Who the Heck is Howard Dean?
David Broder tells us. He seems to think the current Democratic Governor from Vermont will be the 2004 Democratic Presidential nominee. He seems like an interesting enough guy. He is not your typical Democrat, that’s for sure.
Dean is:
- a physician
- against gun control and has an “A rating” from the NRA
- one who considers himself friendly to the environment
- against all the testing in Bush’s education plan (which was supported by Kerry, Edwards, and Lieberman)
- for capital punishment
- for universal healthcare
- in favor of NAFTA and “fast track” trade authority (but not for Bush “without enforceable guarantees of workers’ rights and environmental standards“.
- for the farm bill and the new ethanol standards
- in favor of same-sex unions, but thinks it should be up to states to decide
- pretty conservative for a Democrat
JUST GOT TURNED ON TO HOWARD DEAN A WEEK AGO.
FROM WHAT I HAVE READ, HE STANDS HEAD AND SHOULDERS ABOVE GORE AND EVERY OTHER CANDIDATE FOR
THE PRESIDENCY.
HE HAS THE INTESTINAL FORTITUDE TO CLEARLY STATE
THAT GEORGE W. IS TOTALLY INEPT IN THE AREA OF
PUBLIC FINANCES.
DEAN APPEARS AS A VERY HANDS ON GOVERNOR. HE WILL
HAVE NO JOB FOR 1993 AND WILL BE ABLE TO CAMPAIGN
VIGOROUSLY SIMILAR TO JIMMY CARTER WHO CAME OUT
OF THE WOODWORK TO BECOME PRESIDENT. GORE IS A
TOTAL DISASTER AND SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED EVEN
THOUGH ON A RECENT POLL RE RANKED OVER 40 PERCENT
AND ALL OTHER POTENTIAL CANDIDATES WERE UNDER
3%.
THE NEW BOOK “THE EMERGING DEMOCRATIC MAJORITY”
BY JOHN B JUDIS AND RUY TEIXEIRA GIVES GREAT HOPE
FOR THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY.
WOULD APPRECIATE KNOWING MORE AND MORE ABOUT
HOWARD DEAN. THE ONLY OTHER TOP NOTCH CANDIDATE
IN MY OPINION IS EDWARDS.
TOM DURKAN, SR.
Comment by THOMAS R. DURKAN, SR | 9/2/2002
Howard Dean caught my attention when I watched a speech he made last year in Portsmouth, NH. Governor Dean was, at the time, far away from being a presidential candidate, but it was clear that he had the ability that President Clinton has and Al Gore lacked–that is to tell people how his policies will affect them personally in a clear and straight forward way. Right then and there, I turned to my wife who, like me had been an ardent Gore supporter and said, if Governor Dean runs, he has our vote and our support. I think that Howard Dean will indeed be the democratic nominee and I think that he will also be our next president.
Richard Chard
Comment by Richard Chard | 9/16/2002
If you are far left, Dean is your man. But if you think that things have gone too far, don’t bet on him. You would think that a man that is a doctor would have second thoughts about condoning homosexuality. But not Dean. When the voters of Vermont wanted a nonbinding referendom vote on the Civil Union Bill, Dean said he would consider it. The vote came in over whelming against it.
What did Dean say? ” The voters didn’t know what they were voting for, it didn’t mean anything!”
Now remember Gov. Dean is a M.D. The voters knew!
The budget is tight, money needs to be saved. Where does he cut? Medicad!
The Department of Safety is put on a budget, not to spend any more than he authorizes. This is for normal every day expenses. These are the State Police. They protect us all. But what happens. He goes on his presidential campaign trips, protected by, and paid for by, the Department of Safety! and who pays for it? tha tax payers! He has been questioned about this and says that his campaign fund will not be paying for any of it!
Now let me ask you a question? Does this sound like the kind of person that you want as a president? At least some candidates try to cream it over with sugar somewhat priore to announcing their candidacy! Not this guy!
Comment by Paul domingue | 12/3/2002
I live in California and Mr.Dean is starting to cause a few people to take notice here. With Gore now out of the way a new face is very welcome! Democrats are on the right side of the issues this country faces, we just need someone who people will listen to that can communicate it effectivly to the voters.
Comment by T Pyper | 12/17/2002
Heard Dean on NPR this morning. Impressive without even seeing him. Found out that he’s light on gun control, but his international and healthcare ideas seem quite progressive. And unlike Gore, he’s able to explain them effectively. One other bad point though. Short! 5′ 9′ they say. Dukakis anyone?!! (Buy him some platform shoes and keep quiet about it!) -Barney from Brooklyn
Comment by bb | 1/2/2003
Bush is spending 22 Billion on a questionable war.
Would that solve some of our domestic problems or possibly help to improve other peoples perception of who we are.
Dean might be the one………..
Comment by dlaw | 1/2/2003
Bush is spending 22 Billion on a questionable war.
Would that solve some of our domestic problems or possibly help to improve other peoples perception of who we are.
Dean might be the one………..
Comment by dlaw | 1/2/2003
I’ve voted for Howard Dean each time he ran for governor and will vote for him for President if he surprises me and is still in the race. Here’s a fiscal conservative who’s platform of healthcare reform, civil rights for all and opposition to Bush’s war for oil and revenge (”He tried to kill my dad.”), match my own.
Dean’s the only candidate who is willing to bite George W. Bush’s war-mongering, corporation-enriching, right wing, Constitution-busting butt. He’s the only candidate who is actually opposed to George II and his crowd’s policies of destroying the environment, breaking the back of the economy and transferring even more of the taxpayers’ money to George’s oil-stinking and war-machine friends.
Howard Dean for President!
Comment by Gerry S | 1/4/2003
Refreshingly honest and intellegent,probably too much so for the any party to give us the opportunity to elect him to the office that would benefit from those qualities.
Comment by Dana A. Lyons | 1/20/2003
OH MY. Dean is a loser. He has run Vermont into the ground and is a bad choice for the US.
Be afraid, be very afraid!
Comment by Ian | 1/21/2003
I saw Howard Dean on the Atlantic Monthly forum show on CSPAN, I think, and I was knocked out! I didn’t know there was a politician left who could grasp all the issues, think on his feet, keep his sense of humor, keep his dignity and strength in response to misperceptions or when he’s having to rephraser the argument - he would destroy Bush in a debate, not to speak of destroying the pundits who always manage to ruin Democratic candidates with scorn. He he will stop this insane march off the cliff the corporate media and media controlled uneducated Americans are locked into. Because he makes so much sense and he’s so clearly a great leader - people will want to believe in him! There is no other natural politician to transcend all the ways the Republicans have gotten a lock on the contest. I don’t always agree with him, but he is smarty and progressive and humane and, surprise, not a sell out or a fool! What does it say that this man is largely unknown in this country?
Comment by Leslie Brooks | 1/22/2003
I saw Howard Dean on the Atlantic Monthly forum show on CSPAN, I think, and I was knocked out! I didn’t know there was a politician left who could grasp all the issues, think on his feet, keep his sense of humor, keep his dignity and strength in response to misperceptions or when he’s having to rephrase the argument - he would destroy Bush in a debate, not to speak of destroying the pundits who always manage to ruin Democratic candidates with scorn. He will stop this insane march off the cliff the corporate media and media controlled uneducated Americans are locked into. Because he makes so much sense and he’s so clearly a great leader - people will want to believe in him! There is no other natural politician to transcend all the ways the Republicans have gotten a lock on the contest. I don’t always agree with him, but he is smart and progressive and humane and, surprise, not a sell out or a fool! What does it say that this man is largely unknown in this country?
Comment by Leslie Brooks | 1/22/2003
I caught the end of a program on c-span about 3-4 months ago and greatly regret having missed the portion I missed. I’m in Calif. and I tell you Mr. Dean is going to set the standard in this bid for the other democratic presidential candidates. He’s courageous, concise and not afraid to address the real issues that concern everyday Americans. I’m looking forward to the unfolding of Mr. Dean in this run-off. I just hope the media gives him good air time. He is the type of leader America deserves, want and need, as we enter this 21st century.
Comment by Angela Dallas | 1/23/2003
Boy howdy, the things that crawl out of the woodwork when there’s someone decent and moral for them to slime.
Leaving aside the temptation to fisk snidely about “Since you know so well what I would think”, why, exactly, would one think this, Paul?
Specifics, please, Ian. Generalities make my teeth itch.
You can be afraid if you want, but my life is too short to spend any of it fearing invisible pink unicorns.
Comment by Tuxedo Slack | 1/24/2003
As a Vermonter who has observed Dean since his entry into politics two decades ago, I can say that, while I don’t agree with all of his positions, I know that his grasp of issues, his non-idelogical brand of common sense, his ability to clearly articulate issues will command attention nationally. I am not surprised at the positive media attention he is getting. He is a breath of fresh political air, and he has the confidence and passion to destroy Bush in debate.
Pay attention to what this man has to offer.
Comment by David Brautigam | 1/26/2003
I have supported Dean from the first interview I saw him. He is best candidate for the job. He has a vision, intelligence, and is responsible. He lacks an idiology that makes him the best all around and will allow him to actually get things done. He is more of independant and that is what this country needs.
Comment by Jonathan Kenney | 2/6/2003
Howard Dean WILL be our next President. He is the only refreshing candidate running for the office. The moment I heard him speak I knew he was the man for the Democratic party and more importantly America. Dean runs an ISSUES based campaign, that is what matters. Not flowery language hiding your lack of ideas, which certain candidates like to do. South Carolina is bursting with supporters for our next President, Howard Dean. Join the fight today, let’s get a true Democrat back into the White House!!!!
Comment by Robert Glenn | 2/11/2003
I was a county coordinator in 1988 for Joe Biden, and then for Bruce Babbitt after Biden dropped out..Howard Dean is my choice this time..he is the first candidate I have ever seen who states openly that Bush WANTS a huge budget deficit so that Bush can then say “oh, I guess we need to make budget cuts and let’s start with those social programs that are wasteful and don’t work.”…Dean sees it as the con-job it really is..the same thing Reagan and Stockman pulled in the 1980s and Stockman admitted it…Dean is sharp as a whip, and is clearly the best candidate.
Comment by Stewart Epstein | 2/24/2003
Once a John Kerry supporter, Dr. Dean has bowled me over. Finally a candidate who can breathe some life into “my” faltering Democratic Party. He has a clear unwaivering message, is liberal enough to set him apart from the hate-monger conservatives in both parties, and can speak in full and comprehensible sentences (unlike some other politicians I could mention). If the party wants to save itself from irrelevance–to use a popular phrase from the Bush admin.–Howard Dean is a logical and electable candidate.
Comment by Jeremy | 2/27/2003
Please come to the Bumper Sticker Primary and post your opinions on our bulletin board for Dean at http://dems.community.everyone.net/community/scripts/directory.pl, or just visit the Dean page at http://www.dems.us/dean/.
I hope you enjoy the site!
Comment by Nathan | 2/28/2003
I am a former Republican who can no longer accept the pandering to the ultra-rich, Dick Cheneys, Halliburtons, Paul Wolfowitzes and Richard Perles of the World.
It’s the Economy, stupid. Not destroying The Constitution for John Ashcroft’s delusional dreams of The Rapture.
The Democrats rolled-over for the Republicanazis in 2002. All Democrat insiders are tainted hypocrites.
Not Howard Dean. He is a refreshing, articulate, common sense outsider.
He is the Democrats only hope in ‘04.
He is America’s best hope in ‘04!
Comment by Regime Change in 2004 | 3/30/2003
Dean will most likely win the democratic ticket. It will be sad to see Dean debate Bush in a public forum. Due to his dry drunk syndrome Bush will be slurring his words, while Dean will be articulating his message to the America public. Even the slack jawed uneducated masses of people who voted for Bush in the first election will put down their can of cheese whiz and say to themselves, “you know uncle jeb, this Dean fellow is pretty smart.”
Comment by Paul | 4/3/2003
Howard Dean is gaining a lot of support here in New York City. I disagree, as many of you do, with his gun control policy and I don’t find it excusable. However, there is not a single Democrat in the running with the amount of courage Dr. Dean has for standing up to our current regime. We are living in a time of such fear that even solid liberals like Tom Harkin from Iowa feel political pressure to support President Bush in his dangerous foreign policy schemes. Bravo to Howard Dean for his honesty, clarity, and vision. He is not only a decent choice for this preseidential race, he is the ESSENTIAL choice if we hope to return our country to a true sweet land of liberty.
Comment by Jeremy | 4/7/2003
This is a great site. Thanks for all the thoughts and ideas from those who lived in his state. Those of you who claim that he is pro-Gay you should get the facts. He thinks that Gays should have civil rights with their partners, visit them in hospitals and share living spaces.
Ron in Minnesota
Comment by Ron Schmidt | 4/13/2003
I am a registered Republican in Florida. I will quite likely vote for Bush in the next presidential election, but this Howard Dean could persuade me to vote Democrat for the first time ever. I disagree with Dean on some matters (abortion, the war in Iraq), but agree with him on others (equal treatment for homosexuals, gun control). Anyhow, of all the Democratic contenders, only Howard Dean has a Reaganesque genuineness that can transcend party affiliation and get through to the voter. He is, after all, getting through to me!
Comment by Gordie | 7/6/2003
Dean has been getting a lot of critics’ panties in a bunch overe some of his issues. Some are worried that Dean is a cartoon candidate like McGovern or Mondale but Dean is the only candidate that is standing up to the trash Bush is touting. Dean can and will win the democratic nomination. His ideas are fresh and inciteful. He is liberal in many ways and more conservative in other ways but has the vision to lead our country into a better tommorrow.
BURN THE BUSH
VOTE FOR DEAN
Comment by mikewriter | 8/9/2003
Useful Idiots
Being a lifelong native-american Vermonter and seeing the path of economic and social communism our state experienced under “King Howard” Dean , it demands my speaking out against the dictatorial arrogance of Howard-the-Coward Dean. All of you “useful idiots” who don’t know the real Dean will likely vote for him. What you’ll get is higher taxes, corrupt, unaccountable government, and likely “free” abortions if (when) so-called “universal” socialist health care is forced down your throats by Dean. If you like big government handouts, especially to Planned Parenthood and the abortion industry, then Dean is your man. If you think that the abortion industry should be a “shadow” part of government, then Dean is your man. If you want a president who blows up in your face like an uncontrollable adolescent when he doesn’t get his own way, then Dean is your man. But if you’ve ever lived under King Dean for over ten years like most Vermonters have, and you can actually THINK for yourself, then Dean will scare the hell out of you. Tyranny cloaked in self-righteousness is NOT leadership. Ask Dean, who spent the OB-GYN part of his doctor internship at Planned Parenthood to explain how he “never” did an abortion there, yet any doctor will tell you that “you see one, you DO one, you teach one” (isn’t that how one learns?). So if you want another president like Clinton, who “smoked but didn’t inhale”, if you want a liar and pompus, arrogant ass for president, then Dean is your man.
Comment by David D. | 8/10/2003
DEAN’S CORRUPT VERMONT
see
http://www.counterpunch.org/frank08122003.html
http://seattle.indymedia.org/front.php3?article_id=31720&group=webcast
In a 1997 Vt News Bureau interview, Dean admitted his desire to appoint
judges willing to subvert the bill of rights. Now the fallout from Dean’s
appointments are before the US 2nd Circuit at Foley Square, NYC in two
outrageous cases. Docket #s 03-7036, 02-6150, 02-6199, 02-6201 One case is
being prosecuted by Washington, DC first amendment attorney Robert
Corn-Revere against two of Dean’s judges for their banishment of a Vermont
“citizen-reporter” for life from all state courthouses because he criticized
one of Dean’s judicial appointees. The other case features Dean’s judges
violating Double Jeopardy, First Amendment, State law and the State
constitution. See Docket No. 99-445 (Vt. Dec. 13, 2000), aff’g, Docket No.
167-1-99 WmCr (Windham D. Ct. Aug. 30, 1999) Both cases have been briefed
before the Manhattan Court awaiting oral argument. Also filing a brief in
federal court against Dean’s appointees is the Thomas Jefferson Center For
The Protection of Freedom of Expression.
Below are links regarding Dean’s voicing his problem with the Bill of
Rights. He constantly complains about “legal technicalities” (i.e. the Bill
of Rights) as he did in the June 22 meet the press interview.
http://www.thomhartmann.com/government.shtml
http://www.txtriangle.com/archive/1049/coverstory.htm
A link to a story regarding the courthouse banishment case.
http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org//news.aspx?id=5354
or…
http://www.freedomforum.org/templates/document.asp?documentID=13300
A commentary on Dean’s subversion of the public defender system.
http://www.talkleft.com/archives/003681.html#003681
Dean’s statement on “re-evaluation” of our “civil liberties”.
http://rutlandherald.nybor.com/News/Story/33681.html
Criminal sentences doubled during Dean’s tenure as a result of his
appointments. I wonder how many of those serving these inflated sentences
were also subjugated to constitutional deprivations at the hands of Dean’s
Judicial appointees leading to their convictions? How many of those serving
inflated sentences were prejudiced by Deans’ subversion of the public
defender system mandated by the 6th amendment?
In the Meet the Press interview with Dean while discussing the death
penalty he stated,
“So I just-life without parole, which we have which I actually got passed
when I was lieutenant governor- the problem with life without parole is that
people get out for reasons that have nothing to do with justice. We had a
case where a guy who was a rapist, a serial sex offender, was convicted,
then was let out on what I would think and believe was a technicality, a new
trial was ordered and the victim wouldn’t come back and go through the
second trial. ”
http://www.msnbc.com/news/912159.asp?cp1=1
Now, according to Dean, the Bill of Rights (ie. legal technicalities) has
“nothing to do with justice”. In the above quote, is he saying that if
someone was unconstitutionally convicted it is better that the government
kill them before they can point out the constitutional problems with their
conviction?
A further commentary on Dean’s death penalty stand.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&node=&contentId=A1907-2003Jul2¬Found=true
and, noting the “anti-due-process” Dean message,
http://stacks.msnbc.com/news/930194.asp?0si=-&cp1=1#BODY
See 1994 Yale Law School commencement discussing the danger of our leaders dismissing the “provisions of the Bill of Rights as mere technicalities.”.
http://www.schr.org/reports/docs/Yale%2094.pdf
Scott Huminski
Cary, NC
Comment by scott huminski | 8/22/2003
I am not impressed with Mr.Dean He is just one out of nine who do not impress me, he may be the standard bearer for the democrates, God help the democratic party and god help the USA if by any chance he makes it. We are in for a hell of a ride downward.
Comment by Shirley Morse | 10/28/2003
Vermont Public Radio, Bob Kinzel:
“It’s likely that Howard Dean’s tenure in office will also have a long term effect on the state’s criminal justice system. In his first years as Governor, Dean was often critical of judges who Dean thought did not hand down tough enough sentences. Over the last 10 years, Dean has appointed more judges than any previous governor and Dean describes his appointees as “law and order” judges. Dean’s judicial philosophy appears to be having a significant impact - during his tenure as governor the average sentence handed down in Vermont has doubled - a situation that has led to an overcrowding of the state’s prison system.” Huminski note, In the rural and sparsely poulated State of Vermont, much of the crime and resulting incarceration arises from offenses that urban prosecutors would pass on. Dean admits that Vermont has the lowest serious crime rate in the country, so who are these people he incarcerated.
Comment by scott huminski | 11/26/2003