Dean's Plan (in writing) for the DNC

[BlueInRed]

Since we're all speculating how Dean will affect the DNC, he has posted his DNC plan on his website. (I don't know if this has been posted before....) Here's a few of the points and a link:

Dean's Plan for the DNC

By popular demand, as things should work in the Democratic Party and in our country, here is Governor Dean's plan for the DNC should he become the next chairman:

• Show up! Never concede a single state, county, district or even a single voter to the Republicans. We must be active and compete in all 50 states and work with the state parties to build a truly national party.
  
  
• Recruit, train, and encourage candidates to run for office at every level -- building tomorrow's farm team from the ground up. This was the founding principle behind Democracy for America.
  
  
• Actively grow local Democratic committees in local communities. Local neighborhood advocates are our best spokespeople -- helping them reach out in their own communities will better articulate our message and enable the grassroots to support state and local candidates.
  
  
• Better integrate national and state party operations. Specifically, that means: providing the state party the means to pay for its executive director in every state; building and sharing lists between the national and state parties; and creating an ongoing active presence -- a permanent campaign in every state that does not have to be recreated for only four months every four years.
  
  
• Develop and articulate core Democratic principles that we all can agree on, that will let people know what our party stands for. We will not win elections or build a lasting majority solely by changing our rhetoric, nor will we win by adopting the other side's positions. We must say what we mean -- and mean real change when we say it.
  
  more at: http://www.democracyforamerica.com/features/2005/01/18/deans_plan_for_the_dnc.php
  

[Gloria]

1. "A permanent campaign" is one of my longstanding wishes...hope

it comes true under Dean...

[BlueInRed]

2. The permanent campaign is a great idea

I think it will make the difference in many purple states and will help us fine tune our message locally. :hi:

[liberal N proud]

5. It is the best way to beat the repukes

[JDPriestly]

3. Thanks for the post.

An optimistic, grass-roots, values-oriented approach. The Democratic Party is being "born again." Hallelujah!

[Califooyah Operative]

4. kick

[blm]

6. No plan to deal with GOP control of media and voting machines?

I supported him because he was supposed to be the guy who was most aware of these issues.

Everything else is a waste if he doesn't target those issues.

[cybildisobedience]

8. agree with you completely.

I've been harping on these two points at every meeting, meet-up, convention, whatever....for the past four years. At Kerry meet-ups, I got looks as if I just announced martians abducted and probed me the night before.
(As an aside, that smarmy attitude really pisses me off, esp. in retrospect. Looks like their campaign didn't have all the details pinned down.)
Let's hope Dean IS aware and doesn't want to frighten anyone off at this point.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

9. If you read it....it will come.

Further down:

Make Democrats the party of reform -- reforming America's financial situation, reforming our electoral process, reforming health care, reforming education and putting morality back in our foreign policy.

[blm]

10. I read it. I didn't see one word about GOP control over the media, and

almost every Dem is talking about electoral reform in general terms.

[Cha]

12. We will have to communicate with

Dean on that..I agree, of course, how that is the most important thing we can do.

I feel that Dean will listen to us all.

[lojasmo]

13. Dean has been talking about BBV and Media reform for years.

And not in generalities, either.

[blm]

14. I've read all his remarks over the last 3 years.

I am specifically talking about it as an ISSUE for the Democrats to investigate and expose the GOP control over most of the mainstream media and the voting machines.

That's the only way the American people can ever have their eyes opened to what has gone down over the last 5 years.

[JaneQPublic]

16. Then you missed Dr. Dean's remarks on Hardball on the media

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/3607157/

There are so many things that have been deregulated. Is that wrong trend and would you reverse it?

DEAN: I would reverse in some areas.

First of all, 11 companies in this country control 90 percent of what ordinary people are able to read and watch on their television. That’s wrong. We need to have a wide variety of opinions in every community. We don’t have that because of Michael Powell and what George Bush has tried to do to the FCC.

MATTHEWS: Would you break up Fox?

(LAUGHTER)

MATTHEWS: I’m serious.

DEAN: I’m keeping a...

MATTHEWS: Would you break it up? Rupert Murdoch has “The Weekly Standard.” It has got a lot of other interests. It has got “The New York Post.” Would you break it up?

DEAN: On ideological grounds, absolutely yes, but...

(LAUGHTER)

MATTHEWS: No, seriously. As a public policy, would you bring industrial policy to bear and break up these conglomerations of power?

DEAN: I don’t want to answer whether I would break up Fox or not,

because, obviously

(CROSSTALK)

MATTHEWS: Well, how about large media enterprises?

DEAN: Let me-yes, let me get...

(LAUGHTER)

DEAN: The answer to that is yes.

I would say that there is too much penetration by single corporations in media markets all over this country. We need locally-owned radio stations. There are only two or three radio stations left in the state of Vermont where you can get local news anymore. The rest of it is read and ripped from the AP.

MATTHEWS: So what are you going to do about it? You’re going to be president of the United States, what are you going to do?

DEAN: What I’m going to do is appoint people to the FCC that believe democracy depends on getting information from all portions of the political spectrum, not just one.

MATTHEWS: Well, would you break up GE?

(APPLAUSE)

DEAN: I can’t-you...

MATTHEWS: GE just buys Universal. Would you do something there about that? Would you stop that from happening?

DEAN: You can’t say-you can’t ask me right now and get an answer, would I break up X corp...

MATTHEWS: We’ve got to do it now, because now is the only chance we can ask you, because, once you are in, we have got to live with you.

(LAUGHTER)

DEAN: No.

MATTHEWS: So, if you are going to do it, you have got to tell us now.

(CROSSTALK)

MATTHEWS: Are you going to break up the giant media enterprises in this country?

DEAN: Yes, we’re going to break up giant media enterprises. That doesn’t mean we’re going to break up all of GE.

What we’re going to do is say that media enterprises can’t be as big as they are today. I don’t think we actually have to break them up, which Teddy Roosevelt had to do with the leftovers from the McKinley administration.

(CROSSTALK)

MATTHEWS: ... regulate them.

DEAN: You have got to say that there has to be a limit as to how-if the state has an interest, which it does, in preserving democracy, then there has to be a limitation on how deeply the media companies can penetrate every single community. To the extent of even having two or three or four outlets in a single community, that kind of information control is not compatible with democracy.

MATTHEWS: How-how far would you go in terms of public policy?

(APPLAUSE)

MATTHEWS: This is not-what you describe is not laissez-faire.

It’s not capitalism.

DEAN: It is capitalism.

MATTHEWS: How would you-what would you call it?

DEAN: I am absolutely a capitalist. Capitalism is the greatest system that people have ever invented, because it takes advantage of bad traits, as well as our good traits, and turns them into productivity.

But the essence of capitalism, which the right-wing never understands

” it always baffles me-is, you got to have some rules. Imagine a hockey game with no rules.

(LAUGHTER)

MATTHEWS: Would you-would you

(CROSSTALK)

DEAN: Nobody benefits. Nobody benefits. So you have got to have reasonable rules. And the rules have to protect everybody in the game.

[blm]

19. I watched that. I expect it to be raised as an issue for the DNC.

That's MY point and why I supported Dean for chair. I really expected him to target the GOP control of the media as part of his plan.

[BlueInRed]

17. Did you see Dean on TV with his guest, Bev Harris

Dean was substituting for some talk show person on MSNBC (I think it was the Topic A host) and he had Bev Harris on for a large segment and let her go through how the votes are stolen electronically, step by step. This was a long time ago, before most people even knew about the issue. Because of that, I assume he included the BBV issue in his electoral reform plans. :hi:

[blm]

18. Yes. That's why I was expecting him to be more forceful about it since

then.

[BlueInRed]

20. maybe he's biding his time, getting all the ducks in a row before

taking on something controversial. I think a lot of the elected Dems still refuse to accept the possibility that the machines could or would be so easily tampered with. If I were him, I would get my power base secure, get the votes, let everyone calm down and THEN bring it up. If he brings it up now, he will be labeled a conspiracy theorist and may lose votes, etc. Just my thoughts.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

25. Fair enough.

It was too general but he's been pretty clear on those issues in the past. You think the "Screamer" doesn't understand where the media's coming from?


As a reminder, this is both Dean and Kerry. http://www.issues2000.org/default.htm

[CTLawGuy]

11. DNC chair can't do much about that

they can only take care of our house, not things outside of it.

Your friend Mr. Kerry and his Senate colleagues are better able to deal with problems of voting machines and media consolidation.

[okieinpain]

15. don't agree. you're not going to change the media deal until

we get back in power. we can't waste time fighting with the media, we will have to go around them and deal with them once we get control back.

[KittyWampus]

7. Good Read

[sampsonblk]

21. Articulate Core Principles! Oh no!!

That should scare the daylights out of the pragmatists here.

[MissMarple]

22. Pragmatically speaking, articulating core principles is the best way to go

A continuous campaign, integrating the local, state and national levels, highlighting progressive ideals, and conceding no ground in any state or region because of a regressive right toehold. This is why I respect Dr. Dean. He's pragmatic, not a starry eyed ideologue.

[sampsonblk]

23. huh?-nt

[MissMarple]

24. I thought you meant pragmatists shy away from core principles.

Or were you just being tongue in cheek? :D