DeanBlog Interview: Ask Howard Dean

The voting has concluded! These are the final questions, ranked in order from most popular to least. I combined the two Israel questions into one, and rewrote the "legalize hemp" question into a more general one about the War on Drugs. I also edited the questions to make them more succinct, and focus on the main issue (many were actually multiple and distinct questions lumped together). Please leave your comments/suggestions for further editing of the text of these questions in the comments thread, and then tomorrow we will mail them to the campaign.

1. Israeli settlements

You have openly stated that your views on Israel are "in line with AIPAC's". How do you reconcile your support for multilateralism (as pertained to Iraq) with AIPAC's support of the Israeli settlements in Gaza and the West Bank, which are illegal under UN Resolutions 242, 338, and violate the Oslo Accords and the Mitchell Plan?

2. Media regulation

How would you address growing conservative control over the media, and the demise of regulations that limit how much of the media that corporations can own (and therefore influence)?

3. Human rights foreign policy

How would you tie human rights advocacy into your foreign policy (particularly as relates to national security)?

4. 9-11 investigation

Will you pledge to call for a full and truly independant investigation into events leading to the 9/11 attacks?

5. NRA relationship

For many of us, it is impossible to view the NRA organization as a pro-social organization in any overall sense. What is your stated position about the NRA organization and its tactics at the national level? How might you proactively support state deliberation around gun control issues?

6. War on Drugs

The War on Drugs drains billions from the economy, obstructs the use of medical marijuana, and leads to imbalances in our judicial system by mandating minimum sentences for minor crimes. Do you believe the War on Drugs is worth the cost, both financially and societally?

7. Campaign finance

What sort of ideas do you have with regard to big business money in politics? Do you believe that you would be able to attract this money without giving business interests more of a say than the interests of your grassroots volunteers?

8. Cutting Gov't spending

On Meet the Press Governor Dean was asked "But if you had a constitutional amendment to balance the budget, where would you cut? Where would you find $400 billion?" Repealing President Bush's tax cut has been your most mentioned way of balancing the budget, but how would you also cut federal spending to help reduce the deficit?

9. Farm policy

What are your views towards farm policies, especially those that reward overproduction? Specifically, do you support either the Dairy Compact, or the Iowa ethanol subsidy?

10. Digital Millenium Copyright Act

What are your feelings on the Digital Millenium Copyright Act (DMCA), especially as it pertains to fair use?