Howard Dean: Rebel With a Cause

[midnight armadillo]

http://www.boston.com/news/globe/magazine/articles/2005/07/24/rebel_with_a_cause/

THERE'S PREACHING TO THE CHOIR, AND THEN THERE'S TELLING A Boston ballroom full of Democrats in the high summer of a Republican president's low poll ratings, "What we need to do is to develop an understanding of how hard it is to get by in a Republican America," as everybody cheers and the drummer in the band in the corner drops a rimshot, just so nobody misses the point. There's preaching to the choir and then there's leading it in song. "We can't win," says Howard Dean, "if we don't fight." And there is another rimshot and another burst of applause.

----

This is a good summary of Dean's chairmanship so far. Go Dean go!

[madfloridian]

1. Did you notice that the author was traveling with Dean early on?

"For someone who had driven a lonely road with him from Iowa City to Ottumwa, it was like watching a creation myth in real time. A presidential contest, working through its own curious internal dynamics, was designing a Howard Dean of its very own, one that was beyond the control of the actual Howard Dean.

Long article, nice one. Very insightful. I sort of disagree with his premise that Dean rises or falls on 2006. I think there is more to it than that.

[napi21]

2. 2006 will definately have an impact! If the Dems win seats,

Howard will get a lot of credit. If they don't he'll have to take the hit. I think a lot also has to do with wether we can get accurate voting in this Country too.

You know, it doesn't really matter if there was voter fraud in previous elections. What MATTERS is that the people THINK there was! Until we, as a Country can convince those people that their votes are counted correctly, everybody is going to suffer, including Dean.

[Cha]

5. That's right..I keep forgetting that

nasty little thing. No matter how many Dems come out to vote, if the machines are diebold and the votes come up repthug..what's a Dem Chairman to do?


We have to fix this disaster before there are no more paper trails!

[Cha]

3. It's more complicated than that but

I'm hoping all the Energy and Innovation Dean is bringing All over America will spell V-I-C-T-O-R-Y! for Dems on the whole in 2006! :bounce:

[madfloridian]

4. Yes, more to it than that.

I think the way he put it was simplifying it a little.
It will be very important, but not the end all. Even Dean has said several times it will take a while.

[blm]

7. 2006 will be dictated by the voting machines and covered up by the media

if the DNC doesn't attack and expose the GOP control of both.

[madfloridian]

8. It would be easier if concession had not happened so quickly.

I agree with you it needs to be done.

[blm]

9. I disagree. If there hadn't been a concession, the machines would've been

emptied immediately and ALL evidence would've been destroyed within hours. The Ohio court system is wall to wall Repub operatives everywhere but Cuyahoga County.

It was Terry MacAuliffe's job as head of the DNC whose interest was in ALL Dems on the ballot, not just president - he should have heeded those Dems who were pointing at the machine problem months earlier.

The only logical conclusion is that those Dems who implied they understood the machine problem really didn't believe it themselves fully, and so they never made it a priority BEFORE the election.

[KoKo]

6. What I like about him is that he's "REAL." He's been out there living a

life that's "Real." I'm always amazed at how out of touch our other "Democratic Leaders" seem to be with ordinary Americans.