Why you shouldn't vote for Dean

[littlejoe]

A lot of people that read this thread are naturally going to say that I have an ax to grind; that I have an agenda.

Well I don't have an ax to grind. Honestly, I don't.

But I do have an agenda, and I think most of you know that I am campaigning for Sen. John Kerry.

But, suppose, just briefly, that I were undecided, and had an opportunity to vote in a primary today.

Why wouldn't I vote for Howard Dean?

I have a few good reasons.

When I look at a candidate, I want to know that they are willing to fight for me. Fight, and not fold when the going gets tough.

I want a candidate who has the courage to stand up for his convictions. In other words, a candidate who stands for something.

I also want a candidate who understands the need for consensus and is willing to work with the opposition for equitable compromise.(For a politician to be successful, this is imperitive.)

So?

When Howard Dean dropped out of the race after Wisconsin, he showed to me that he didn't have what it took, to be the Commander-in-Chief. He folded like a tent under intense scrutiny.

That act alone made me question his committment to his beliefs. The very beliefs which he sold quite well to his followers. In my mind, if his cause was so noble, he should have weathered the storm of scrutiny and criticism, as Dennis Kucinich and Al Sharpton have done.

Neither Kucinich or Sharpton have wavered in the face of scrutiny, ridicule and dismissiveness. Even though I feel that their candidacy is a distraction at this point in time, I DO admire them for not giving up or giving in. And neither of them have much money. But that is not a factor to their cause.

So I have to question, not only if Howard Dean really believes in what he gave speeches on, but I also have to question just how hard he really would fight for us citizens, if he was willing to give up on himself and us so easily.

One last thing. I would also like a candidate whose track record jibes with his platform. For Dean, there seemed to be a disconnect here. His record as Governor of Vermont suggests to me that he was a moderate to slightly conservative democrat. Yet his presidential campaign struck me as uncompromisingly far-left leaning. Why the change? I don't know, but I think it is a fair question to ask.

Many will take this post as flame bait, but these are musings that have been gnawing at me for some time.