Defying both rational thinking and reason, the Democrats will officially elect Howard Dean as chairman of the DNC tomorrow. While he has been the front-runner from the start, there has always been a part of me that assumed our friends on the left would choose someone a bit more practical and suitable than Dean. After all, they came to their senses during the Iowa caucuses a little over a year ago, so who was to believe they wouldn't again? I guess it was simply foolish of me to believe that the across the board defeats in 2004 would serve as a wake up call within that once proud party. Instead it has driven them further into oblivion, as the party's rank and file seem more and more desperate to confront Republicans instead of work with them.
What the Democrats should be doing is taking a long look in the mirror and pondering why they have lost the last three elections. Their choice of Dean shows that they haven't learned their lesson yet, that they believe their problem is how they market their message to Americans, not the message itself. Denying this is denying reality, for Democrats simply do not have any message or vision that resonates with the majority of Americans. Selecting a man to lead the party who says that he hates Republicans and every thing they stand for is not going to alleviate this problem.
The Democrats have to move away from their northeastern liberalism, and this won't happen by having a northeastern liberal leading the party. Howard Dean is simply the wrong man at the wrong time, and his leadership will turn more voters off than it will on. As someone who believes that two strong political parties are best for America, I would advise my Democratic friends to turn away from the "Democratic wing of the Democratic Party", and move back towards the center. With a war to win and reform necessary here at home, Howard Dean should have no place leading the party of Roosevelt and Kennedy.
Hey! Nice site, however I disagree with the point of your article. I'm a young Republican at Emerson College in Boston and you need to realizr that the reason we were slandering Dean to not get the DNC chair was because he'd be the best candidate. we'd be better off if they had a republican clone like Tim Roemer who is simply a GOP man who doesn't understand economics. Dean's a horrible pick for a presidential nominee but what a party needs for a Chairman is someone in step with the base. The Dems now have that and we don't. Ken Mehlman is gay for godssake! Search "Ken Mehlman" in yahoo and gay pops up as a search assistant. he's been outed by gay rags and liberal trash mags as well. He never denies this either. Some even say that their are many gays in the Bush administration and the RNC. This could explode in our face once the Religious Right find out en masse about this. We need to purge this homosexuality and keep up our momentum. Once again realize in politics that we just bash the people we think are best. hey maybe you already know it and youre doing it here, seeya!
ReplyDeleteHoward Dean: Wrong man, wrong time, wrong way.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous, while I say I have to disagree with many of your assertions, and I'm not going to gossip over Ken Mehlman's personal life, you are correct that Howard Dean represents the Democratic base, and that's the problem. The Democratic base is out of line with a majority of Americans and until they choose some more rational leaders they will continue to see their numbers dwindle. While Howard Dean might make the base feel good, he is going to turn off many of the moderates Democrats need to attract.
ReplyDeleteThe one plus with Dean is that he can fundraise, but Democrats did well fundraising during the last election cycle and it didn't help them much.
And finally, no one is slandering Dean, he is the one slandering Republicans.