I'm going to miss Howard Dean as DNC Chair

[Stinky The Clown]

We have him to thank for our good fortunes the last two cycles.

[OhioChick]

1. You and me, both. n/t

[biscotti]

2. Totally agree

He has been a wise and great leader with fresh new approaches.

[mitchtv]

3. I'll bet you'll miss him more in 2010

Tim Kaine (homohater) will never pry a nickle from my Gay hand

[silverojo]

23. So let your gay hand put a nickel in the GOP's pocket, instead?

Makes sense. After all, the GOP has always been so supportive of gay rights. :sarcasm:

[PVnRT]

31. Yeah. Gays should just shut the fuck up and quit whining

:eyes: Seems to be a common refrain from posters like you these days.

[kenfrequed]

37. False Choice.

The poster might just elect to choose individual democratic candidates to donate to.

After all, why wouldn't he want to send money to a guy who is pro-life, anti-human(gay) rights, anti-labor, and a complete hypocrit about the death penalty.

So yeah, what you propose is called a false choice in logic. Give money to the DNC or give money to the RNC.

[mitchtv]

40. Still at it , I see

I don't support pukes, and I don't support anti choice anti gay Dems neither. If the Dems lose support by being assholees , so be it. Obama is not my savior, incidentally. I feel free to criticize and support only pro equality candidates . I've been supporting dems for many, many years. I no longer have the patience to sit around and wait while politicians lie to me.

[Somawas]

4. Me, too. It was nice, having a Democrat as chairman of the Democratic Party.

nt

[AtomicKitten]

5. Me too. He has served the party and country admirably.

:patriot:

[Jennicut]

6. Anyone know what he might do next?

Though he can come back to New England any time he wants.:)

[Ichingcarpenter]

10. Commerce department is open now!

But I doubt it will happen. Howard Dean will surprise us all.

[tnlefty]

7. So will I!!

Thank you for your hard work, vision, and for standing up to the repugs, Dr. Gov. Chairman Dean!

[tblue]

8. I hope Tim Kaine makes it a 3-peat in '10. He should sit at the feet of Gov. Dean

and watch and learn.

[fla nocount]

9. I would support him as a third party candidate, or even...

as a Dem. primary candidate if Clinton II botches things so badly that Dean is begged to return. I've a feeling that the nation will be so downtrodden and vulnerable to economic forces that the next Pres, will be sold as a savior.

Dean has savior written all over him, as Governor, as DNC chair, community organizer, on his shirt tags, everywhere. I've also a feeling that Dr. Dean hasn't retired and that his shoddy treatment will result in a bitter pill to be administered at a later date.

[progressoid]

11. yep!

[mzmolly]

12. As am I. It would be great to see him as Commerce Secretary

however. ;)

[Fearless]

13. Agreed.

Here's to his health, and many good, non-private plane flying years.

:beer:
NTF

[kaygore]

14. Obama should worship the ground that Dean walks on 'cause

Obama sure walked the path that Dean cut through the wilderness of American politics. I am so disappointed in the disbanding of the network that Dean established and in the lack of gratitude on the part of the Democratic leadership for all that Dean has done.

[karynnj]

34. Obama did not "walk the path Dean cut" any more than he followed many Democrats

Any Democratic campaign will take parts of methods that worked for earlier candidates. In 2003, Dean (and Trippi) showed the amount of money that could be raised on the internet. They also pioneered using the internet to organize some of their supporters. Both of these successes were copied and added to other campaigns in 2004 - notably Kerry's, as it became clear that he was the likely nominee. In the general election, the web site and email were both used to great advantage. The blog was great. (Even here, it was mostly the idea, not the implementation taken.)

In 2007, every hopeful had a web site and every hopeful tried to raise money in the same way Dean did - and all incorporated technology that was either non-existent in 2004 or in its infancy. The immediacy of a candidate being able to instantly speak to supports on You tube was something not available in 2004.

But, you can also see in the careful Obama ground game in Iowa and elsewhere echos of the well planned Kerry primary campaign. Many of Obama's people came from people allied with Kerry. In addition, Pouffle who was a Gephardt person and Axelrod who had worked for Edwards - and they had combined to run Deval Patrick's campaign. All of these people learned different things in different campaigns.

In 2008, the candidate with the campaign that looked the most like Dean's was John Edwards. It was fueled by the internet and it attempted to corner the left wing part of the spectrum. Edwards made some of the same attacks on Obama and Clinton - about being pro-corporation and too dependent on lobbyists that Dean had unsuccessfully made in February 2004 against Kerry. Obviously it was Trippi rhetoric.

As to the 50 state strategy - it makes more sense in terms of Congress and local offices. The problem in 2004 is that in very "red" areas there sometimes was no local Democratic party. This meant that even is there were a blue tidal wave - there would be no one to place in those races. 2006 and 2008 were able to take advantage of Dean's working to have organization everywhere. It is less related to the Presidential race. In 2008, Obama was far enough ahead in all the must win states that he could spend time in some of the red violet to red states. This was possible only because all the blue states were firm and Obama was ahead in most or all of the swing states. Had the swing states been in jeopordy, Obama would have been sent there more often - at the expense of being in any red states. Additionally, he had FAR more money than McCain and was able to advertise in red states.

His campaign though - even if he were not there - would benefit by a healthy local party getting out the minority Democrats to avoid the huge margins that could swing the popular vote. (Just as it did in NJ which was so blue that Obama was rarely here.)

[kaygore]

42. Having worked like a maniac in 2004, 2006, & 2008 in red states

several of which turned blue this time, I can attest to how critical the 50 state strategy was to Obama's win. We were in place and trained and hungry for victory. Wherever I went, I saw that the core was composed of those who had been organized through the Dean 50 state strategy.

That so many states turned blue from red may have been in part the large Black turn out and the application of a variety of strategies, but the feet on the street that made all of this work evolved from the work of Dean--pure and simple!!!!!

[question everything]

15. Why did he have to leave?

Are there term limits, or something, to being the DNC chair?

[leftstreet]

18. I read that he knew he'd be axed

Apparently Rahm despises him.

Can't remember where I read it though.

[question everything]

19. Despises him for winning in 2006 and in 2008?

Who is calling the shots, anyway? Obama? Who decides when he has to go?

[leftstreet]

22. I think it was about money

Rahm wanting some. Rahm claiming his brand of fund raising was better than Dean's 50 state strategy. Something like that.

[Veritas_et_Aequitas]

20. I believe I read somewhere that he initially said he would only serve for one term.

[mopinko]

24. he said all along that he did not want to serve if obama was elected.

that to be the dnc chairman under a dem president was something that he did not want to do. so all you people complaining that he was dumped should drop it.

nonetheless, i am saddened that he is leaving and hope that he finds some political niche that is comfortable for him.

[orleans]

25. why wouldn't he want to be chairman under a dem president?

i'm slow on the uptake--especially tonight--my computer is fucked up.

[mopinko]

26. i dunno exactly.

i think he felt that he would mostly be in service to the political needs of the president, instead of working to grow the party. i wonder myself. but that is what he said.

[WonderGrunion]

41. I don't think Dean has been shafted

But it would be nice to see him get some reward for his past four years of hard work. Does the Bahamas have an American embassy?

[rwheeler31]

16. Surgeon General?

[Mind_your_head]

17. I would hope that the Obama adminstration might find an appropriate place

for an 'honest man', such as Howard Dean.

I can understand that Mr. Obama is "under pressure".....but an 'honest man' needs so have 'some surround' with like-minded 'honest men/women' ~ who know the score/understand the game ;)

[GreenTea]

21. Howard Dean brought back victory, respectibly & much needed aggressiveness to the democratic party.

It won't be the same without the progressive outspoken Dean at the DNC....

The only people who are happy to see Dean go are the republicans and the corporate DLC!

Thanks Governor & Chairman Dean for everything!

[WaukeshaDem]

27. Great

Dean was a great example of a candidate who was a split-second ahead of his time.

[rvablue]

28. Kick squared. Kaine is my Guv. And he's good enough. But I LOVE Dr. Dean! n/t

[cascadiance]

29. I joined the Democratic Party the day that Dean took over the DNC...

I'd been an independent for quite a while before that (though I hadn't voted for any Republicans).

If I don't see similar moves of progressives getting any power like Dean did when he took over the DNC, I might just use his departure as a signal for my departure too. Progressives need more strong voices Barack! We need to be heard this coming four years... WE have the ideas that haven't been tried and shown to be failures like the Republicans and centrists have when they've had power over the last two to three decades.

[Mira]

30. I am filled with admiration for his vision, his follow through and his stamina.

Thank you Doctor Dean.

[Romulox]

32. Dean's "50 state strategy" was about severing old alliances in favor of new ones.

He's a victim of his own "success", whose legacy will have been to move the Party sharply right under the administration of the worst rated President in history.

Ciao, Howard. :hi:

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

33. I LOVE and RESPECT Dr. Dean who resurrected "the Democratic wing" of the Democratic Party

Now if a few more (beginning with Reid and Pelosi) would start acting like REAL Democrats I would be a lot happier.

[Duppers]

39. well put.

nt

[Lugnut]

35. I must agree.

He's the best thing that ever happened to the Democratic party in recent memory. I'm still holding out hope that he'll be given a job in the new administration.

[madokie]

36. I'm an early on Deaniac

I thought he was the better choice in '04.

[Iwillnevergiveup]

38. Surgeon General?

Ooooh....like the sound of that. He's such a class act and so multi-talented. Talk about walking the walk....I really don't want to see him disappear. But if he's had enough of politics, who could blame him?:toast: