Democrats, don't put muzzle on Dean

[proud2BlibKansan]

By DeWayne Wickham

Instead of muzzling Howard Dean, Democrats should give him a bullhorn. Rather than urging him to retreat from his attack on Republicans, party leaders ought to send him off to a political war college — preferably the one the late GOP strategist Lee Atwater attended.

As chairman of the Democratic Party, which is teetering between political renewal and functional extinction, Dean should be making war, not peace. But that's exactly what his critics within the party seemed to be suggesting last week when they admonished him for his tough talk about Republicans.

"The Republicans are not very friendly to different kinds of people. They're a pretty monolithic party. They all behave the same, and they all look the same," he said days earlier. He also said the GOP is "pretty much a white, Christian party" and Republicans "never made an honest living in their lives."

<snip>

For much of this decade, right-wing Republicans have dominated the public square, shouting down some on their political left and drowning out others who have tried to counter their bombast with civil responses. The time has come for Democrats to give as good as they get.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/columnist/wickham/2005-06-13-wickham_x.htm

[zann725]

1. Right on!!

Give 'em hell, Howie!

[proud2BlibKansan]

3. I thought this was a great column n/t

[Carolab]

2. Amen and say this again.

Americans, for the most part, love politicians who fight for what they believe — and they abhor political wimps. Dean is a fighter, albeit one who needs to learn that in an ideological spat, a well-placed jab often can do more damage than a barrage of roundhouse punches.

But he can't learn that lesson if Democrats won't let him take the fight to the GOP.

[ngGale]

4. The Repubs have been dishing it out....

for so long - time to turn the tables. They can't take it when someone points out their failures, and they have so many. Write a book Dean, you have enough ammo to last until '08. Keep on trucking!

[dxstone]

5. It wasn't us! It was Bill Frist!

But they can't shut him up completely!!!



...and once he gets in Frist's head... oboy!!!

d

[bklyncowgirl]

6. I thought John Stewart nailed it the other night.

After a clip of Biden and Pelosi criticizing Dean he said

"People, you've been getting your asses kicked for the last five years."

Democrats need to say who they are and what they stand for and they also need to point out who the Republicans are and what they stand for.

Do you think that if Dean hadn't struck a nerve with his "White Christian" comment that the Republicans would have had the entire Black Conservative Caucus (poor JC Watts--good thing he's no longer in Congress and has the time to flack for them) on every RW talk show around or had Ken "Bar Mitzvah Boy" Mehlman meeting with his small but hastily arranged group of GOP Jews? Or that Cheney would have come out of his undisclosed location to diss Deans 80 something mother.

Give me a break.

[cleveramerican]

7. it would be okay if it were true

It plays right into the hands of the republicans, that we're negative and filled with hate for our fellow Americans. Plus its just flat out incorrect, ever hear of Reagan democrats? He first job is to not make us, as a party, look foolish. Spouting off rubbish like this makes us all look extremely foolish.There is no shortage of damaging things he could have said that are actually true. He's got to get better at this or his stay will be short.
By way of full disclosure I am an Irish-catholic union member From Boston, as liberal as your likely to find.

[JNelson6563]

8. But he might offend the neo-cons!

And since appeasement of the 'cons has been such a successful plan for us, why would he want to change that???

:sarcasm:

[cleveramerican]

9. There's a right way to do it, and this ain't it

Are you saying that He can't be very very hard on them and also be accurate,disciplined and strategic, all at the same time?
I'm not saying to emulate the republicans in substance. If we are to HAMMER them to the best effect, its very important to be accurate. The scrutiny is simply too great to make rookie mistakes.

[ieoeja]

12. You're absolutely correct.

While the Republicans have been calling us "commies", "traitors", "Saddam lovers", "baby killers" and "bible burners" we have to remember that they would have never gotten away with that if we were not really all of those things. So for goodness sakes, Dr Dean, don't use in hyperbole. Imagine what would have happened to the Republicans if they had done so instead of repeating all these truths about us instead.

(/sarcasm)

[JNelson6563]

15. Hyperbole draws the cameras

Statesmanship has not worked over this past decade. It's like trying to use reason with a madman, futile.

What needs to be done is strong support. Dean says the GOP is a white Christian party and the statistics support this. Every Dem questioned shoulda whipped those numbers out like finely honed talking points. But no, everyone's got to grandstand and out-do each other rushing to the mic to say they don't support this spine business some on our side are practicing.

Oy!

Julie

[Marnieworld]

10. Damn Straight!

Playing the repubs game hasn't worked.Let's change the game! Go Howard Go! Take our country back!

[rhett o rick]

11. What you say sounds good, but.... what is the Demo strategy

Are we going to try to win red states or not. If not, go ahead and lump all Repub's into one group and call them names. Fun, but may not win elections. Remember, it was moderate Repub's that helped elect the first Clinton.

[ieoeja]

13. You're absolutely correct, also.

The Republicans have spent the past three decades calling Democrats, not some, but ALL Democrats "commies", "traitors", "Saddam lovers", "baby killers" and "bible burners". And they failed to turn a single Blue state Red during that timeframe.

(/sarcasm)

[wallwriter]

14. Just when you think Dean has gone too far

with the comment about White Christians, the Repukes themselves can't quite come out against lynching.

Dean is right. He just needs to be a bit smarter strategically...