Dean fires 2 campaign aides

[maddezmom]

Dean fires 2 campaign aides
By Ed Tibbetts

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Howard Dean’s presidential campaign in Iowa fired two workers Thursday who were accused earlier in the day of trying to infiltrate rival John Kerry’s campaign.
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In a letter to the Kerry camp, Jeani Murray, Dean’s Iowa campaign manager, said the two were terminated after an investigation prompted by complaints by John Norris, who is running Kerry’s Iowa effort.
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Norris complained in a letter to Murray earlier in the day that the two men claimed to work for Dean and approached the Massachusetts senator’s Creston, Iowa, office, earlier in the week asking about the operation. Norris said one of the men, Mitch Lawson, admitted Thursday to being employed by Dean and said they were trying to get their hands on “calling scripts.”
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Sarah Leonard, a Dean spokesperson, said the two only recently joined the campaign and are from out of state. She did not say what they specifically tried to do, but in her letter, Murray said, “we will not tolerate any misrepresentation of the Dean campaign in any way.”

snip

more: http://www.qctimes.com/internal.php?story_id=1022713&t=Local+News&c=2,1022713
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[SahaleArm]

1. Hey Drudge reported it first so it must not be true...

:evilgrin:

[adadem]

21. I've always kept my eye

on reporting from the other side...to dismiss reports just because they come from a right wing rag does not mean we should be uninformed about what they are reporting...Dems need to keep a leg up to quickly rebuke or correct.

Good move by the Dean campaign to address this quickly...Dems, as a whole, don't need this type of stuff tainting our party.

[MIMStigator]

24. Fired them after Trippi said Gephart despicable and desperate for accusing

<snip>

Steve Murphy, Gephardt’s campaign manager, wrote a letter to the Dean camp Thursday saying a Dean “staff member” had come to them to “confess” the scheme. Gephardt’s office refused to identify the person, but Murphy demanded Dean’s national campaign manager Joe Trippi, to whom the letter was addressed, fire those “involved with this illegal endeavor.”
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In a response, Trippi called the allegation false and baseless.
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“Instead of these despicable and desperate attacks, you should start running the kind of campaign that inspires and energizes thousands of new voters,” he wrote. Dean aides said Gephardt was trying to lay the groundwork for explaining his failure in Iowa, which is considered a key state for him.

[MIMStigator]

26. Did they apologize for saying Gephart was desparate and despicable? eom

eom

[Eloriel]

39. You're conflating two different "accusations" --

Is that on purpose?

Here's the letter from Gephardt's AIDE, Steve Murphy, and Trippi's response:
http://blog.deanforamerica.com/archives/003019.html#more

Gephardt's AIDE pre-emptively accused the Dean campaign of planning fraudulent activity during the Iowa caucus, which is pretty despicable:

In the past several weeks, it has come to our attention that your campaign in Iowa is engaged in an effort to violate caucus rules and send out-of-state supporters to pose as Iowa residents and caucus in cities and towns across the state.

Trippi responded:

I am saddened by your letter today because sleazy tactics like yours are exactly the reason that people have stopped participating in the political process.

Let me be clear, your allegation is ridiculous. The 3,500 volunteers who have pledged to come to Iowa by caucus time are people who believe in a better America and a stronger democracy. Many are first time voters who have chosen to reengage in the political process because they understand that government has stopped working for the people. They know that Howard Dean is a different type of politician, and if we asked them to participate in the activities you allege, they would get in their cars and drive home.

We understand that the grassroots enthusiasm this campaign has generated and the over 3,500 volunteers who are canvassing in Iowa this month is threatening to Dick Gephardt. But that is no excuse for you to try to make Iowans question the motives of these idealistic Americans who are paying their own way to Iowa to canvass. In doing so, you are practicing precisely the type of politics that these volunteers are dedicating their time and effort to stopping.

People are tired of this type of campaigning, which is why we've been energizing voters across the country with our message of hope and of a better democracy. As Governor Dean often says, it's not enough for us to change presidents -- we need to change the way politics work.

Frankly, Steve, baseless political allegations like the one in your letter lead me to believe more and more that your campaign is not the one to make this change.

These allegations are not just an insult to Howard Dean and me, but they are an insult to all of the new people we're bringing into the process. Instead of these despicable and desperate attacks, you should start running the kind of campaign that inspires and energizes thousands of new voters so much that they want to come to Iowa and campaign for your candidate!

I assure you these allegations are false, and if my word is not good enough for you and Dick Gephardt, for whom I served in 1988 as deputy campaign manager, then it is with a particularly heavy heart that I send this letter.

Sincerely,

Joe Trippi
campaign manager

I don't know where Trippi was supposed to have called Gephardt "desperate and despicable," bit he didn't even call his AIDE desperate and despicable in this letter.

And oh, btw, as you can see, this is another matter entirely from the Kerry campaign's accusation.

And I'll also say that I, for one, am not entirely convinced these were "real" Dean supporters because Trippi is absolutely right about Dean supporters' level of integrity and expectations of integrity from the Dean campaign. It sounded from the get-go like a set-up to me, and while I have no idea who could've been behind it, we'll just leave it as the kind of thing Trippi characterized in his response to Gephardt's AIDE that Dean supporters are eschewing.

Trippi and Dean both know their supporters very well. There's no way this campaign will stoop to nefarious campaign tactics. None at all.

Eloriel

[Printer70]

28. These 2 were not campaign aides

They were volunteers. Please don't mislead.

[Jerseycoa]

32. It doesn't sound like it

Not that I doubt your word and I'm glad the Dean campaign bounced them. But they are referred to as "workers" in the article and I don't see how you fire volunteers, anyway.

[Printer70]

35. Guardian article

"Meanwhile, the Dean campaign Thursday was forced to fire two low-level volunteers who went into Kerry's campaign offices posing as average voters. Kerry's campaign reacted with outrage. Dean aides said the campaign adheres to strict ethical codes and that the two volunteers were dismissed. "

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uslatest/story/0,1282,-3606271,00.html

[funky_bug]

31. First congrats

1. Way to go, Howard Dean! You have shown integrity! Lest the people doubt, you have shown integrity.

2. Good point brought up by a previous poster... all we heard last night was, "If it's from Drudge it can't be true." Why would it be true now?

I didn't buy it last night... but if Dean kicked them out of the camp, then I guess it happened, and Dean gets a big :thumbsup:

[NV1962]

2. Dean = Nixon! Watergate!!!!

LOL

Seriously, I think Dean did well firing the two sorry asses, and not waiting another day.

Well done, this kind of crap hurts all Democrats.

[Clark4VotingRights]

3. I guess they were just free lance infiltrators. Not an orchestrated plot.

n/t

[sandnsea]

4. Thank you Dean campaign

I'm really glad to see this was handled this way and so quickly.

[Hoppin_Mad]

5. Bravo to the Dean campaign - They did the right thing - and FAST too -eom-

[maddezmom]

12. yup, got to put out the fires fast :)

seriously...glad they ditched this guys.

[Adjoran]

6. It was the right thing to do

and I salute Dean for doing it.

The candidate is never aware of such undertakings, they happen at a lower level in campaigns. It goes on all the time, from all sides. It's all part of the system. When they get caught, the hammer needs to fall, and it did.

[AnAmerican]

7. Kudos to the campaign for ditching them

I am not a fan of Dr. Dean but I will give him credit when it's due. This time, the credit is due.

[kayleybeth]

8. But, but...

I thought it was all a LIE made up by Kerry or Drudge or Newsmax, LOL!

Seriously though, good for Dean for firing these guys. It was the right thing to do.

[Skwmom]

9. I think this was their only viable option.

Sorry but the cynic in me says the Dean campaign had no other choice. They were caught with their hand in the cookie jar and needed to redeem their image. Corporate America does this all the time.

[Name removed]

10. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[ProudToBeLiberal]

11. kick nt

[quaker bill]

13. Glad he fired them.

This sort of repugnican sleaze is not in character with the campaign.

Now about those Dean/Osama ads...

[diamondsoul]

14. Bravo Governor!

Well done Howard Dean and crew. The right thing to do and done quickly.

[Rowdyboy]

15. Tweedledumb and Tweedledumber

What total goofballs, blundering around like a couple of fish out of water, no idea what they're doing.

Certainly Dean did the right thing.

[stickdog]

16. The nomination is now Kerry's to lose. (nt)

[Rowdyboy]

17. Sorry for my comment on another thread questioning you

I think I see the continuity in what you're doing here. Don't particularly understand it, but I'm SURE you have a good reason.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

29. It always has been.

[Cheswick2.0]

18. Kerry's people do the same thing I am sure

Those two should have been fired. Good for Dean. But I can tell you that this is standard behavior in campaigns and it is going on in every single one of them.

[Killarney]

19. Good for Dean camp for firing those bozos n/t

[farmbo]

20. This is the drawback of a "bottom-up" campaign:

Cowboys and Free Rangers.

On balance though they're getting the message out effectively.

[KittyWampus]

25. Good Point

[maddezmom]

22. kick

:kick:

[lurk_no_more]

23. Saying they were fired, was the right thing to do

And then there were none!
” JAFO”

[MIMStigator]

27. Did they apologize for saying Gephart was desparate and despicable? eom

eom

[lurk_no_more]

30. LOL

Yeah right!


And then there were none!
” JAFO”

[slinkerwink]

33. good for the Dean campaign in firing those two workers!

[arewethereyet]

34. what about all the others ?

I don't think I'm going to have any faith in the Iowa Caucsas now that we know that Dr Dean's team is willing to cheat for a win.

They take it as a point of pride in Iowa that there is virtually no checking of credentials. Iowans are honest people but every four years Iowa gets overrun with other people out to exploit them.

Its a damn shame.

[windansea]

36. ooooooooh yes..Kudos to Dean

for firing (which means they were getting paid) 2 sleazeballs

I feel so much better!!

[windansea]

41. no shit...

you are so right!!!

[Fleshdancer]

37. Now will Gephardt fire the aid who threatened the Unions in MO?

Her offense was much worse in my opinion.

[maxanne]

38. it sure is a shame

that the Dean campaign didn't make a stink about the Kerry staffer who was making nasty calls to Dean supporters in my area.

[w4rma]

40. As usual, Dean RESPONDS to problems *really* FAST. :-) (n/t)

[JaneQPublic]

42. Glad to hear Dean gave them the axe.

Those kind of dirty tricks are what Republicans do and have no place in the campaign of a Democratic candidate.