Moses of the Democrats

[CHIMO]

According to the Old Testament, Moses led his people out of bondage and through the wilderness, manifesting miracles all the way. Yet when the promised land was finally reached, he was barred from entering it with his people as punishment for the most trivial of transgressions.

It's a sad story, and you've got to wonder if the outgoing leader of America's Democratic party isn't relating to it these days.

Former Vermont Governor Howard Dean was the driving force behind the most profound changes to American politics since the civil rights era. As a tertiary candidate for the presidency, he was vaulted from obscurity to the top of the Democratic primary pack in 2004 until his campaign abruptly buckled under its own weight, pressure from political insiders, and the burdens placed on it by Dean's own legendary impulsiveness. Despite this, Dean continued riding the unprecedented wave of rank-and-file, anti-war enthusiasm fueled by the new media revolution.

The wave carried him into the party chairmanship, much to the consternation of many insiders who found his does-not-always-play-well-with-others style and the empowerment of the rank-and-file as threatening to their own modes of policy and message management. Dean's behind-the-scenes battles over his trademark "50-State Strategy" reform designed to spread DNC resources across the nation and make the party competitive from coast to coast was legendary, particularly with then-Representative Rahm Emanuel who rejected an approach that - in his view - diverted critical resources from his own targets.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2009/jan/13/howard-dean-democrats-obama-dnc

[islandmkl]

1. blah, blah, blah...where did howard appear to be after 2004?

all the people that have supported his efforts have not disappeared, regardless of 'who is now in charge'...

this is somewhat of a 'oh, yea of little faith' moment...as described by someone who has mostly a 'critical evaluation' in mind...

look back at what was said about Dean and his future 4 years ago...i don't think Howard will go gently into that good night...

in any relay, the handoffs are the most critical aspect, not the final anchor...

[Larkspur]

2. I hope Dean remains a thorn in Rahm's side

I never liked Rahm and wish him the worse of luck.