The truth is, nobody still really knows who Dean is.

[WhosNext]

Outside of political circles and those active in the process, most have no idea who this guy is. Jokes about him get little to no response on the comedy shows i.e. SNL and Letterman. Dean is still unknown to a majority of the public.

[SahaleArm]

1. With Gore's endorsement that will be the biggest change.

The outcome should be interesting, and will be reflected in the next set of polls.

[eileen_d]

32. It was one of the top stories on ABC News

I think it will help Dean in the next polls, definitely.

[robsul82]

2. And the Gore endorsement...

...will assist. Poifect.

Later.

RJS

[arewethereyet]

3. there are only so many jokes about piss and vinegar

he is not a funny person

[WhosNext]

5. I agree he is not funny.

But were Ken Starr or Bob Dole funny?

[tinrobot]

9. Please...

Don't compare Dean to Ken Starr...

BTW - Bob Dole is actually pretty funny.

[WhosNext]

11. Im talking about making fun of

[arewethereyet]

12. Bob was a riot

picture Dan Acroyd saying "I know it, you know it the American people know it"

And Starr was a font of good joke material even if he himself was a stiff.

Best you get with Dean is getting pissed at having to explain his shifting stances on things. The Martin Short weasly denying guy just doesn't fit.

NO, Dean has to go. The death knell for humor in America.

[WhosNext]

18. I think a very funny Dean character could be created.

By an SNL actor or whatever. It should be a guy who just goes off on people. He randomly gets mad etc. He'll start screaming like Al Pacino or whatever, and then just stops on a dime and smiles goofily at the camera. There could be a sketch where Dean body slams Bush, after a slow lead-up to Dean exploding with rage.

[arewethereyet]

20. OK its coming into focus now

but you have to admit it'll never be the font of mirth that Clinton, Bush I&II, and a host of others were

[quinnox]

4. Yea, and a lot of them are Democrats

And even the Dems who are paying attention, many remain undecided or could change their support.

It's a wide open field folks, don't buy the propaganda.

[Cleita]

6. Well, anyone who bothers to look at Howard Dean's website

will find page after page of speeches, writings, articles and interviews that pretty thoroughly explain who Howard Dean is. Anyone with a computer and interenet access can spend some time there and get to know him.

[jumptheshadow]

10. And there's the dilemma

A lot of people are not as Internet oriented as the folks in here.

And the people who need a good leader the most can't afford computers and certainly can't pay for high speed access.

[Cleita]

14. I don't have high speed access, but I can still

access his website. There are computers at libraries and most people who work have one. I don't think there are that many people except oldsters who don't have access anymore. Also, the print media are doing a better job of balanced journalism than the broadcast media.

[caledesi]

25. The brilliant HD campaign is way ahead on this one.

These are not stupid people. There has been an ongoing process to reach people w/o computers. Calls are being made and there are volunteers going from house to house.

Also, most people have cable, and Dean has been appearing more and more on cable shows.

People are getting to know him because for the first time (in fact this week) I am actually seeing Dean bumperstickers in Tampa!

[arewethereyet]

28. a little wake up call

if a person does not have internet its just possible that they also don't have cable. but even if they do they area NOT watching Meet the Press and they change channels if a polititian is on.

YO, real world, right over here !

This is a general election matter of course and we're far from that point but some internet warrior does not even appear on the radar screens of working people of humble means.

[arewethereyet]

15. and if he's a true leader you don't need computers and web pages

most Americans never heard a Clinton speech and he won.

America barely scratches the surface of things which explains the 50% election turnouts. You saw Clinton, heard a few words and you believed, same with Carter, JFK, hell even Reagan and Bush I. YOu see Howie and you get a sneer and a, lets be kind, ineffective delivery.

He's not the guy.

[caledesi]

36. You don't like Dean. We "get it." eom

[Melinda]

7. Bill Clinton, who?

What Santayana said. :eyes:

[maddezmom]

8. I'm curious about his upbringing

it seems to be lacking in all the biography info.

[arewethereyet]

16. rich boy

nuff said

[brook]

21. .nuff said? Hardly.

how one dimensional... "poor boy" doesn't seem to be running.

[arewethereyet]

23. at least two who grew up of humble means

they understand what that means as they understand that with hard work and drive that you can rise to whatever level you choose.

I have not seen a rich kid who understood that.

And I'd think Howard is more like two dimansional but thats not enough for me.

[brook]

26. Does the name Franklin Delano Roosevelt ring a bell with you?

Born to wealth, he brought us Social Security; the WPA; the CCC; the safety nets that still catch us - what the Repugs think of as damned commie welfare programs and Good God...they even want to take his face off the dime so we can forget what he gave us while they strip the benefits away. It only takes a decent human being, in touch with bleak reality, embued with an understanding of wherein lies the *greater good*. Reagan was a poor boy. Nixon was a poor boy. What has their legacy been?

It isn't the economic status of the man...it's the heart and wisdom...and the will.

[arewethereyet]

27. all I can say is that Howie is no FDR

and I cannot possibly use more understatement than that.

FDR had poise, grace, charm, power and passion. In short, he was a statesman.

Dr Dean does not share those attributes.

[brook]

29. You're...

entitled to your opinion. It's obvious I disagree with you. I'm sorry that you have no more to offer than pot shots at this point, but I'll look forward to hearing more from you on other threads at a later date.

[AP]

30. FDR was called a traitor to his class.

Dean wouldn't ever be called that.

[brook]

31. Since political mudslinging...

is still sport of knaves - I imagine Howard will be called that and more. I have only to look around DU to see mud splatters. No doubt there will be Rovian attempts to discredit him. As I've said, I favor Dean. I'll stick with him until someone or something convinces me he can't win. In the end, it's ABB for me - with fewer reservations about some than others. At this juncture, it's more important to me to throw * and his pack of jackals out than anything else.

[tinrobot]

13. Nobody knew Bill Clinton

...around this time in '91, either. It was the 60 minutes interview about the Gennifer Flowers stuff that brought him to the public's attention. That was a few weeks before New Hampshire, as I recall.

[Cleita]

17. So should we get Gennifer Flowers to make

an accusation against Dean? :-)

[bpilgrim]

19. which is a good thing, too since being a perceived 'outsider' is in vouge!

just ask ahnuld or jessie 'the body' ventura ;->

peace

[cryofan]

22. Exactly! The polls are mostly an indication of NAME RECOGNITION only.

A lot of people would recognize his name because he has raised so much money that the establishment media has printed hundreds of stories about him--more than the other candidates. So when the pollsters call, they read off the names, and more people recognize his name than the other candidates, so therefore, he is leading in the polls.

But most people do not know anything about him other than his name, and maybe having seen his picture beside one of the many news stories. But that amount of knowledge does not give enough background to make him a suitable humor target.

[bowens43]

24. which of the candidates IS well known?

None of them (except maybe Lieberman). President Clinton was an unknown. I'm not sure what point you're trying to make.

[ibegurpard]

33. That kind of takes the wind out of the

"Dean has peaked" argument doesn't it?

[lapauvre]

34. Indeed

You are correct. He seems to be at the top of the heap, and I don't know why. He seems to be a "new democrat," an entity leaning toward the right, and I do not know why he is leading the pack. He has many innovative ideas and statements, but I don't like his stance on medicare, as well as other subjects.

I agree, ABB, and if he is nominated, I will vote for him. But I will not be happy with the choice....

[scotia]

35. I disagree.

You need only do some research on him and go to his website. He has not only my vote, but I have sent him one hundred dollars. Thats how much its worth to me to get Bush out of the white house.

[DemBones DemBones]

37. I think all of us desperately want Bush OUT -- many of us

simply believe that Howard Dean will LOSE in a big way.