Nation-Building

The Boston Globe Magazine has an indepth article on Dean's candidacy. There are extensive new quotes by Dean, and the artiicle is a lot more caustic than previous coverage. Again, not much new in terms of policy statements, but more character insight and a lot of pessimism. But the overall message comes across, oddly, as positive. In addition to equal time for critics, it also goes into some background of his tenure in Vermont, including the following tidbit about school funding legislation (which until now hasn't received nearly as much attention as his civil unions stand) : In Vermont, where state government is largely a part-time business, and where the Legislature meets for only about 16 weeks a year, Dean's volatile and energetic persona was in stark contrast to the overall temper of the government he'd been handed to lead. Nevertheless, for all his bombast, he hewed to the middle, alienating everyone a little but very few people a lot. Dean's fiscal steward...

From Howard Kurtz ( who likens Rush Limbaugh as a mainstream voice ) of the WA Post, probably the best treatment that this guy will give Dean in the campaign, and that's not saying much. Most of it is repeat punditry, here's something interesting about Dean in GA: In the car after the event, Dean explains his strategy for overtaking Al Gore, John Kerry, Dick Gephardt and the rest of the probable contenders by working his tail off in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. Money is more important than media at this early stage, he says.... To the extent that Dean has attracted favorable press notices, it's for bluntly calling for universal health insurance and rolling back the Bush tax cut while others in the party are hemming and hawing. When the band takes a break, he gives a 30-second speech to the crowd -- "We are never going to beat the Republicans if we try to be the Republicans" -- and brightens considerably when a local lobbyist stops by to congra...

The motherlode article for Dean; it's all here, all about why he's going to be the next President of the USA. The question is: What precisely turns some candidates into media sensations? Dean's nascent candidacy, and the way it's gradually emerging through the news, is an opportunity to look at the media's own electoral process unfolding in real time. Take the Dean story and combine it with all that's happened to the Democratic Party in the past few weeks, and you can begin to see him as the candidate most likely to see a breakout in the coming months.

In Forward, an interesting piece that gives detailed information about Dean's religious feelings. Pro-Israel to the same extent he is pro-Taiwan, yet a visceral connection with Israel (I wonder if Dean will come out in support of Ben-Eliezer over Sharon ? I sure hope) . After the religious details, an excerpt from the Grossman angle: Grossman, the former AIPAC and DNC official, said Dean would appeal to American Jews because Jews, in effect, like doctors: "He is a physician who built a track record on health care... The Jewish community will respond." Grossman said Jews would also approve of Dean's stance in support of civil unions for gay Vermonters because of the Jewish affinity for civil and human rights. "In order for him to be totally credible to the Jewish community in issues, people will want to see a well-developed foreign policy on Israel and the Middle East and be supportive of Israel's effort to maintain its qualitative edge," G...

The name uppermost in Howard Dean's mind is probably "Al Gore" rather than George Bush. Dean's entire focus is on the primaries, and so it is certainly of interest that Gore's re-emergence is now underway. In addition to the Barbara Walters prime-time interview of Gore on ABSNEWS' 20/20 Friday (and web-only transcript excerpts that were unbroadcast), there is also a comprehensive profile of Gore by Liza Mundy in the Washington Post magazine. Both are must-see for Dean fans to gauge the true extent of just how much a behemoth Gore's full emergence will be. If a Gore nomination is inevitable, then a veep nomination would be a wonderful consolation prize. While there is real dissatisfaction with Gore on the part of the party faithful, there is no denying that he has a leadership role in the party and heavy grassroots support. It's worth keeping an eye on him. Gore is scheduled to admit that he is running again in 2004 in December. Stay tuned...

Talking Points memo has some reflections on Howard Dean. Marshall compares Dean to Bruce Babbit (we've seen that comparison before), and says that Dean is not a "serious" candidate: But when the Democrats are out of power there's usually one person among the field of contenders who is clearly the most thoughtful of the candidates and, perhaps because he also seems -- for whatever reason -- unlikely to get the nomination, he also ends up being the most courageous in the stands he takes and the interests he's willing to take on. (Republicans usually take a different course, having one lovable freak like Alan Keyes in the hunt.) Inevitably this candidate becomes the toast of the advanced degree and latte set and various star-struck journalists write "if only..." articles for smart-set monthlies. He often ends up teasing the debate out in interesting directions. But he is pretty much never the one who gets the nomination or even gets close. This guy is ...

Some excerpts: Above the Vermont Pub & Brewery in Burlington is the headquarters for a presidential hopeful. Vermont Governor Howard Dean, just back from his 19th visit to neighboring New Hampshire, is carrying a television. It's something new in the Dean For America office that's otherwise stuffed with old furniture. "That I had in my doctor's office for 20 years," says Dean, pointing to a green couch that greets visitors when they walk into Dean for America headquarters. "Calls come in here, volunteers of various sorts run this it's fundraising, it's outreach, field operations". The campaign now has six fulltime paid staff members. "(This is) the nerve center. Abby has the West, Erin has the east. Of course it will get a little bigger than this". Binders contain the names of contacts and connections across the country that are helping the doctor Governor. Money is a must. "I have money coming in. Downs...

Democratic Gov. Howard Dean of Vermont Signs on Former Democratic Chairman to Presidential Campaign This is the moneyman. President Clinton had also endorsed Grossman in MA, whose candidacy never got out from under the shadows of the others in the Dem primary. MONTPELIER, Vt. Nov. 12 — Democratic Gov. Howard Dean signed up a veteran party activist Monday to help him raise money for his expected run for president. Former Democratic National Committee chairman Steve Grossman said he supported Dean at least in part because of Dean's help during his unsuccessful bid for Massachusetts governor. "He was very much involved and supportive," said Grossman, a former chairman of the Massachusetts Democratic Party. "I've been impressed with his political courage, which I think is in very short supply in America today." Grossman has a short Q & A at BW on the 2002 results, here .

There's an interview with Howard Dean conducted by The Harvard Independent newly posted on my website . There's nothing in there that will be new to Deanophiles, but his strident criticisms of the Bush administration make a nice counterpoint to the weenie campaign the Democrats waged and lost earlier this week.

I just wanted to point out that a lot of fellow bloggers have looked at the GOP victory with regard to its potential effect on Howard Dean. I think that at this point, the charge of "you lost the government in 2002!" can be applied to every single potential Democratic contender for the Presidential nomination with the exception of Gore and Dean. Here are bloggers who have some things to say about Dean's chance at the spotlight: Nick Denton Matthew Yglesias Chris Mooney BTW, there was a huge spike in visitors to the Dean Blog on Wednesday (after the complete election results were finally in). The average visits are about 50 a day, the previous spike was 150, Wednesday saw 250 unique visitors. The referral logs show a large number of Google queries about Dean's position on Iraq and the Bush tax cuts. Clearly, it isn't just bloggers but also web surfers in general who are putting 2 and 2 together.

I received a notice from the Dean campaign this morning stating that the Governor has been named one of the top public officials of the year by Governing Magazine. The article doesn't give us too much new information, however, the accolade should raise Dean's profile quite a bit. Here's an excerpt: There are people in Vermont — most of them political liberals — who say that Governor Howard Dean behaves like a Republican. Then there are conservatives who find his views on health and social issues disturbingly to the left of center. The truth is, much like the state he has governed for five two-year terms, he has made his political mark by defying easy labeling.