Dean re-emerging to push healthcare

[OhioChick]

Posted: 04/13/09 02:45 PM
Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean (D), who used healthcare reform as a signature issue during his 2004 presidential campaign, is using a call for universal coverage to raise his profile once again.

Dean left his position as chairman of the Democratic National Committee in January after four years at the helm. During his time at the DNC, Dean's so-called 50-state strategy was widely credited with helping Democrats win congressional seats in areas where the party had not competed for years.

Now, Dean is using Democracy For America — the organizing group that grew out of Dean's presidential campaign — to build a 50-state strategy advocating for public healthcare.

Dean has added his name to five DFA e-mails since the beginning of March, aiming to build a list of grassroots supporters in each state. So far, DFA says it has gathered more than 250,000 signatures for a petition through a website, StandWithDrDean.com — signatures that have generated about 34,000 letters to the editor.

The petitions will be delivered to members of Congress, both in their home districts and on Capitol Hill, later this year, while list members will be urged to serve as media responders and grassroots activists.

Dean "feels very passionately about healthcare, so we are more than happy to have DFA as a vehicle for him to advocate that change," said Arshad Hasan, DFA's executive director.

http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/dean-re-emerging-to-push-healthcare-2009-04-13.html

I like this man. :applause:

[democrank]

1. Bless you, Dr. Dean

A man of principles

[54anickel]

2. Interesting, could be we have a better chance working from the outside than if we had Dean

on the inside. Grass-roots pressure is about the only decent strategy we have against the lobbyists. Perhaps it wasn't quite the "snubbing" of Dean that everyone seems to be reporting afterall. Brilliant move it was done purposely. Obama did say we'd have to force him to make the changes we want to see.....

[girl gone mad]

3. No, Dean was definitely snubbed.

There's no way to spin that.

It is good to see him in this capacity, though.

[54anickel]

5. Taking a shitty snub and turning it for the good? I agree, it's great to see him here.

[cascadiance]

4. At some point Obama's going to need to take on the lobbyists directly though...

Whether or not the strategy was to help Dean work from the outside more effectively, sooner or later, this administration has to drop the bomb on the K-Street crowd and say "NO MORE!" and start pushing things like public campaign financing, etc. and fixing our distorting corporate media too...

Otherwise, even Dean lobbying from outside with less controls over what he says still won't be able to bring about effective change.

I DO think he was snubbed too. I don't think Rahm-per room Emanuel was going to do him any favors!