Interesting Vermont article on Howard Dean

[KaraokeKarlton]

This is one I haven't seen before. It's from the Burlington Free Press and was written back in June, I believe. It's definitely worth the read...and it talks about Dean's dealings with the Clintons. I wasn't aware of this before, but Dean was seated directly behind Hillary for the 1994 State of the Union Address.

http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/specialnews/dean/9.htm

[Vis Numar]

1. Hi!

""My take on him, from the very beginning, was that he is almost flawless in terms of political instincts," Granai said. "I think it is very possible for him to make it to the White House.""

How true, his detractors here will begin to appreciate this fact once he becomes the nominee.

[KaraokeKarlton]

2. Absolutely, and the part about him changing VT politics is overlooked

So often what he did for the Democratic Party of Vermont goes unmentioned. Up until Dean came into office, the Republican Party were very powerful and influential in the state. Because he earned the trust of the moderate Republicans in the state right from the start, he essentially rendered the Vermont GOP benign in the state. He made the Democratic Party here stronger than it ever had been in the past, and just as he taught Vermont's liberals how to be fiscally responsible he also taught Vermont's Republicans how to embrace social justice. He taught Vermont's policitians how to value the best each side has to offer and it made it easier for them to let go of the worst they had to offer. It's been wonderful for the state. This is exactly why Civil Unions became a reality in Vermont. Howard Dean created the atmosphere and foundation that allowed both sides to come together and address this issue. I believe he would have the same kind of influence in Washington, and nationally. He would stand the best chance of essentially neutralizing the current agenda of the Repulbican Party and lead them back towards the left on social issues and towards fiscal sanity.

[TakebackAmerica]

3. HMM....

Why are the governor and the lt. governor both Republicans.
Why is the state house controled by the GOP.
Howard really help the Vermont Democrats. Not!

[dsc]

4. It should be noted that he inherited

a Republican governor (who had died) and a Republican assembly. The Senate is now Democratic and had it not been for the progressive party siphoning off votes the Governor would be too.

[KaraokeKarlton]

8. This is very true

The Vermont Progressive Party does more for the Vermont GOP than Nader did for Bush. All I can say is Thank God Vermont's Republicans aren't right wingers and are moderates instead! If they were further right Vermont would be a horrible place to be. I don't think 3rd parties should run any candidates for important elections unless they do what Bernie Sanders did. He served as the mayor of Burlington for a long time and people got familiar with him and he proved himself so that he got to be more mainstream. But when they run little known candidates who never get enough votes to win but could potentially affect the outcome of the race in a harmful way, it really irks me to no end. I have no problem with them running someone who actually has enough support to stand a good chance of winning, but running spoilers is just counterproductive and plain ignorant.

[AP]

5. I can see him doing for US what he did for VT.

.

[dsc]

6. Yah

balanced budgets, health care, prosperity, and civil unions for gays. Gee we can't have that now can we.

[KaraokeKarlton]

7. Jim Douglas is shaping up to be a good governor

and he's made it a point to follow in Dean's footsteps. Dean did change the way politics work in Vermont. In most cases you really can't tell the difference between a Democrat and a Republican in Vermont if you go by what they do and don't support. Jim Jeffords is a pretty good representative of Vermont Republicans. Jim Douglas is doing a good job so far. Vermonters don't elect candidates based on what party they belong to. The same people who voted for Jeffords and Dean also voted for Bernie Sanders in most cases.

[Skywalker]

10. Well I certainly hope...

That he is defeated in the next election by the current Mayor of Burlington. Peter Clavell who is a progressive intends to run as a Democrat. He feels that if the Progressive Party and the Democratic Party do not come together, we will see the Republicans in control for the foreseeable future. I like what he has done in Burlington and he will be a fine Governor.

Mark

[KaraokeKarlton]

13. Didn't Clavelle endorse Dean?

I don't dislike Douglas at all so far. I'd much rather have him than Ruth Dwyer. Are you from Vermont?

[Skywalker]

15. Yes I live in VT

And I think Douglas not being as bad as Dywer is a good enough reason for me to personally tolerate him.

He seems too attached to the Circumferential Highway around Burlington. He thinks that it will ease traffic and will spur job growth, neither of which I agree with. It will also cause environmental damage to streams, due to run-off. I don't care much for his taking credit for our economic success in light of the recession, either. I believe it was Howard Dean's policy of balanced budgeting and the Rainy Day Fund which saved Vermont's @$$>

My 2 cents.

Mark

[Skywalker]

9. The reason..

Is that both Gov and Lt. Gov won because they were both 3 way races and they won with less than a majority. The Republican voter stuck together while Dems and Inds spreads votes between Racine (D) and Hogan (I)(et al) for Gov and between Shumlin (D) and Polina (P) for Lt Gov.

Douglas got 44.94% Racine got 42.39% and Hogan got 9.71%

Dubie got 41.2% Shumlin got 32.1% and Polina got 24.8%

So Douglas and Dubie certainly did not get a mandate from all Vermont.

In 1992 Dean got 74.7% of the vote John McClaughry (R) got 23%
In 1994 Dean got 68.6% David Kelly (R) got 19%.
In 1996 Dean got 70.5% John Gropper (R) got 22.4%.
In 1998 Dean got 55.6% Ruth Dwyer (R) got 41.1%.
In 2000 Dean got 50.4% Ruth Dwyer (R) got 37.9%.

Dean got at least 50% of vote when he ran for Governor.

Mark

[Skywalker]

11. Oh and BTW...

In the Vermont State Senate there are:

18 Democrats 11 Republicans and 1 Independent

In the Vermont State House of Representatives there are:

69 Democrats 74 Republicans 3 Independents and 4 Progressives

The Inds and the Progs tend to lean towards the Dems than the Reps.

So I doubt this has anything to do with Dean. What do you base your accusation towards him on?

Mark

[unfrigginreal]

12. Great article!

Thought I would add another here that some may have missed. Quite a few quotes from Dean that aren't the normal stump speech. Including these:

But there is a self-imposed caveat to his criticism of the president, one which stamps him as almost unique among Bush-bashers. "People make the mistake of discounting George W. Bush," Dean confided in one of the several impromptu interviews he gave reporters aboard the Grass Roots Express. "People like George Bush. I have never made a joke about syntax or spelling or any of that stuff. People who do that have no idea how he connects with people between the coasts. They think he's one of them. My job is to get them to see that he may talk like one of them, but his policies are not in their best interest."

<sniip>

"It isn't so much what I say. It's how I say it," Dean would conclude. And, in truth, his rhetorical style, which -- he confessed to a reporter -- had once been that of "a bore," had become intense, even at times incandescent. Sometimes he would even try to moderate expectations, as when in Austin, he had warned his listeners that he was "too conservative for you." He later dilated on that: "They know I'm a little more conservative than they are -- on the death penalty, for example, but they tolerate it because they want to win. And they also know I'll stand up for what I believe in. The thing about me is that I'm not timid. I fight back, and I have an articulate vision. I don't just throw bombs and say how terrible things are."

http://www.memphisflyer.com/MFSearch/full_results.asp?xt_from=1&aID=4800

[dsc]

14. He is so right on Bush

We have to stop underestimating this man. He is nobody's fool.

[killbotfactory]

16. Clinton praising Dean in 1997

link

I'd also like to say that whatever it is that Howard Dean knows, or whatever it is that he eats for breakfast every morning, if I could give it to every other Democratic office holder and would-be office holder, we would immediately become the majority in the Congress and we would have about 35 governors. (Applause.) I have to tell you, I think a big part of it is just producing for people, actually doing what you say you're going to do at election time. And I very much appreciate what he said about what we've tried to do here in Washington.

<snip>

But in addition to my affection for Governor Dean and my gratitude to the people of Vermont for voting for Bill Clinton and Al Gore twice by big margins -- (applause) -- and my desire to help members of my party, I want -- I think it's very important that you understand that even though sometimes I get the feeling around here many people don't remember that the governors or the mayors or the county officials, for that matter, are really out there doing a lot of things -- the governors are especially important for the strategy that I'm pursuing for America to succeed.

We got $24 billion for children's health; that's good. What's step two? The governors have to design a program that works. And I promise you every governor with any sense in this country without regard to party is going to wonder what Howard Dean is going to do with the money because they know that Vermont has done the best job of expanding health care coverage for children. So it matters who the governor is.

<snip>

So in so many ways the governorship is more important than ever before. We have tried to give more responsibility to the states. We've also tried to give them more things to do. And it has succeeded in places like Vermont, which have had visionary leadership.

I can only hope and pray that every governor will do the job that I know that he will do -- in health care, in education, in the environment, in building a solid future for our children. You're going to help him to do it by your presence here tonight, and I'm very grateful to you. Thank you.