Nation-Building

This article in the New York Times begins by painting Dean in a fairly positive light. He is the little known candidate who stormed upon the campaign trail. Howard Dean is the guy who has dictated the theme of this early campaign season. Once written off as a little man from a little state, Dean has expertly framed the 2004 nomination fight as a choice between white-hot liberal rage on one side and the room-temperature promise of ''electability'' on the other. ''Democrats are furious at their own party,'' Dean says. ''They feel like the party's leaders have taken a pass.'' It does, however, seem to cast a shadow of unelectability on Gov. Dean: The bad news for Dean's rivals, however, is that Democratic protest candidates have proved very effective at indelibly soiling whatever image the party is trying to convey at the moment. And you have to wonder if the other candidates, ensconced in Washington, have any real grasp of the ...

Got this in an E-Mail today from Cris Alvarado. He's absolutely right, the campaign should pick it up and run with it. Bush's willingness to eliminate the only bit of his tax cut that aided the poor, the child tax credit, is shameful. We need to show that the needy who Bush is attacking here aren't jobless degenrates, as Rove would have us believe, but quite a few of our enlisted men and women whom Bush is so happy to use as props for photo-ops. "Did some research after a comment on the NewsHour intrigued me, specifically: How many servicemen, just returning from Iraq, are shut out from the tax cuts because they fall below the approx. $27,000 cutoff? I think this would be a devastating number to calculate precisely, and then circulate in the press.  "Mr. President, not only are 11.7 million children affected but (number) service men and women as well.  Is that how little you value our enlisted men and women?", or something like that. As with...

From the AP account of the Lake Placid rural issues forum: "I appreciate Sen. Kerry saying we don't need Bush Lite, and we don't," Dean told about 1,000 people attending a forum on rural issues in Lake Placid. "But, Sen. Kerry, we don't want Dean Lite, either." .... Before his speech, Dean told reporters that he had heard about fellow Democratic hopeful Kerry's speech to the forum and the warning by the senator from Massachusetts that Democrats had to stop acting like Republicans. "I heard he did a great job giving my speech," Dean said. While Dean directed most of his criticism at Kerry, the former Vermont governor also said his other rivals from Congress too often have supported President Bush on the war with Iraq, tax cuts and other issues. "They can talk the talk, but they aren't going to be able to walk the walk," Dean told reporters. To the forum audience, he was as blunt: "What we need in this party is ...

Are Doomed To Repeat It. The more we in Dean Nation read - and ask our friends to read - much of the political commentary that followed the 2002 elections, the better off we'll be. Rick Perlstein had a gem in Mother Jones . John Nichols had another in The Nation . (I'd provide links to similar commentaries in major newspapers were those pieces not today in costly web-based archives). The New York Times' Matt Bai quotes members of the Democratic Leadership Council because he and many members of the national media [wrongly, see below] credit the organization with Bill Clinton's electoral victory in November of 1992. Strangely, however, Bai and others fail to fault the DLC with the Democrats' numerous losses in November of 2002 -- "the worst midterm performance by a party outside the White House since the Republicans in Franklin Delano Roosevelt's 1934." Democrats can justly criticize the DLC for lack of a backbone. Or we can go after the DLC ...

I do recommend that everyone read it, but I want to stress that the Times is an enemy we don't need. They're probably already feeling kicked with the whole Jayson Blair thing. Keep feedback positive - constructive criticism. Work with them. And, remember, the article isn't officially being published for two more days. Sit on your letters a bit.

Read it. Study it. And prepare those letters to the editor.

We've got our own blog. DeanDefense.org We're up and running, come check it out. And if you've wanted to join, but have been unable to bring yourself to give your address to Yahoo, join now by following the instructions over at the new site. Thanks for everything. And, please, come join us.

One Father for Dean has a post up (no permalinks, perhaps he's worried about being bloggered) on Neil Cavuto's dumb ass rant about sending back tax cut checks if you disagreed with the tax cut. Here it is: "So I'm imagining myself at my big Reunion shindig this coming weekend with largely conservative alumni -- (yes, there are a few. Quite a few, actually, despite what the college conservatives would have you believe) -- who decide to gang up on me for my support of Howard Dean’s pledge to repeal President Bush’s tax cuts when elected President in 2004. 'A blatant sop to the unions, special interests and you bleeding-heart liberals,' one said. 'Our economy (and my business) will suffer,' another railed. When it was my turn to speak, I said simply, 'You guys look like you're doing okay. If you don't want the government, don’t take what the government gives you.' My point would and will be this: If you don’t want that ...

ABC's Marc J. Ambinder put together this article comparing Gov. Howard Dean with former FL governor Sen. Bob Graham . The article compares how they are alike as well as how they are different. Most noteworthy was the talk that pehaps Gov. Dean is thinking of Sen. Graham as a running mate... Political observers currently put Dean in the first tier of Democratic candidates while Graham is seen at this early stage in the campaign as a second-tier candidate. Could Dean be looking far enough into the future and thinking that Graham might make an attractive running mate? One idea, endorsed by some who have spoken with Dean, is that the candidate is angling for Graham to join his ticket. Being governor is an important qualification for Dean. The last two Democrats elected president — Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton — were state executives. They were from the South, not the North. So Graham could certainly help Dean's electoral calculus. Democratic candidates planning for ...

I came across this little tid bit and thought it was interesting... One of the current contenders for next year's Democratic nomination for president said Friday he would like to see New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton someday run for the White House herself. "I think she would be a great candidate," former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean said in a telephone interview. "I think she would be a great president." Dean's comments came as New York's Democratic Rural Conference launched a two-day forum in Lake Placid on rural issues, planning to hear from some of the announced presidential candidates and from others, including the former first lady. Okay, Hillary... Gov. Dean said nice things about you - now it's your turn!

We're gonna be on this like Atrios on Blitzer. There's a Presidential straw poll in the lower right-hand corner of the site. Dean is up. Let's knock it out of the ballpark.

In an AP article today, Dean expands on a new theme that he started to develop at the Iowa forum. Thoughts on this? Dean, a doctor and former governor of Vermont, has proposed an $88 billion plan to provide health insurance coverage for all Americans under age 25 and expand coverage for uninsured adults. In exchange, he wants Americans to take more responsibility for their health care. Pharmaceutical companies, insurers and lawyers deserve some of the blame for rising health care costs, he said, but so do individuals who don't take care of themselves or don't make realistic decisions about their medical care. ''Most politicians treat voters as children: 'Elect me, and I'll solve all your problems,''' he said during a forum at which he explained his plan and answered questions from voters. ''When are we going to talk about our own responsibilities?'' ''If we're going to have health insurance for everyone, y...

The question I’ve found myself answering over and over again is “I think Dean is great, but do you really believe he can win?” I'm sure many of you have heard the same question. I suspect that most people reading this blog think the short answer is "YES!" but we could all benefit from a discussion of good longer answers to the question. My attempt at a long answer is too long to post, so I've put it here . Let's brainstorm! UPDATE (by Aziz) : Don't miss Joe Trippi's comment !

Arianna Huffington in an article on salon.com writes that the Democratic Party could rally behind the motto "Vote for us -- we kinda, sorta disagree." She writes, "The party leaders are so timid, spineless and lacking in confidence that to compare them to jellyfish would be an insult to invertebrates." Most noteworthy, I thought, in her column was when she observed: It is precisely this kind of craven vacillation that has made possible the triumph of the fanatics in the White House. Democrats are wringing their hands over the "tactical genius" of Karl Rove , and the "brilliant political stagecraft" of his TV experts who always present the president in the best light. Such is the Democrats' fragility that the mere smoke and mirrors of posing the president in profile at Mount Rushmore, or asking the people standing behind him during a recent speech on the economy to take off their ties so they would look more like average Joes, leave them ...

MoveOn.org has built a massive online grassroots community. In a letter to their members today, founder Wes Boyd wrote to the 1.4 million members of MoveOn: "With our agenda in hand, we can play an unprecedented role in the presidential campaign. But first we need to develop a common agenda. Today's straw poll is the first step." If you are a MoveOn member, or if you know someone who is, please check your email from MoveOn and follow the link to vote for Howard Dean. (You must already be a member of MoveOn to vote. Not all MoveOn members have yet received their email today-- be patient!) We are building the largest grassroots campaign in history, a campaign to take back the Democratic Party and to take back the White House in 2004. In order to achieve this, we must all come together for Howard Dean. It is important that supporters show their commitment to Dean by voting in the MoveOn poll. Only by reaching out to the communities that already exist-- communitie...

Moveon.org, one of the largest grassroots organizations in the country, is holding a Democratic presidential poll today. If you are a member of moveon, check your email and vote in the poll, and make sure your moveon friends know about the poll. To learn about moveon.org--or join--visit http://www.moveon.org . Lets show Moveon the strength of our own netroots and grassroots!

Springboarding off of Governor Dean's statements below, I think there is a very powerful meme against the tax cuts, one that expresses what we want in a simple, practical fashion. Any responsible adult knows that when you get a pay cut, you simply cannot spend as much. You need to conserve money for the basics, your children, health care, upkeep in your home, college funds for your kids...you simply cannot spend frivolously at their expense. That is what our President is doing. Tax Cuts are a bonus, something for good times. We cannot have them, however, when schools are closing, when health care is becoming unaffordable, when jobs are being lost and roads are deteriorating and law enforcement agencies don't have the money to protect. The President will tell you not to worry, that even in these lean times you can have both a tax cut and a perfect society. But I'm not going to lie to you. When times are tough, it doesn't matter if you're a country or an in...

The main official campaign site has a new statement up from Howard Dean that is definitely worth reading and spreading around: With the President's proposed budget and the $350 billion tax cut package he is signing today, it has become clear what this President is attempting to do, and why we must repeal the entire package of cuts both those signed today and those passed in 2001. It is time to level with the American people. The economic plans put forth by President Bush and the Republican party are a fundamental assault on the basic American ideals that we all share -- an assault on our schools, our health care, our environment and our social security. I will not go along with it. The sooner we recognize that this isn't a fight over tax cuts, but a battle for our country's heart, soul and future - the sooner the American people will join our cause. Let me be clear. The President's tax cuts are part of a radical agenda to dismantle Soci...

Some talk has occured recently of finding ways to assure the DNC that Dean supporters stand with them and that we are a united party. So far, it's been a lot of talk, with few of us figuring out concrete steps. Well, Sam Flaxman emailed me today with an idea worth trying: signing the DNC's petition opposing extremist judicial nominees. But don't just sign it. In the comments section, tell the DNC that you are another "Dean Democrat" who stands opposed to Bush's extremist judicial nominations. Read the Petition : The United States Supreme Court is the backbone that upholds American values. These cherished American values are at risk if one or more Supreme Court Justices retire this summer. Civil rights, a woman's right to choose, environmental protections, public education, workers' rights, and much more are threatened by a right-wing court. President Bush has already built a record of nominating extremist, ultra-conservative judges to th...

At the risk of veering into cult-like hero worship, note the following revelation from the Creative Loafing profile Somehow, it's not surprising that Dean cites Ken Kesey's Sometimes a Great Notion as his favorite novel. For anyone who has ever read the book, four words probably come to mind: "Never give an inch." The patriarch in Kesey's 1964 epic scrawls this admonishment on a painting and hangs it near his newborn son's bed. It's a commandment of intransigence, a screw you, to nature, convention and history. It's the perfect Dean book. Not that Dean would ever think this way, but it also has resonance with groups of voters large and small: Oregonians, loggers, union members, and middle-aged men who worry they've compromised their values too many times. Also, Paul Newman and Henry Fonda fans who couldn't get through the book but saw the 1971 movie.

Alert reader Richard Hoefer of San Francisco for Dean has asked us to pass along some resources. Right now, SF4Dean is overhauling their site and adding lots of organising tools. They also have a really good discussion forum that you should check out. Richard explains that over the coming weeks, SF4Dean will be adding lots of tools which people in various states can use to organise locally. Since Dean for America is doing a major push towards local organisation, we think this will become an invaluable resource. And remember that we need to hook up with our local Democratic Party in order to take it back. =) If anyone else has organisational links, please leave them in the comments section. I know there are many supporters out there who are still at a loss when it comes to organising locally. Leave contact information for those folks as well, and thanks for the help!

You'd think with a title like that I'd be linking to another article about Howard Dean, wouldn't ya? But I'm not. Cause it's a line from Kerry campaign e-mail. ...to beat [the Bush campaign] and take back our democracy, we need your help in building the largest grassroots campaign in American history. Don't worry, John. We're already there.

As many of you know, the de-regulation of newspaper and television ownership across the country has been an issue of major concern as of late. Below is a copy of the letter that Gov. Dean sent to Chairman Powell of the FCC. May 27, 2003 Chairman Michael Powell Federal Communications Commission 445 12th Street SW Washington, DC 20554 Dear Chairman Powell, Americans cherish the freedom of the press -- and the diversity of the press that ensures they can get access to the truth and to the information they need. The Bush Administration may not appreciate that freedom and diversity, but they should not tamper with it. On June 2nd, the Federal Communications Commission should decide against allowing a single company to own multiple television stations, radio stations, and newspapers in a single town. The Bush Administration has urged the FCC to remove regulations that protect every Americans’ right to a free press. This latest attempt by the Bush Administration to underm...

Joe Trippi does have posting priveleges to the blog, but he seems to save his best stuff for the comments threads :) Gov. Dean defies labels. But there is a string that runs through most everything he does, his positions and his record. He really did make sure that nearly 100% of those under 18 in his state received health care -- there are very few (liberals or conservatives) that have produced those kind of results -- including a 43% reduction in child abuse in his state and a 71% reduction in sexual abuse against children over the 10 years he was Governor. During that same period many progressives faulted Gov. Dean for his fiscal restraint -- they believed that he was not committed to spending enough on social programs when times were good economically. Gov. Dean stated then, as he states today -- that the best guarantee of social policy is to balance the budget in a strong economy -- because fewer people need help -- and it is this fiscal restraint on his part that makes it pos...

President Clinton recently made a guest appearance at a seminar at the University of Arkansas, focusing on the Clinton Presidency. While watching it, I found that Clinton's initial remarks were like a neon sign pointing to Dean. I urge everyone to watch it as I think Clinton raises some critical points that both we Dean supporters and the Dean campaign need to keep firmly in mind. Let's use the comments to this post as an open thread. &nbsp President Clinton at the University of Arkansas I will blog my own thoughts and impressions to this video later as an update (after I organize my extensive notes).

The latest from the Associated Press has Dean as a top-tier candidate -- and nearly the favorite. Ron Fournier, the article's author, is a well-respected reporter who has covered the White House and politics for the AP since 1993. In "With No Frontrunner, Democrats Plot Strategy For Race To Nomination," Fournier takes a look at each candidate's primary campaign. Dean's place in Fournier's candidate survey? Second, after Long Jawn Kerry. But I believe that because Dean's victory in New Hampshire will (effectively) end Kerry's campaign, we're sitting pretty. Onward-ho! Of Note: One could argue that Fournier's hierarchy is determined not by the likelihood a given candidate will secure the nomation but by the candidates' strategies and the primary schedule. But why then are Dean and Kerry discussed before Gephardt when Iowa's primary comes sooner than New Hampshire's? No, no, my friends. Fournier has shown us his hand...

The number of unique page views on the Dean Blog has passed 150,000 - averaging about 1500 visitors a day, of which 75% arrive via Google and Yahoo searches. Reflect on that for a moment - this is significant because it suggests that we are still in the early growth phase of Dean's netroots support . And the netroots support drives the grassroots support - which also shows the same trends, as seen by the history of Meetup numbers recorded on the DeanBlog over the past few months: Date Supporters February 2nd 501 February 20th 1590 February 25th 2327 March 5th 4297 March 30th 10010 March 31st 10434 April 8th 13808 Today, May 25th, we have 26055 members signed up. These are just the exact reported totals - after combing through the blog archives I found these estimated reports. These numbers are less accurate, because the numbers were quoted as "almost above" or "nearly at", and the dates are just the timestamp of the post which may not reflect the date th...

pure speculation, but the Scripps News Service is making the claim that Edwards may drop out of the running: So who among the nine candidates seeking the Democratic presidential nomination will be the first to drop out? Don't be surprised if it's Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina. Edwards is telegenic, a smooth talker, and he's raised a bunch of dough. But he's been lost amid better-known candidates like Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, as well as those who have created a buzz, like former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean. Edwards' Senate seat is up in 2004, so he could opt to return to the upper chamber and make a White House play later. If he drops out, will he endorse Dean or Kerry? Discuss...

Full Transcript of Dr. Dean's health care policy interview on the NewsHour with Jim Lehrer. A gem, including the first comparison (I've seen) between Dean and Kerry's plans (below). But what I like best about Dean in this interview is that he begins where he's strongest -- by touting his record, not his promises. With nine candidates and numerous health plans, what will distinguish Dean from the pack is what he has accomplished. The more times he reminds the American public that Rep. Gephardt and Sen. Kerry couldn't get their proposals through Congress, the better off he'll be. RAY SUAREZ: What would you say the biggest difference is between your plan and those offered, for instance, by Senator Kerry, which emphasizes cost containment a little more, by Congressman Gephardt that emphasizes using employee based programs more? HOWARD DEAN: Well, I like Dick and Senator Kerry and I'm pleased they've joined me in offering a health care plan. The critic...

Yea, Dean surpassed the $1M mark in fundraising over the internet quicker than any other candidate, including Bush. Quotes in here from Trippi and notes on the meetup phenomenon as well: Though many of the 2004 hopefuls have the potential to raise millions over the Internet in coming months, none has highlighted their Internet campaigning to the extent Dean has. The one-time governor, like other relatively unknown candidates before him, had little choice, said Larry Sabato, a University of Virginia political scientist. In 2000, Republican John McCain raised $1 million over the Internet in 48 hours. "They can't afford high-priced consultants. They can't afford direct mail, which eats up sometimes 80 percent of what it raises," Sabato said. "So they have to depend on person-to-person fund raising, and that's the Internet. There's almost no overhead with Internet fund raising." That's pretty phenomenal, and accounts for the high bu...

Another great article by Peter Freyne in Seven Days VT, which is unabshedly pro-Dean and has a nice long piece that covers a lot of ground. Mentions some absolutely fantastic soundbites: “The enormous tax cuts are not only undercutting Medicaid and Social Security, Mr. President. The enormous tax cuts that you have passed are actually undercutting our ability to defend ourselves.” “Prisons are the most expensive and least effective social-service intervention.” “This president’s foreign policy is not consistent with our values.” If you make me the Democratic nominee, I’ll make you proud to be Democrats again!” well, I'm not a Democrat, but he'll make me proud to vote Democratic :) But the best part is near the end, addressing the "Dean is mean" meme. The Kerry-kingmaking Boston Globe on Sunday took a page from the DLC playbook and printed a story by Yvonne Abraham (“Dean Not Very Civil — Some in Vt. Say.”) that supposedly proved that Dean was a ...

Months ahead of the early primaries, we shouldn't trust polls to accurately reflect on-the-ground voter preferences -- folks are likely to change their opinion several times before Election Day. But I did notice that the latest numbers from New Hampshire ( AP ) suggest Dean's backers are more solid than Kerry's. If Gore were to enter the race tomorrow, the ARG poll finds Kerry would lose a full third of his support (9%) whereas Dean would lose only a few ballots (3%).

First we had the netroots-powered DeanTV.org - now we have HowardDean.TV, the official video site for the campaign. Wired has a decent summary article about this new resource. Check it out!

William Saletan has some feedback for Dean based on his performance at the Heartland forum in Iowa. He has some positive and some negative feedback, the most interesting of which I found to be this: 4. Responding to a question about governing a much smaller state than Texas: "Well, Texas has the 48th best education system in the country; we have the sixth. Texas has the highest percentage of children with no health insurance in America; we're No. 1. We have a balanced budget; Texas just tried to cut every single kid off health insurance … to balance their budget. I think the people of this country are going to have a great opportunity to choose between whether they want the Vermont model or the Texas model." Dean rattled off these lines as though he's been practicing them for the general election. The Vermont half sounds pretty good, but the Texas half is a bit odd. People don't think of Bush as the governor of Texas anymore. If his election didn't give...

Ryan Lizza in TNR has an extensive article about the use of the Internet by Dean's campaign. It rightly identifies Joe Trippi as the visionary but goes out of its way to give the grassroots self-organizing phenomenon its due as well. Congrats to fellow DeanBloggers Ezra Klein and Matthew Singer, for their mention in the piece! (I'm now officially jealous ;) The article is comprehensive and it's clear that Mr. Lizza is actively reading this blog for his research. The article lauds the DDF and the obsessive nature of the Dean Blog - calling us Dean fedayeen for our zeal (it's a compliment. I think) An especially interesting passage is the campaign-eye view of how Meetup became significant to the campaign: For the Dean campaign, it all started with the Meetup phenomenon. Back in January, the campaign stumbled upon the Meetup website and noticed that 432 people were signed up for a Howard Dean Meetup group. "We didn't really know what it was," says Tripp...

right now! use this as an open thread about his performance. transcripts, please? (hat tip - Richard Hoefer, Media Committee of San Francisco for Dean )

Howard Dean has raised $1 Million from the Internet -- making him the first contender in the 2004 cycle to do so. But we need to double that. Why? Because the critics are already pooh-poohing. Larry Sabato, master academic of the old-style campaign, is already dismissing the accomplishment: The one-time governor, like other relatively unknown candidates before him, had little choice, said Larry Sabato, a University of Virginia political scientist. In 2000, Republican John McCain raised $1 million over the Internet in 48 hours. "They can't afford high-priced consultants. They can't afford direct mail, which eats up sometimes 80 percent of what it raises," Sabato said. "So they have to depend on person-to-person fund raising, and that's the Internet. There's almost no overhead with Internet fund raising." On the other hand, the Kerry campaign was smart enough to not attack this time around: Kerry campaign manager Jim Jordan said he ha...

The Dean Campaign keeps growing and growing and growing... FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 22, 2003 DEAN FOR AMERICA ANNOUNCES NEW STAFF AND ADVISORS BURLINGTON, VT -- The Dean for America campaign today announced the addition of several key staff members and advisors. "I am delighted that talented people of this caliber have agreed to join our campaign," said Governor Howard Dean. "These men and women add extraordinary talent and depth to our operation and begin to round out our senior staff," said campaign manager Joe Trippi. "We will be making additional staff announcements in the near future." The campaign’s Policy Director will be Jeremy Ben-Ami , Deputy Domestic Policy Advisor to President Bill Clinton from 1994-1996, as well as Chief of Staff to the Domestic Policy Council from 1993 to 1996. Ben-Ami served recently as Deputy Campaign Manager for...

Everybody knows somebody who calls himself a libertarian. They run rampant in the blogosphere and one, at least -- Johnny Bardine -- is voting for Howard Dean . Johnny, a friend of mine and constant opponent on many issues, makes a very good case from the libertarian perspective for a Dean presidency in a guest post on my blog ( his own blog is presently Bloggered down). We "fringe activists" would do well to read a bit about the issues and arguments that gain Dean support outside "liberal elite" circles.

Bring HaloScan to it's knees.

William Pitt has a cool interview with Dean on truthout.org that's well worth a read. It looks like we in Dean Nation were scooped, in a sense - the interview questions were compiled in part with suggestions from readers at Democratic Underground. I found Dean's comments on media consolidation and corporate influence to be very relevant: PITT: For a great many people across the political spectrum, the number one issue of concern is the vast and growing power of corporations within government, and even more so within the media. It can be argued that one of the main reasons why the Bush administration continues to enjoy the approval ratings it does is because the news media has been demonstrably derelict in its duties. Where do you stand on the power of corporations in America, particularly within the media? Do you have any thoughts or ideas on how that might be dealt with? DEAN: I do. I think, first of all, it is true that the media has a conservative bias, and is being we...

From the Dean Campaign... FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 21, 2003 DEAN STATEMENT ON CHRISTIE WHITMAN'S DEPARTURE FROM EPA; LAST VOICE OF MODERATION GONE FROM ADMINISTRATION Salt Lake City, UT - Democratic presidential candidate Governor Howard Dean today commented on the resignation of Christie Whitman from the Environmental Protection Agency and spoke out against the Bush Administration's disastrous environmental record. "Administrator Whitman was one of the few voices of moderation in the Bush Administration. Unfortunately, her voice was muted by the Bush-Cheney obsession with rewarding their friends in the oil industry by rolling back decades of bipartisan progress on protecting our environment." Upon taking office, President Bush swiftly broke his promise to regulate emissions of carbon dioxide - a major contributor to global warming. The Bush Administration has repeatedly worked to weake...

Looks like we have a landslide winner in the "choose a B&J flavor" poll! Here's the text of the suggestion email I sent to Ben and Jerry's: Idea Type : Flavor Idea Name : Maple Powered Howard Description : In honor of former Vermont Governor Howard Dean, Maple-Powered Howard would have world-famous Vermont maple syrup as the prime ingredient. This flavor was chosen with 204 votes out of 606 Howard Dean grassroots supporters, voting online at the Dean Blog (dean2004.blogspot.com). The second and third place choices were Cookies and Dean (111) & The Doctor is Mint (72). We also gave "I want my Cointreau back" an honorable mention. We urge Ben and Jerry to join us in supporting Howard Dean's bid for the Presidency in 2004 and serve up a healthy dish of Vermont Pride. .

Some of Howard Dean's critics have said that his responses to the now-infamous DLC memo have been ineffective at best. Today's speech to the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers should effectively mute any and all criticism on this front. "A couple of days ago, I was in Iowa," Dean said. The DLC put out a statement that "all my supporters are elitists and I'm catering to elitist special interest groups. Last time I looked, 15 AFSCME members died at the World Trade Center, I didn't see any of the staff of the DLC at the World Trade Center." "Who do you think makes the Democratic Party, makes this country work, we're not elitists, we are the people this party ought to be standing up for and that's what I intend to do," Dean told the International Association of Machinists and Aeronautic Workers. Some may register discomfort with Dean's political mention of 9/11, but it was done tastefully and hi...

TAPPED has done a wonderful job of improving the connotations surrounding their name (e.g. "The keg is tapped."). And they're keeping up the good work, with posts like this : ...the DLC is changing the subject. It wasn't attacking Dean for his tone or style on the campaign trail. It was attacking him on substance, on policy. And as such, the attacks were both hypocritical and off-base. and this : If Bradley was modifying Chafee, and Chafee was working off Butler, and Vermont Gov. Howard Dean is now building on Bradley, doesn't that mean that Howard Dean is relying on an idea originally developed by the Heritage Foundation? And, more importantly, how does that make him, as the Democratic Leadership Council has alleged, part of "the McGovern-Mondale wing" of the Democratic Party? [...] It's a pretty impressive sign of how desperate the DLC is to derail Dean that it's now accusing him of being too liberal for the party at the same m...

A lot of people are thinking that Kerry is the only candidate who can trump Bush on issues of national security, both in terms of actual and perceived ability to do so. In my mind, this is truly flawed. I truly still do not understand Kerry's stance on Iraq. From what I can tell, invasion in October was OK, but invasion in March (when America's image was on the line) wasn't. That's a bad actual national security policy. Now, as for Dean being unelectable because of perceived weakness on national security, the argument that Matthews, the DLC, Wolfman Blitzer, and others keep making is that people in 2004 will think Dean made the wrong call on Iraq, a fundamental national security issue. They think this will be people's opinion since polls showed people supported the war in Iraq. But they're missing some fundamental truths behind those polls. First, poll numbers for wars always go up, as it is largely a way of showing support for troops. Second, a stan...

Gabriel has posted the full transcript of the AFSCME debate.

We have a new video Dean resource, called Dean TV. Here's an introduction by Heath Eiden: DeanTV.org is an independent site for independent thinking people. It's a resource for those who are sitting on the fence waiting for a leader to emerge from a list of candidates; a leader who is not afraid to take the road less travelled and show up to the debate Bush is having with himself. Vermont has a special place in history when it comes to independent thinkers, including Democrats, Republicans and Independents. As DeanTV.org offers evidence and research about Vermont's independent tradition, the site asks the community to consider whether or not Dr. Dean is leading in the same spirit as those before him. Please be patient as the site is still in its early stages and may be harder for some to access than others as we go through a trial and error process. But for independent thinking people wondering who Dr. Dean is and whether or not he's for real: tune in to Dean...

I watched Gov. Dean Sunday at Sen. Harkin's candidate forum. I saw a moment that defined why Gov. Dean's background as a physician is the most critical item on any candidate's resume in the 2004 election. More about that in a minute. Then, Sen. Kerry released his health care package Monday. Sen. Kerry showed why sailors should not manage health care. Kerry’s proposals endorse creation of a two-tier medical system, one for the insured, and system of community clinics that has proven highly inadequate in the past for the nation’s needy. Many of Sen. Kerry’s proposals seem to revolve as much around Kerry’s military years as the rest of his rhetoric. “More PT, LT., more PT, we like it, we love it, we want more of it…” Lots of talk about making Americans more healthy, which is not a bad idea, but still will not prevent Americans from dying eventually. I haven't seen even O’Really try to spin that Dubya can end death in America (well... not lately, anyway). Americans run up ...

The DLC memo's have been dirty and divisive politics. Worthy neither of their organization nor the time we have spent responding. Nonetheless, this is politics, respond we must and respond we did. Now, however, we should work to glean the best from this encounter, to take their criticism in a constructive fashion, at least that of it which is based in reality. The primary critique the DLC levied at Howard Dean was that he was weak (which they use as a synonym for liberal) on national security. When the DLC says that "On every social and economic issue, registered Democrats' views were closer to those of all registered voters than to those of Democratic delegates " and use it to tar Dean as a liberal, the only place they have to attack is foreign policy. And on that they are correct, Dean's views on Iraq were different than the majority of the country's, this makes neither he nor them wrong, it is simply a statement of fact. Anybody who thinks national...

Governor Dean spoke at a "Hear it from the Heartland" forum hosted by Sen. Tom Harkin this weekend. The video is great -- and it closed the deal with a libertarian friend of mine whose previous position was that Howard Dean was the only Democratic candidate for president who "doesn't make me want to gouge my own eyes out and light myself on fire when he talks" but who is now fully on board. With any luck a donation will be forthcoming. I haven't seen any transcript yet, but here are two good excerpts (via me , actually; here and here ) from the first part of the his remarks: A lot of people say, "Well how's this guy from Vermont gonna win? He wants to get rid of the president's tax cuts! How's he gonna win in the South?" Here's what you do: we're not gonna say, "Oh, let's get rid of the president's tax cut -- all the money went to the wealthy." I don't think class warfare works. What we're ...

Bush Spokesman Quits for Private Sector By RON FOURNIER, AP Political Writer WASHINGTON - White House press secretary Ari Fleischer (news - web sites), the public face of the Bush administration through two wars and a terrorist attack, said Monday he will resign in July to enter the private sector. "I love this job," Fleischer told reporters at his informal Monday morning briefing. "I believe deeply about President Bush (news - web sites) as a man and I believe deeply in his policies, but it's my time to go." He would not speculate on who would take his place, but presidential aides said deputy press secretary Scott McClellan was the likely successor, although there are other possibilities. Fleischer said he wanted to leave the hard-driving job before Bush's re-election campaign geared up. "I want to do something more relaxing — like dismantle live nuclear weapons," he quipped...." http://story.news.yahoo.co...

From the Dean campaign... FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 19, 2003 DEAN URGES BUSH ADMINISTRATION TO ENSURE RATIFICATION OF TOBACCO TREATY BURLINGTON, VT- Governor Howard Dean applauded the Bush Administration's reversal resulting in the decision to vote in favor of the current version of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) at the World Health Assembly meeting and urged the Administration to shepherd the treaty through Congress to ensure its speedy ratification. "We have taken great strides to protect the children of this country from the predatory marketing practices of Big Tobacco. Now that the tobacco industry has apparently shifted its sights overseas to developing economies in Central and Eastern Europe and elsewhere, it is clear that a strong international approach is warranted. The FCTC reflects the most concrete action the world has ever seen to...

From the Dean campaign... FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 19, 2003 DEAN APPLAUDS SUPREME COURT DECISION ON PRESCRIPTION DRUG COST CONTAINMENT BURLINGTON, VT - Former Vermont Governor Howard Dean today applauded the Supreme Court's decision allowing Maine to begin implementing a program to force manufacturers to lower prices on prescription drugs. "This is a good day for Americans who are struggling to pay for their needed prescriptions. Having worked very hard in support of Maine's effort, I am very pleased with the Supreme Court's ruling," Dean said. During Dean's tenure as Governor, his office worked closely with the Massachusetts Attorney General's office in encouraging other states to sign an Amicus brief supporting Maine. Dean has long been a leader in controlling pharmaceutical costs. At a time when Congress has failed to deliver any meaningful cost containment legislation, it has fallen to Governors to l...

This is my first post at the DeanBlog. I want to thank Aziz for clearing me to come over from the National Dean Network mailing list groups and allowing me to add my two cents worth here. For those of you who haven’t checked out your local Dean group, please come by and give us a yell. There are local mailing list groups now up for every state and major city in the country as well as many special interest groups such as students, seniors, disabled individuals and more. Think of them as a next stop for people after going to their local meet-ups. People are doing a ton of local grassroots work all across the country and we’d love to have you join us. A good first stop for checking in is the Howard Dean Coffeehouse. It’s a general hangout for Dean supporters with lots of link to your local Dean supporters. There is also a public networking group attached to the coffeehouse group that’s perfect for discussions about organizing techniques with other Dean grassroots activists. I have a...