DEMOCRATIC TREPIDATION ABOUT HOWARD Dean's appearance on NBC's "Meet The Press" Sunday, which I blogged earlier this week, turned out to be more than a case of butterflies. After reading the transcript, it is clear that Dean is in way over his head.
The early section on the filibuster is a must read, in that Dean really has nothing substantive to say and continues to change the subject to ad hominem attacks against the Republican Party.
On the table for discussion is Dean's remarks about Tom DeLay, his obvious hypocricy on many issues ranging from abortion to WMD, Terry "We'll use her later" Schiavo, and how he seems to have become a pariah in his own party. Remarkably, most of these issues, one way or another, come back to Tom DeLay. And who said Dean couldn't stay on message.
I tried so hard to find one section to highlight for faithful readers, but every time I though I found one, another appeared that was just as hilarious and lengthy. I did enjoy this question very much though:
MR. RUSSERT: Newt Gingrich, when you were elected chairman of the party, said the Democrats must have a death wish. The hotline did a survey, The Political Hotline published by National Journal, and of the 17 states that you went to, a Democratic governor or Democratic senator has not appeared with you in those states. Are people running from you?
DR. DEAN: I doubt it. When I went to Mississippi, all four former governors showed up. You know, I stayed over at the governor's house in Kansas. I mean, I think when you go into a state, and you're there for four or five hours, it's pretty hard for governors to change their schedule and suddenly decide they're going to have to be by your side. I've raised over $1 million for state parties, including places like Arizona and Oklahoma.
And this exchange:
MR. RUSSERT: In your home state of Vermont, there's a vacancy for the United States Senate about to occur. Bernie Sanders, the congressman from Vermont, wants to run for that seat. He is a self- described avowed socialist.
DR. DEAN: Well, that's what he says. He's really a populist.
MR. RUSSERT: But is there room in the Democratic Party for a socialist?
DR. DEAN: Well, first of all, he's not a socialist, really.
MR. RUSSERT: He...
DR. DEAN: He hasn't said that for a while.
MR. RUSSERT: Oh, he has a--he wrote in his book: "Outside or in the House, I am a Democratic socialist."
DR. DEAN: Well, a Democratic socialist--all right, we're talking about words here. And Bernie can call himself anything he wants. He is basically a liberal Democrat, and he is a Democrat that--he runs as an Independent because he doesn't like the structure and the money that gets involved. And he actually has, I think, some good points about campaign finance reform. The bottom line is that Bernie Sanders votes with the Democrats 98 percent of the time.
I'm not sure, but I think Dean just said that a socialist and a liberal Democrat are the same thing. That is sure to get more liberals elected.
I strongly encourage readers to peruse the interview. Dean sounds like a teenager with a topic disability. Ask about John Bolton and get an answer about Social Security. Ask about Terry schiavo and get an answer about Tom DeLay.
At one point in the interview, Dean admits that Democrats need to get out of the business of defending abortion...right before defending abortion. He tags Bush for accusing Saddam Hussein of being behind the 9/11 attacks...right before noting that the President never said any such thing.
If this is what Democratic Party leadership has been reduced to, it is time to be seriously concerned about the future of a strong two-party system in this country.
Newsmax has substantive commentary on the interview, which is also a must read. It includes this spot-on response from the RNC:
"Howard Dean's unfocused performance today is emblematic of the larger problems facing the party he leads," RNC press secretary Tracey Schmitt said Sunday. "Sadly, Chairman Dean and the Democrats on Capitol Hill have become singularly focused on obstructionism and negativity, which is why they have become the country's minority party."
Obstructionism and negativity? What obstructionism and negativity?
2 comments:
Totally agree.. He was obviously trying to repeat talking points and had nothing original to say.
He seems to consider it a mark of honor that no matter how stupid a remark he makes, he'll continue to defend it
I was struck by his call for the abortion laws of this country to be made on a state by state basis.
Isnt that directly counter to Roe-v-Wade and will NARAL let him get away with such heresy?
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