Why don't YOU address THESE quotes?

Truth in campaigning? Haw haw haw.

[sangh0]

15. The quotes are about WELFARE, not MEDICARE

You do realize that these are two different programs, don't you? You wouldnt be intentionally misleading people into thinking Dean's statement about Welfare reform is a statement about Medicare?

[sangh0]

16. The quotes are about WELFARE, not MEDICARE

You do realize that these are two different programs, don't you? You wouldnt be intentionally misleading people into thinking Dean's statement about Welfare reform is a statement about Medicare?

[Padraig18]

9. ^5

Cheers! :toast:

[Cocoa]

12. Gephardt didn't say Dean supported Gingrich on welfare reform

He said he supported him on Medicare reform.

Dean said, and mouthed, that Gep's comments were "false" but so far it seems the on the facts, they're true.

[SEAburb]

14. nothing in this article refutes Gephardt's claim

that Dean supported the bill to cut Medicare. All your chest thumping is for nothing.

[Jim Sagle]

17. Dean supported HMOs as an adjunct to Medicare

at a time when HMOs seemed like a good way to squeeze out truly frivloous costs.

As HMOs evolved into the rip-offs they are today, Dean's position evolved as well.

Butit would seem supporting Gingrich is no part of his political pedigree.

[silverweb]

18. Thanks for posting this!

I've printed a copy of this article to take on the bus this afternoon on our way to the LA shindig. :) Needless to say, the Gephardt comment and ensuing stories were worrisome, but I knew there had to be much more to this story than the sound bites!

Dean is cautious with spending, but health care and other social programs have always been a priority with him. His words to Vermont Democrats when he first became governor are among the reasons I respect him: Progressive ideas can't go anywhere without funding... and funding doesn't happen if the taxpayers don't trust you with their money.

Sometimes some cutbacks are necessary to expand overall in a better direction. Governor Dean has done well for his constituents before and his priorities have been appropriate. I trust him and believe his priorities are still appropriate.