So, what is the job of the DNC chair anyway?

[AP]

I know he or she is the voice of the party in a limited respect. But it's the eventual nominee who should be laying down the values and the arguments and tapping into, or revealing or establishing the cognitive framework within which people will appreciate the party's values. So, if you find someone who does that perfectly, I'd say you wouldn't want to spoil their chances of being president so they shouldn't be DNC Chair.

I know the person is supposed to bring in money. However, remember in the early primaries when we'd be impressed by a candidate who could bring in 5 to 15 mil in a quarter? Well, Kerry raised something like 200 mil in four months after he was nominated, and it wasn't the DNC Chair who did that, unless I'm grossly misguided.

I suspect the DNC Chair hires staff and makes decision about the pace of the primaries. But I don't see how those things have a bigger influence than the candidates who run for the nomination.

Anyway, bottom line, when we're arguing about the DNC chair, I'm not sure what it is we're all arguing about. I don't know what's at stake.

What is at stake. Anyone know?

I hope we're not just trying to reward people with stepping stones so that they can make connections and go back to their consultancies later with million dollar contracts which allow them to run campaigns for mediocre but connected candidates in state and federal races across the country.

[Name removed]

1. Deleted message

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

[WI_DEM]

2. the problem with that is

the eventual nominee has only six months or less to get his agenda and ideas across to the American people. The DNC chair will have 3.5 additional years to begin building a party which is strong both financially and politically for he/she to build on--and to give the Democrats an identity which resonates. The identity right now is that we are defeated and in turmoil. We need to turn that around.

[quiet.american]

3. Check out this article

http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0116-01.htm

[marcologico]

4. Kind of a CEO job--behind the scenes, spreading money to campaigns,

arranging the primaries and convention, keeping the troops in line.

Your Al Gore icon made me think it's the perfect job for Al. He's basically a behind-the-scenes guy. Too bad he's not in the running.

[ClarkUSA]

7. Terry McAuliffe & James Carville invented the front-loaded primary

And wow, the pay is huge!

The front-loaded primary has got to go.

[janx]

8. It's effectively gone.

If people in charge try that again, they're not going to see many voters at the polls. People are very disgusted and disillusioned regarding that.

[janx]

5. About the money--

I think the idea is to get an apparatus in place that represents the states and communities and which also gives us the opportunity to raise a lot MORE money ahead of time.

[Eloriel]

6. DNC Chair is responsible

for setting up the infrastructure for the party, for one BIG thing - - something that's been sorely lacking and completely abandoned AFAIC for decades now (ever since they found the Goose that Laid the Golden Egg, aka: corporate donors!!).

So there's no infrastructure to speak of in terms of grassroots organization, etc. I my county we have an "exec committee" but it has NO interest in having any kind of organization beyond that. In other counties in GA, the Dean folks forced the county organizations to get off their asses and start meeting and doing things again, and in at least one or two cases we BECAME the county organization. (We also just had a number of Deanies elected to state party positions.)

The DNC (and this responsibility is shared by state parties) is also responsible for helping candidates and campaigns -- in some cases for RECRUITING people to run. For example, one of Howard Dean's main goals as DNC chair would be to run a Dem candidate in every race in every state, or as he puts it: SHOW UP.

I concur wholeheartedly -- you might not win, but you DEFINITELY won't win if you don't even run. (And I'm always reminded of the DUer, who may no longer be posting here), who ran in a state or local race in FL knowing she couldn't win, but did better than expected with NO resources -- and no help from the state party, I might add. The next time she ran again and did even better. Name recognition was better and so were her skills and resources. The third time she ran again and won. She never would have won had she not run the first time -- and the second.)

TRAINING is also a big DNC responsibility -- campaign workers, organizers, fundraisers, communications people, etc., etc., both paid staff and volunteers.

FUNDRAISING -- the DNC is responsible for helping ensure that candidates at all federal levels get funds. I've heard some bad stories about this about how they conduct themselves recently, but they are expected to help people get elected this way too, which includes using some of the money for running ads.

POLICY and MESSAGE -- I see a lot of people saying the DNC CHair is NOT responsible for this, but somebody needs to be. Right now we keep shooting ourselves in the foot. I'm not looking for the kind of message discipline you see among the autocratic Republicans, but a little more cohesiveness of purpose and understanding would be great and I can think of no one who could do this other than the DNC chair. Neither Minority Leader has any power or sway over the other house in Congress, and there's more to the Dem Party than just Congress too. SOMEone needs to whip a little sense and shape into the Party as a whole.

[AP]

9. If it's about building from the bottom, then Dean should probably be

the chair.

But I do hope that building from the bottom is based on something other than how angry we are at Republicans. i hope it's based on Democratic values.

[marcologico]

10. Dean is not an apparatchik. He's pretty clearly got POTUS on the brain,

and he thinks he got "screwed" out of it last time, so he should drop the pretense simply run in '08, and not play games.

[NYCGirl]

11. Wow. Pretty good mindreading skills there, Sparky.

You could make good money with that. What's Kerry thinking about right now, or do you only do people you don't like?

:tinfoilhat:

[marcologico]

12. Nader didn't help Gore get elected, and that's where I see this heading.

n/t

[NYCGirl]

14. More mind reading. Nope, I'm not thinking of Gore.

:tinfoilhat:

[marcologico]

13. p.s. not that Dean is close to Nader politically, just personally. n/t

[janx]

15. Two this time.

:tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat:

[WI_DEM]

16. He has already said if he is DNC chair he will not run in '08

so there is no pretense towards '08--if he is elected DNC that is where he is staying.

[marcologico]

17. Guys, let's just say I've been right before. Hint: Zephyr n/t

[NYCGirl]

18. Janx, I'll see your two tinfoil hats, and raise you a...

:silly:

[AP]

19. I don't see any evidence to support that.

Dean actually seems more interested in the DNC than anything else, and he must know that that is not a stepping stone to the nomination.

[marcologico]

20. I think the gameplan is to be "unanimously" swept in by adoring masses.

Beyond his control, so to speak.

[AP]

21. Then he shouldn't want to chair the DNC.

I really don't see what you're trying to describe.

[marcologico]

22. He wants to tinker around with it so Iowa isn't a deal-breaker, for one

thing. In other words, pave the way for his big comeback, which, of course, will be totally out of his control, but who could say no? He'll just HAVE to run!

[AP]

23. You think he's going to try to replace VT with Iowa?

I still don't see it.

[NYCGirl]

24. Then the Des Moines Register is lying?

http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050114/NEWS09/501140416/1056

Dean says Iowa's caucus schedule is fine
The former candidate who wants to lead the Democratic Party doesn't want 'change for change's sake.'
THOMAS BEAUMONT
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
Copyright 2005, Des Moines Register and Tribune Company
January 14, 2005

Howard Dean lost the Iowa caucuses a year ago, but that doesn't mean he wants to dump them as the first presidential nominating event in 2008 if he's elected chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

The former Vermont governor said Thursday he sees no reason to keep Iowa from leading off the 2008 nominating season. That's a point of disagreement between Dean and another leading candidate for chairman.

"I don't believe that the system's going to be changed or that the order is going to be changed," Dean said in an interview with The Des Moines Register. "You're going to have to show me a reason to change. I'm just not going to change it for change's sake."

[KoKo]

25. Suck Up...and get the Corporate Funders to the Pig Trough.....and then

hire lots of DC Inside the Beltway Folks to run your Candidate for the elections...Midterms, and National. :D And make sure that you send the most "reticent" spokespeople to represent the Democratic Party onto the "Talking Head Circuit" and you're guarenteed for life to make MUCHO BUCKS...as a "Democratic Consultant."

The Global Economy moves on and you are secured a STAR in the Political Establishment for the rest of your life. In fact...YOU TOO can become Henry Kissinger!..OOPS...wrong party...but you get my drift, dontcha? :shrug:

Pigs at the Trough by Arianna Huffington
... Excerpts from Pigs at the Trough by Arianna Huffington Copyright© 2003
by Arianna Huffington. Excerpted by permission of Crown, a ...
www.ariannaonline.com/pigs/ - 11k - Cached - Similar pages