God bless Howard Dean, but he's a little hope-struck at times

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

Dean's latest pronouncement that the current HCR compromise might be a better thing would carry a lot of weight if Dean hasn't had a track record throughout this process of recycling happy talk from his friends in congress in the first-blush phase of each innovation and then rolling it back.

A new idea is rolled out and Dean gets optimistic. Makes the rounds of TV shows.

A week later more details have been analyzed and he is back to pronouncing that "none of this is real reform."

Next idea is rolled out... etc..

For instance, I agree with Dean that extending medicare to everyone over 55 is an excellent step. No doubt. It's great. Break out the champagne. Probably much better than the bullshit POINO (Public option in name only) we were going to get.

But medicare is not simply going to be extended to everyone over 55. It will be more complicated than that. There will be wrinkles and restrictions. And those wrinkles and restrictions will dictate whether it is actually a better thing than the alternative.

Why would senators who are in the tank for the insurance industry support this? It is a pregnant question.

The devil has been in the details every step of the way.

It wasn't long ago that Dean was telling us that the bill was going to get stronger in conference. (Conference is not where bills go to get liberaled up.) The whole "pass anything and fix it in conference" thing was not legislative strategy, it was a head-fake to freeze the left.

That's not Howard Dean's fault. I think he believed it. Good people in congress were telling him "this is the straight dope" and he was buying it. Then the actual numbers come out.

He's a good guy who wants to be honest but doesn't want to harm the chances of something passing and the result has been a kind of yo-yo effect.

We will see how long his approval of the latest grand compromise holds up.

[democrank]

1. Howard Dean is a lot smarter than you think

and has a better grasp of the problems in our health care system than just about any other Democratic leader. Unlike most political leaders, he says what he means and means what he says.
Don`t think for a minute that he doesn`t know "happy talk" when he hears it.

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

2. So he was intentionally lying?

I am not saying Dean has been gullible to be mean.

I am saying Dean has been gullible because that is much better than saying that he has been a fully-aware participant in a series of deceptions.

I reject the idea that Dean in a Lanny Davis-esque hack.

He has endorsed then un-endorsed a host of "breakthroughs"

I think that is because he wants to believe and accepts broad characterizations of proposals from people for whom he has regard.

Then when the real numbers come out he reverses.

[dgibby]

5. He was on one of the programs last night,

I think on MSNBC, and sait that he's basically an optimist when asked about his take on this latest announcement. I gather from that that he WANTS to believe the best. Of course, he was saying that the medicare option would be a good thing, but he didn't have any more info than the rest of us when he said that, as the news had just broken.

I love him and would vote for him in a skinny minute. He has a good heart and wants what's best for all of us.

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

6. I adore the man. Seriously.

My OP is not meant too condemn him. Merely to remind everyone that he has endorsed the concept then castigated the actual details on a whole series of proposals.

And that's fine. He wants to help get something passed.

He is probably doing the right thing.

But that doesn't mean everyone posting to an internet forum is required to forget the previous premature endorsements.

[waterscalm]

9. He is like a leaf in the wind lately.

[vaberella]

3. Far from it. I want to know what he gets for supporting this.

I'm tired of his bipolar tendenacies.

[OneGrassRoot]

4. I think we're all seeing and hearing what we want to see and hear.

When I've watched him, I haven't interpreted him as giving definitive seals of approval on anything, but saying "If such and such is in the final bill, as they are talking about now, that will be a good thing."

In this 24/7 friggin news cycle, I've seen him respond to early reports based on what is being reported.

When the facts come out, then he responds to those.

I don't get excited about what he says until I know he has the facts, but I don't view him as dishonest, bipolar or any of those things. Just someone knowledgeable trying to inject some perspective based on the neverending rumors that come out. While I prefer the BS media stfu until facts are in, if they're going to have someone fill the space, I prefer it be Dr. Dean about this issue.

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

7. Good, reasonable post

I do not attribute any bad intentions to him. He is one of my favorite and most trusted people in politics.

[Teaser]

8. poor, dumb Howard

.

[stray cat]

10. I think he is smarter and better informed than the majority of DUers