Howard Dean Meets With Hillary's Fat Cats: Will He Cave?

[housewolf]

Howard Dean Meets With Hillary's Fat Cats: Will He Cave? by Matt Littman
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/matt-littman/howard-dean-meets-with-hi_b_92023.html

In 2004, the Democratic leadership could not wait to see Howard Dean flail. The Dean Scream was the dream of John Kerry and the establishment Democrats, because it meant the insurgent candidate stumbled, fell, and never recovered.

Four years later, Howard Dean is running the Democratic National Committee -- he's on the inside, but he's really still an outsider. He is trying to make the Democratic Party brand popular in places other than New York and Boca Raton. This has earned him the animosity of Democratic Party insiders, who think they know better despite the fact that Democrats have had their butts handed to them more often than not in the last seven Congressional races.

He also wants the Democratic Party to follow the rules. That's why Florida and Michigan are not in position to have their delegates counted in Denver. They were told the rules for nominating a president, and they chose not to follow them. The Republican Party looks at the Democrats and says -- of course, the Party won't follow the rules it has set up. The Democrats don't believe in rules, in law, in order. That's what They say.

Howard Dean wants to prove Them wrong. He wants Florida to know it can't count, that the vote in January was not fair, was against the rules, should not count. Hillary Clinton sided with Howard Dean until she won Florida and realized she could not come close to winning the nomination without it.

And so, her top fundraisers are attempting to bribe the Democratic Party. They are going to dine with Howard Dean this week and threaten him. They are offering to pull their money from the Democratic Party if Florida, which didn't count, continues to not count. The fundraisers don't believe in morality. They believe it's all about the money.

Barack Obama's fundraisers are not having the same meeting with Howard Dean because he raised money from a million people, and his bundlers don't wield the same power that Hillary's financiers wield. What's Howard Dean going to do, meet with the nurse who sent a $100 to the DNC because she loves Obama? Meet with the veteran who sent $300 because they like Barack's stance on Iraq? No, he's meeting with the Fat Cats, who really care less about Hillary and more about becoming Ambassadors under a President Hillary.

It's a meeting of the Ambassadors Club, that's what this is. Howard Dean and a bunch of people who want to give him cash to change the rules, to make Florida count, so that -- what -- so Hillary can win? As if that'll do the Democratic Party a great favor. Let's remember how much the Clintons helped their fellow Democrats in the '90s. Oh, that's right, the Republicans took over Congress for the first time in decades, and didn't give it back for 12 years.

Howard Dean -- Howard Dean should scream. He should channel his Howard Beale and tell those who seek to blackmail him that he's not going to take it anymore. He's not a puppet. He's someone who cares about the future of his party more than he cares about the man who wants to be Ambassador to Bermuda.

[dkf]

1. Howard won't cave. I'm not even worried.

[Diane R]

2. It's reassuring to know the DNC has someone as honorable as Dr. Dean at the helm.

[lapfog_1]

3. Dean, unlike the spineless Dems that lead Congress,

doesn't seem like the type to cave. But that's just my opinion.

[ThatBozGuy]

6. Ok so please dont jump me, DNC, DLC,DFA,D???

So I am a recent convert from california republicrat (just before the last elections in november) to democrat and I have started educating myself with places like this (yeah I know) but now I find Im trying to find out about the national side of things, like down ticket races and the like.

But what is the REAL core of the Democratic party? The DNC, or the DLC and then there are others.

Please educate me about what the differences are who I should be paying attention to as a Democratic Party member and and why are there several and so on..

Thanks in advance private responses or discussion are welcome.

[Demeter]

7. If Only Democratic Party Had a Core!

There isn't one, except by its absence. Perhaps the Constitution is our core...for most of us.

[crispini]

9. The DNC is the national Democratic Party

DNC=Democratic National Committee. Howard Dean is the chair.

There are two other "official" national party organizations, the DSCC and the DCCC. Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. They are made up of elected Democratic officials and are used mostly as funding sources to help get Democrats elected to the House and Senate. They fall in and out of favor around here depending on who is heading them up, but they are made up of elected Democratic officials and they do target specific races to help in sometimes.

Your state party is also an official organization. For me, it's the TDP, the Texas Democratic Party. Their sphere is helping statewide Democrats. Then there is your county party. For me, it's the DCDP, the Dallas County Democratic Party. In my opinion, local races do a lot more to make a difference in your life every day than national ones, and you can have a lot more impact on them, so I spend a lot of time on judge races, tax assessor races, etc. I actually spend most of my time and money on the local party. Then I contribute to the DNC and to my chosen presidential candidate.

The DLC, or Democratic Leadership Committee, and any other organization with Democratic in its name, is not an official part of the party but is probably a PAC or something like that. And nobody on this board is going to have any kind words for the DLC. :D Actually at this point you're getting in to differences BETWEEN Democrats. The basic split is between the progressives and the centrists. There is also a split between the grassroots activists and the big-money donors. The DLC is more centrist and more about the old style of fundraising, with the big-money donors. DU is much more progressive and made up of mostly grassroots activists.

:hi: And there you have it!

Edited to add: DFA is Democracy for America which came out of Dean for America. I was a Deaniac and so am a DFA member. They do a lot of training and grassroots building.

[housewolf]

12. Good questions

Like the RNC, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) is the national party. Also like the RNC, each state and county has branches of the party.

DLC = Democratic Leadership Committee. It's sort of a "think tank"-like organization whose politics lean center-left - pro-business, pro-growth, pro-free trade. Bill & Hillary Clinton are founding members. This is the group that's sort of held most of the power in the Democratic Party (DNC) since the early 1990's. Many more-left-than-left-of-center Dems (who tend to refer to themselves as "Progressives") aren't happy with the DLC and feel they "hijacked" the party in the early 1990's so that's where some of the Dem in-fighting that you hear about comes from. It's sort of analagous to the right's AEI (American Enterprise Institute) who's war hawks sort of took over the current adminstration, much to the dismay of the Realists but not a perfect comparison because of the policy differences.

[Larkspur]

13. The DNC is the official organization of the Democratic Party

It is the one that sets the rules for primaries and other things. It is the organization that took away Sen. Joe Lieberman's super delegate status because he endorsed McCain and other Republicans.

The DLC is a fringe group bought and paid for by corporate interests. The DLC is a Republican mole in the Dem Party. It's head is Al From and Al does not speak for all Democrats. Howard Dean, the chair of the DNC represents the Democratic Party and speaks for all Democrats.

[Kurovski]

4. K&R. (nt)

[housewolf]

5. Thanks for the kick! (nt)

[judasdisney]

8. Support Dean / Counterattack DLC & Hillary

We must stand up for Dean and anti-DLC Democrats. But we must do more than support the real Democrats.

It's not enough.

We also must boycott, campaign against, and speak out against DLC candidates and enablers. They are the Fifth Column of the Neocons. They have shown via their actions: They want the FDR New Deal traditions murdered, the Dean DNC suicided, and the Progressive Wing stone cold dead. Their intentions are clear.

We must not practice denial in the face of reality.

[flyarm]

10. oh ok..so when SC broke "the rules" that was ok though right??

oh and when Obama broke the "RULES" and took his name off the ballot in Mi..that was ok..right??????? and when Edwards broke the rules and took his name off the MI ballots..that was just fine..see no where in the "rules" did it say they needed to take their names off the ballot in MI..no where..

and when Fla Broke the rules..it was to sign a bill to Ban DRE voting machines from Florida..the first state in the nation to do so!!..and that bill also Mandated VOTER VERIFIED PAPER BALLOTS... in fact the people who basically wrote that bill..citizens..of Florida..were just given the highest award ever given out by the Fla ACLU...they will recieve the award in May. The republicans who ran our legislature combined two bills the Bill to ban DREs and the date change of our primary.

Instead of Dean applauding the citizens of Florida for getting rid of the DRE voting machines and mandating VVPB..he punished florida..and from shortly after the bill was signed ..Dean began pushing caucus on Fla FDP.



http://www.mydd.com/story/2008/2/15/17261/4418

Well, you see, the DNC Delegate Selection Rules 2008 were actually written in 2006. The Florida Legislature amended the statute in Spring, 2007. At that time (and actually, still, but read on) the rule said:


Violation of timing: In the event the Delegate Selection Plan of a state party provides or permits a meeting, caucus, convention or primary which constitutes the first determining stage in the presidential nominating process to be held prior to or after the dates for the state as provided in Rule 11 of these rules, or in the event a state holds such a meeting, caucus, convention or primary prior to or after such dates, the number of pledged delegates elected in each category allocated to the state pursuant to the Call for the National Convention shall be reduced by fifty (50%) percent, and the number of alternates shall also be reduced by fifty (50%) percent. In addition, none of the members of the Democratic National Committee and no other unpledged delegate allocated pursuant to Rule 8.A. from that state shall be permitted to vote as members of the state's delegation. In determining the actual number of delegates or alternates by which the state's delegation is to be reduced, any fraction below .5 shall be rounded down to the nearest whole number, and any fraction of .5 or greater shall be rounded up to the next nearest whole number.

"Hey, doesn't that solve the problem? Sure, they get less, but they're not 'disenfranchised,' right?"

Well, yeah, but then came Donna Brazile. Now mind you, the DNC Rules Committee did not even need to meet, the sanctions were automatic:


Upon a determination of the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee that a state is in violation as set forth in subsections (1), (2) or (3) of section C. of this rule, the reductions required under those subsections shall become effective automatically and immediately and without further action of the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee, the Executive Committee of the DNC, the DNC or the Credentials Committee of the Democratic National Convention.

On August 25, 2007, long after the Florida Legislation passed,

Ms. Brazile decided she was going to make an example of Florida. She said ""I'm going to send a message to everybody in Florida that we're going to follow the rules." By "the rules," by the way, she meant the date of primary rules, not the DNC's own rules about punishment. What the Rules Committee really did was create an ex post facto new rule to punish Florida (and Michigan). Did the Rules Committee have the authority to do that? Let's look again at the Rules:


Nothing in the preceding subsections of this rule shall be construed to prevent the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee from imposing additional sanctions, including, without limitation, those specified in subsection (6) of this section C., against a state party and against the delegation from the state which is subject to the provisions of any of subsections (1) through (3) of this section C., including, without limitation, establishing a committee to propose and implement a process which will result in the selection of a delegation from the affected state which shall (i) be broadly representative, (ii) reflect the state's division of presidential preference and uncommitted status and (iii) involve as broad participation as is practicable under the circumstances.

WHOA! It looks like they had the authority, but also had an obligaton. How did they establish a procedure that was (a) broadly representative, (b) reflected the State's preference, and (c) involved broad participation? Simple answer. They didn't. NOT. AT. ALL. But what is this "subsection (b) of this section C"? Funny you should ask, because it doesn't really apply. You see, the "failure" falls under subsection (2), as noted above:


Nothing in these rules shall prevent the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee from imposing sanctions the Committee deems appropriate with respect to a state which the Committee determines has failed or refused to comply with these rules, where the failure or refusal of the state party is not subject to subsections (1), (2) or (3) of this section C. Possible sanctions include, but are not limited to: reduction of the state's delegation; pursuant to Rule 21.C., recommending the establishment of a committee to propose and implement a process which will result in the selection of a delegation from the affected state which shall (i) be broadly representative, (ii) reflect the state's division of presidential preference and uncommitted status and (iii) involve as broad participation as is practicable under the circumstances; reducing, in part or in whole, the number of the state's temporary and permanent members to the Standing Committees; reducing, in part or in whole, the number of guests, VIP and other passes/tickets to the National Convention and related functions; assignment of location of the state's delegates and alternates in the Convention hall; and assignment of the state's housing and other convention related facilities.


xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx


http://www2.tbo.com/content/2007/aug/25/dnc-sanctions-florida-planning-early-primary/?news-breaking

[crispini]

11. SC had permission to move their primary up

And if you don't understand that somehow we have to get some more national-level control over the primary process so it will eventually be more fair to all, (rotating primary) I don't know what to tell you.