What is Dean doing Right that puts him ahead???

[opihimoimoi]

Poll question: What is Dean doing Right that puts him ahead???

Dean has enjoyed front runner status for awhile now,

Why?? Is it the Pubs support? Is it his persona? His Appeal? His Message? etc

What makes Dean the choice Bean?

I feel its his Message: Its one of solid promise, obviously not the huff and puff the Pubs throw at us.

Its his message of GOODNESS for the Common People, We can do Better, and We can do it RIGHT.

Imua Kakou, we move ahead together

[onebigbadwulf]

1. None

The one and only thing that makes me want him is his complete severence to corporate, media, and political party ties. He answers to no one but the people.

[opihimoimoi]

23. Well, I take that as another good sign I missed. Thank You

[no name no slogan]

30. say whaa.....

What about the donations from top AOL executives? Or the campaign seed money he got from Green Mountain power, a company owned by the same family that funds the right-wing libertarian Cato Institute?

You're projecting things onto Dr. Dean that are not true. Better do some more research...

[damnraddem]

2. None of the listed reasons.

Reasons:
(1) early public objection to Iraq invasion.
(2) spoke out against Dubya Admin. when most Dems were quiescent.
(3) grassroots campaign.
(4) centrist stance on most issues.

[opihimoimoi]

24. My Double BAD, I missed a whole bunch...

Damn, thank you Mucho

Sending beer and ribs

[Lisa0825]

3. He (his campaign) put the power in the hands of the supporters.

We do what we want when we want and how we want to, and the results are OURS. I personally had one of my minor suggestions used by the campaign, and I have seen lots of folks' blog-posted suggestions pulled out and used. It really makes you feel empowered, energized, and enthusiastic about going out and givinig your time, energy and money. It's a feeling that we actually count for more than a vote. It's not about him. It's about US.

[opihimoimoi]

22. Its CONNECTING!!!!! CONNECTIVITY, HE is Da Man.

Who Can Connect Better??? Looks like the Dean Can

[BargainMan]

40. The least of the idiots

Dean is just the least of the idiots. We need Joe Biden. He was brilliant last SUnday morning. Dean is just pushing the party further and further left. He is margainalizing the party. The Democrats are officially running third in three States. We need to get Mikey Moore, Babs, and the loonie left and send them packing. We need to focus on somone with a spine. We need Biden.

[Sugarbleus]

49. I saw Dean...

on the tube this morning when I woke. (left telly on) He was at some event, I don't know where. Anyway, I came outta bed with a woohoo because I heard him talk of the things that are important to me.

I don't think I've heard him talk about the ills of our present situation/country before. I've seen each candidate bash Bush AND each other. This morning, Dean WAS talking about the common folk and our needs; positive social reforms. Soooooooooooooo, my vote will go for Dean's nomination.

I WANT TO GO FARTHER LEFT!................ :bounce:

[cprise]

4. None of the above

He has a backbone, and he conveys a sense of urgency appropriate to our circumstances.

[opihimoimoi]

25. Ram Rod Straight at the Podium too I might add.

Thanks

[FrenchieCat]

5. I don't think it's what Dean is doing...

as much as what others are doing.....

Trippi running a brilliant campaign
Media supporting Dean because of the fundraising prowess
Republicans supporting fundraising to bring about prowess

see latest Polipundit jabberwoky - We Love Dean festaton!

MORE FROM RW SITE POLIPUNDIT...STILL CHEERING DEAN ON!
http://polipundit.com
Dean Lead Grows

Howard Dean's lead is growing nationally and in New Hampshire.
posted by PoliPundit at 5:41 AM Link to this post | Comments (7)
SEE THE 7 COMMENTS BELOW

Isn't Rasmussen the one that so badly messed up the 2000 polls or I am thinking of someone else? I am just wondering because it is hard to believe that Dean is that far ahead nationally because before it was very close between him and Clark.
JeffP | 12.17.03 - 8:26 am | #I
found this link that has a listing of recent Dem national polls. Dean's lead of 15% over Clark is on the high side, but not out of line. These polls are all over the place.

Polls

I will post it as my homepage in case I messed up the HTML.
JeffP | Homepage | 12.17.03 - 8:33 am | #
Jeff,
Rasmussen did indeed screw up the 2000 polling. He had Bush up by 8 or 9 point right up to election night. His website at the time, "Portrait Of America" shut down a short time later.

I'm looking at the polls, too. They are all looking very good for Dean. I'm waiting for the one where Dean's vote surpasses his nearest competitor and the "no opinion" choice as well.

In Rasmussen's poll he's 5 points behind (a significant improvement from a month ago!),

Dean: 26%
Lieberman: 13%
Not Sure: 18%
Leiberman and Not Sure: 31%
Scott Elliott | Email | Homepage | 12.17.03 - 12:53 pm | #
Any idea why so many pollsters like Rasmussen got it wrong in 2000. Was it the DUI story? Was Bush really ahead or was the vote for Gore always understated? I'd be interested in people's thoughts.

FWIW, I think Zogby was the only one who got it right in 00. I hate to say that b/c his analysis drips with liberal spin, but his numbers were good.
Thomas Gordon | Email none | 12.17.03 - 2:33 pm | #
Thomas,

Any idea why so many pollsters like Rasmussen got it wrong in 2000.
Rasmussen and the Battleground poll - voter.com - were the ones who missed it the most as I recall - they both had Bush way ahead.

Was it the DUI story?
That story certainly had a big effect on the final numbers. As PoliPundit has stated, undecided who would usually break for the party out of power (GOP) broke instead for Gore by a 5 to 1 margin. The effect Bush's DUI had on the vote was the biggest story of the election - besides Florida, of course.

Was Bush really ahead or was the vote for Gore always understated? Yes and yes. Bush's lead vanished the last couple of days (see above). The polls who missed so badly had two problems.
1. They overestimated Republicans in their samples.
2. They underestimated the Democratic's GOTV machine. Remember this election was the Dem GOTV effort's last hurrah.

That's two things we won't have to worry about next year. T
Scott Elliott | Email | Homepage | 12.17.03 - 2:50 pm | #
...darn truncation!

There will be no more DUI stories, and the GOP's GOTV has matched the Dems'.
Scott Elliott | Email | Homepage | 12.17.03 - 2:52 pm | #
Well, it's happened.

"I'm waiting for the (poll) where Dean's vote surpasses his nearest competitor and the "no opinion" choice as well."

The latest Gallup poll shows Dean at 31%. Second-place Leiberman(13%) and Other/None/NoOpinion(15%) add up to 28%. Now we can truly say Dean is not only a front-runner but the prohibitive favorite as well.

I don't see anyone catching him.
Scott Elliott | Email | Homepage | 12.17.03 - 6:07 pm | #

[HFishbine]

6. "Republicans supporting fundraising to bring about prowess"

And your proof of this is....?

[FrenchieCat]

7. My proof is the following websites that

have fundraising instructions going on at the following Right Wing websites- they've been giving to Dean since June. It was originally done to kill the Kerry campaign...now it's being done to get rid of any viable candidate, leaving Dean on top.

Instructions at all of the website, as well as Polipundit site which has +25,000 traffic.

Stephen Blythe
Backcountry Conservative
Spot On
BushBlog.us (unofficial blog)
Transcended.net
The Ole Miss Conservative
Bowling for Howard Dean
The Fighting Gamecock
The Wise Man Says
The Irish Lass
Freedom of Thought
Miller's Time
Jeremy Kissel
PoliPundit
Argghhh!
Mark Kilmer
Ryne McClaren
Left Coast Conservative
Between the Coasts
eTalkingHead.com
Viking Pundit
Reagan Country
ExPostFacto
Slublog
Matt Margolis
AlphaPatriot
The Deeper Thinker
Brandon Speaks
Southern Conservatives
Boots and Sabers
Jarhead
The Hedgehog Report
Pardon My English
Proud American Girl
Blogs for Bush
Bush-Cheney 2004 (unofficial blog)
A Rice Grad
Eternal Rebels

[mjv135]

10. Hello?

No Deaniacs gonna touch this?
Might weaken the Kool-aide?

[ima_sinnic]

33. has been spamming the boards w/this polipundit crap all day

hello--polipundit is under the clueless impression that Dean is a "flaming liberal"--check back to his or her June 2003 entry when the push for Dean first started happening (I'll be damned if I click on that freeper site to find it again)--and that appears to be THE sole rationale for hyping Dean. My thanks to the many repukes who think they are sending money to an "easy" candidate for Bush to run against. What they don't understand, nor does the poster referenced above, is that it is not Dean Bush will be running against, it is We The People. Dean talks straight and shoots straighter and Bush has nothing but lies and fluff and can hardly talk without a teleprompter and cue cards and a memorized speech. Dean will not be withered or made to skulk away with his tail between his legs by Bush's BS; rather he has the balls to flat-out state that the emperor has no clothes. His emphasis on the needs and priorities of the American people, rather than on the needs and wants of Big Corporations and neocons, will win him the Presidency.

[HFishbine]

14. Oh Puleeeze

So what you're saying is that you have no proof. Get real.

[opihimoimoi]

26. Sending the Whole LUAU complete with HULA Girls and Knife Dancers.

The Band too.

To the Frenchie above

[kaitykaity]

8. None of the Above.

Anger. Pure and simple. I've been angry since
December 12, 2000, and nobody in the Pink TuTu
Democratic establishment expressed it for me.

Dean did. I love him for it.

[YNGW]

18. I concur

The foundation of Dean's popularity is the anger of what happened in Florida 2000.

[opihimoimoi]

27. Yup,I left out the ANGER... my bad

Sending wine and caviar

[kaitykaity]

36. Thanks!

I get the 'classy' gifts? Aw, I like beer and
nachos.

:evilgrin:

[opihimoimoi]

38. My kinda Girl,

Sending Beer and Nachos. Tacos and burritos too?

[mzmolly]

9. He's telling us the truth, and he is speaking for the people

:toast:

[opihimoimoi]

21. His MESSAGE IS SELLING> HELLOOOOO?

[TLM]

11. It is very very simple to understand why Dean is doing so well...

He came out at a time when all the other major dem candidates had sold us out and were to timid to stand up to Bush and the republicans.

Dean called them on it and he stood up when it counted the most.

Add to that the fact Dean is speaking tot he party base, and not just trying to appeal to the swing voters first and taking the base for granted.

He's not apllogizing for being a democrat and he is fighting back.

Dean is the guy who has excited and motivated the base, while also being the guy that a far left or a moderate republican voter can plug their nose and vote for.

[opihimoimoi]

28. IOW He got balls.

He got the spine, the nerve, the guts to say what we been saying

[ermoore]

12. How about everyone else is terrible?

That should be an option. The rest of the field is very uninspiring.

[poskonig]

13. Dean takes risks

while other campaigns are risk-averse and somewhat slow.

[opihimoimoi]

16. From the above posts I might infer that Dean: Inspires, Leads, shows

Courage, Tenacity, Smarts, etc

while the rest of the feild languishes for whatever reasons.

Dean is connecting via his messages which seem to reflect anger & concern held back for for too long by the people. In addition, there is a deep resentment/rejection of the Pub Approach via Bush and his score card.

Looks like he stands above the rest in a lot of areas which explains his lead.

Come, we find ways to promote Ho'o ponopono(reconciliation) Peace.

I hope Dean is the guy to take us Dems the Super Bowl.

[eleny]

15. And he also got started really early

I recall him declaring that very first time. He seemed quite nervous. But it was the best for him to get out there early and have his summer tour to let folks get to know him. He's now a household name as much as any other candidate.

Other people here talked about his qualities and message, so I thought to just mention his early jump into the race when absolutely nothing was happening. It surely helped.

[opihimoimoi]

17. I concur, Early Bird gets the Prime Ribs, lol.

:bounce: :toast: :bounce:

[stickdog]

19. Because he doesn't back down just because whore media won't go there

and because he best distills the issues for mass consumption.

[Bill of Rights]

20. Dean is doing well because the media loves him

They rally for him. And voters notice this.

[opihimoimoi]

29. Hey, the Media got kids too. They wanna see good for THEIR KIDs

just as much as we do.

They wanna stay safe too, fuck war. If the time comes we would go to the Front and risk life and limb for the Nation but for "SPICE???"

The CHESS MASTER GUYS get to use me as a pawn and risk MY LIFE????

sez those reporter media types. Brother, they got brains, they know when they getting HAD.

[redqueen]

32. Of the many things I disagree with on this thread, this I must comment on

Most reporters and pundits have huge fat salaries which they will not jeapordize.

They already have it good... they see risking 'going against the tide' as the same thing as not thinking of their children's future. After all, if they act out and are fired, they lose the fat salary and can no longer summer in the hamptons with all the other kool kidz.

Do not be fooled. Media is not on our side.

[opihimoimoi]

34. Not all the media have fat salaries and besides there are afew

perhaps more than a few who desire what is RIGHT, what is GOOD, and what is BEST

[eileen_d]

31. Other

When you figure it out, let me know. Because I "just don't get it." :cry:

[arewethereyet]

39. I like to think of is as appealing to baser touchstones

sort of like the cutup in high school. pretty popular for a while but when he actually tried running for class president, found that his antics didn't play so well.

but basically he had that Trippi guy to set him up and when he's not talking himself up trees the plan TRippi laid out meets the goal.

[sandnsea]

35. Burn everything in his path

Bush, other Democrats, whoever. It appeals to that percentage of Democratic partisans who hate anything Republican just because. And Dean has tapped into that partisan hatred and turned it against Democrats, even when Democrats were right or doing the exact same thing Dean would have done. Or were doing things Democrats had wanted to do for a while, like passing portions of the Patriot Act in order to prevent a terrorist attack like 9/11. He's got the vote of the partisan Republican haters, but it hasn't gone further than that so far.

[opihimoimoi]

37. Perhaps, only time will tell,

But from this perch, Dean is connecting. His message is being heard by many people, enough to reach where he's at.
The man is good at what he does, describe the alternative to the Pubs.

[DFLforever]

41. Very hard worker

Huge self-confidence

and especially, ability to listen to the people.

[opihimoimoi]

44. Traits that does him well.

Especially the "listen" Part

[Octafish]

42. Message: Dean wants his country back.

So do his followers. So do I.

[opihimoimoi]

45. Hey, me too, we all want our country back, them pubs got our Nation

in their back pockets and its obvious

Come, we get Mad.

[Spider Jerusalem]

43. None of the above.

Almost all of the listed choices sound like starry-eyed worshipful tripe, in my opinion. Dean's image as candidate: angry, vehement, pissed-off, just struck a nerve. He's successful because he found a way to make himself head cheerleader for a LOT of the people who are angry. He's like that guy from Network with an antiwar message, screaming "we're mad as hell, and we're not going to take it anymore"...and a lot of people are screaming right along with him. That's my view, anyway...yours of course is likely different.

[opihimoimoi]

46. Anger was mentioned/acknowledged

Come, we get mo angry

[shivaji]

47. Dean has the SMARTEST ADVISORS.....

and will not be outwitted by Karl Rove in November.

[opihimoimoi]

50. Yup, Trippi doing a Trip on the rest

Smart moves will take you places.

[ryharrin]

48. I went for the combo option.

#1 and Joe Trippi. Those are the reasons. Not to mention the 550,000 supporters he has working for him.

[opihimoimoi]

51. "Its the MESSAGE stupid," LOL, and yup. 550,000 vols have got to help

The Lean Bean, here come the Dean.

[BootinUp]

52. Dean is firing up the more active democrats

the democrats that vote in Primaries, the democrats that hate bush more than the average voter, the democrats that do not comprise a majority of voters, the democrats that have either forgotten the history of Presidential elections, or have accepted probable defeat and will vote on principles.

[opihimoimoi]

53. In addition, I think there is a smidgeon of movement from the Indy crowd

This is what worries the White House basement crew, The Independents, and how Dean is appealing to some of them. What the Pubs fear is a snow ball effect for Dean.

[BootinUp]

54. Well,

Sure he can pick up some of the most dissaffected if he is their only choice. But as I indicated, election history is so much against the chance of Dean winning it ain't even funny.

[opihimoimoi]

62. The odds show Dean got a decent chance at this point.

[Cheswick2.0]

55. 1 and 3

He has the right message and a great organization.

[opihimoimoi]

58. yes, he does

thus far, no major gaffes, no back to the drawing board mistakes,
no bailouts by senior staff, only high fives and mini luaus on the weekends and, pizzas, "AGAIN?", during the week.

[Ficus]

56. he works his ass off

One reason he is ahead, IMO, is that he works his ass off. He has been campaigning since I was in college at the University of Northern Iowa, over a year ago. I remember he came to my college and spoke, long before any else did, like early fall of 2002.

He made something close to 13 trips to Iowa before January 2003. He works HARDER, and that's why he's ahead.

[opihimoimoi]

59. Tenacity, persistence, and energy to go the distance.

Honed by the early bird start, this guy is DETERMINED. He is COMMITTED. He is PASSIONATE. And he is saying things that CONNECT.

The man has found the right chords, the right music, the way to peoples Minds and Hearts. He is doing it.

[John_H]

57. Combo--media pump up and creating a sense of importance and belonging.

The latter is brilliance on trippi's part.

The former should have every democrat quaking in their boots and asking why is Dean being annointed by Crowley and CiCi, Tweety and Lunz, Timmy and Paula? Because they love dems so much? Because they want Bush to beaten so soundly? Because they are objective journalists?

Ask the question. Answer yourself honetsly.

[opihimoimoi]

60. Dean gives the impression he can do what is best for America

given the tools and resources. Exen some media types are going for this guy. He is selling his stiry which sounds and looks a lot better than Bushies/

Because Busdh cannot out think Dean, look for Bush to sabatage, go dirty, and go neg. Thats the Pub way.... they got no choice, they ain;t got a solid story, its all huff and Bluff.

[cindyw]

61. None of the above. Dean took advantage of the feelings against the war.

He made people believe that he was the sole person who had the absolute clarity ahead of time that Bush should not have been given the authority to go to war.

[opihimoimoi]

63. I believe there is a lot of truth in your statement.

No caving in?"