Donnie talked about this weeks ago, here at mydd and on his website.  

I know one campaign is moving this around to anyone that will listen. The internet is a great place to spread false oppo research though.

Please enlighted us on who you think will endorse Simon Rosenberg this week.

What's going on with Rosenberg and the ASDC ... do they perceive Simon as too much inside the beltway and not enough outside the beltway in the states?

Are you content to let Donnie Fowler do an early flameout?

Simon is an inside the beltway guy ... who you going to get to come to your 1/31/05 fundraiser in DC?

Answer the questions or I am going to keep coming at you.

Democratic Dad

Democratic Dad

I had expected all this backroom maneuvering to be coming from Frost, not Fowler. Personally, I don't like the way this smells.

See the latest message to his supporters.

**********
Statement from Simon Rosenberg, January 31, 2005:

"I am pleased to have had the opportunity to present my record and my vision for the Party to the executive committee of the ASDC this weekend.  Throughout this campaign, I have been encouraged by the depth and thoughtfulness of the conversation DNC members are holding about the future of our Party.

It is clear today that the recommendation of the ASDC was achieved with only a plurality, but not a majority of committee members.  With a majority of the committee - 11 of the 19 - voting against the eventual recommendation or abstaining from the final vote, it is clear that there is no consensus candidate of the chairs at this time.

As such, while I have great admiration and respect for the executive committee, I hope that the broader group of state chairs voting today will vote against their recommendation and instead recommend an open process where all 447 voting members of the DNC will have the chance to choose on February 12th from the 7 strong candidates who are running.

I plan to fight on for the leadership of the Party I love.  I believe I am the Party's best choice for DNC chair, the only candidate who has the complete package for what we need today - chief executive experience, a history of winning in the red states, deep understanding of the new media tools of 21st century politics, a strong connection to the emerging grassroots/netroots culture so critical to our future, and the capacity and relationships to bring our diverse Party together so we can fight and win in all fifty state and six territories each and every day.  I look forward to continuing to make my case to the vast majority of DNC members who have not yet decided their vote."

NCDem

Does anybody know anything about how this would, or should, work?

I live in the DC area and know lots of party faithful.  These folks were dead against Dean pre pre-Iowa.  They didn't think that Dean could win and they wanted to win bad.  I remember being shocked how vehemently against Dean they were--I had been on DFA for months and was head over heels in love with guy and thrilled with his position in the polls.  But here in the DC burbs the hardcore Deomocrats were not on board.

I can't prove it but I believe our Democratic Party, assisted covertly by the DNC, took a formal action in Iowa recruiting longtime Dems like the firefighters et al, and spread the word to drop Dean.  Folks were mobilized by our own party against our candidate.  I very much believe that the Democratic Party turned on Dean in Iowa and then the scream just sealed the deal.  

This action was a breach of faith and did not honor the rules of party primaries.  Back room politics is one thing but to actively organize against a candidate is quite another.  Why am I suprised?  Dean probably wasn't the first candidate to be brought down by party faithful.

Why am I suprised that that same party is still threatened by Dean?  They went after Dean and won and now he is back wanting to take over the very institution that brought him down.  It is a brillant move on Dean's part.  

Why am I suprised that the party faithful will do whatever it takes?  This isn't just Mrs. Clinton or any one faction, this is deep institutional thinking on the part of the DNC.  They don't want change and they don't want to lose power and control.  Dean is a huge threat.

Now what the hell are we going to do?

Dean for DNC Chair

In reading through the various comments, I can't help but think if these guys spent half the time, a quarter of the energy, and one tenth the creativity they spend trying to stop Dean on fighting the Republicans, we would have senate and the house back, as well as the presidency.

Happily these machinations do turn off even the most entrenched of party activists who know this inside baseball crap for what it is, but just for the record....yesterday's little power play was transparent, and those of you who actually support Fowler will be surprised at what is actually occurring.  

As a matter of fact, you will know the feeling of what is like to be mugged....but don't know when it happened, or who did it to you.

http://algoresupportcenter.com/endorsement.html

a site that tells folks how to come to mydd and dialy kos and others and blog in support of fowler.....

Dean 56

Fowler 21

Frost 5

Roemer 3

Rosenberg 3

Webb 3

Leyland 0

Abstain 5

Dean 56

Fowler 21

Frost 5

Roemer 3

Rosenberg 3

Webb 3

Leyland 0

Abstain 5

There was a lot of scrambling between 3-5pm as various state chairs were exploding at their exec for doing this at all.

I can see the headline now:

WE'RE NUMBER TWO!
ASDC Rejects Executive Committee's Recommendation to Endorse Donnie Fowler

Messaging - Dean has also proven that he knows that being "passive" in forming your message doesn't work.  A two-hour focus group will steer you towards mush because it leaves the element of pursuasion out.  (Bush/ Rove/ Gingrich/ Reagan/ Deaver have known this as well.) Cordinated messaging -- requiring levels of cooperation and repetition when you're the opposition that are unprecidented for Democrats -- changes the results of those focus groups.  Howard understand this well enought to have put together a training DVD on values and messaging for the Democracy for America (DFA) meetups.  Dems, who apply real values to their approach to government, even have a natural advantage here.  (It is gratifying to hear of a "war room" among congressional Dems...)

Navigating the Political Winds - The country hasn't moved to the Right.  The media, and public discourse have been creeping to the right, but that's not hearts of the public.  If you need proof, the country clearly rejects the Right's approach to its own strength, National Security!  Having Americans focus on "traditional strengths" of the right is different from favoring the right's policies.  The country has simply been baraged by solid messaging and conviction from the Right, and deer-in-the-headlights behavior (except for post-election actions such as the blessed Conyers/Boxer revolution) from the Left since mid-2002.  Can you see the dynamics here?

Dean the Man - Dean is not a radical left wing person, and it's disparaging to hear DNC candidates such as Martin Frost this morning on WNYC turn to personal destruction techniques by suggesting that he's unpredictable.  (On the contrary, he's been damned solid these past two years.)  For that matter, Dean has shown that he wants to guide elected officials into Exhibiting the Leadership.  If you listen to him, he knows if it were to remain up to any DNC chair to be the lone voice of the Party, we'd be sunk.  If you hear what he's saying, Dean knows the DNC chair must facilitate and mobilize politicians and grass roots alike.  Need I add another reference to the Gingrich revolution?

Grass Roots?  Astroturf! - Finally, people know about Dean's grass roots success, but they don't always appreciate that his organization is as much about the exchange and sharpening of ideas as it is about volunteerism.  DFA meetups are places of learning about techniques, debating issues, recruiting candidates, and making a real difference.  In Hunterdon County, NJ, our meetup brought so many people to the local Democratic headquarters that we could only fit phone bank volunteers because someone offered the use of a local real estate office.  We canvassed every Democratic registered voter in the county, contributing to an 83% overall turnout.  We brought so much manpower forward, we were phoning people in Pennsylvania and the mid-west before it was all over.

Resist change if you will.  Support chronies if you must.

If Dean goes down, Trippi's "un-Televised" Third Party Revolution may well be the next challenge to this anemic Party.

But the Party leadership had spoken, and made the decision that we had to go with their "electable" candidate. They then went on to lose to the President with lowest approval rating of any President who has won re-election, even lower than 50%.

So, have we learned that we need to change? DUH!

Does it make sense to change to become more Republican? Then what choice will people be offered - Republican 1 Party or Republican 2 Party?

I think many Democrats have learned, and that's why Dr. Dean has basically already won. Nevertheless, those who cling to their power in the old decaying party structure will continue to resist. And, of course, there are the trolls masking as Democrats who continue to try to sow seeds of division.

But those who have eyes can see. And we have learned a good lesson from the last set of elections. We want a real change in this Party, and it looks like we will get it. Good luck Dr. Howard Dean, the soon-to-be new Chairman of the National Democratic Party!

If that makes anyone 'turn' Republican, be my guest. How are you supposed to try to unite the Party with people who are so disparaging and vitriolic on a personal level to a major candidate, and all his supporters? We have seen it right here on this blog today.

Moan about it if you want, but either this Party will change, really change, or it will die, which it would deserve. Dr. Dean will be more than a breath of fresh air; he may very well be a last chance.

If you can't stay with the Party when it changes leaders now, as Howard and the DFA did after the primaries by campaigning for Kerry in the general election, then you weren't much of a Democrat to begin with.

Dean should have won the primaries for the 2004 election--I think if we ran them in all 50 states, he would have.

Also, it is really sad how members of the Democratic party stand against Dean, even though he works every day to help the Democratic party!

The Deaniacs felt the crush of defeat in 2003--it's time for the DNC to lift the rock and listen to the American people.

I wonder if this little Kerry/Michigan thing will deflate Fowler--let's hope so!

I was a Dean precinct captain in Linn County, IA.
I also worked Johnson County, IA.
I was a Dean Linn County/IA-02 district/IA state convention delegate.
I organized the very first Dean Corps event in the country, and otherwise worked very hard, as a political newbie.

To this day, to me, Dean continues to be an inspiration and a source of hope, joy, determination and Democratic pride.  I would climb Kilimanjaro, if Dean thought it would help recover our country from RW-Republican control.

As a result of Dean's inspiration, many of us who worked on his team have gone on to positions of great responsibility.  For example, he inspired Dick Stater, our faithful Linn County Dean chair, to fight for the position of Linn County Democratic Party Chair.  We fought for it, and he won.  Dean people are willing to work hard for the party.

A man who can inspire this much in the citizens of the nation, can, and should, be at the helm of this party.  Howard Dean is that man.

I have shaken hands with Dean many times.  I trust Howard.  I've scrutinized his retina:  he's passed the test.  If he needs my help, he's got it, no questions asked.

These other fellows, I do not know at all.  None of them have made an effort to communicate directly with me, or introduce themselves to me.  Why should I follow them?  Who are they, behind the rhetoric?  I've never even heard their voices.  Why should I believe that they would be able to motivate and inspire me?

Why does that sound familiar?  Let's not get overconfident until after the final vote.

Dean has been for the Afghanistan war. He has been for the first gulf war. He just happens to be against the Iraq war, a position that is actually shared by more than a few conservatives(Such as Pat Buchanan). It has nothing to do with pacificism or knee jerk anti Bushism. It had everything to do with common sense. Even Dean said so. He said despite lack of access to sensitive documents, he was able to extrapolate what he knew into what is possibly going on and he was right on target. So as a moderate, am I supporting Dean because he went 2 for 3 in supporting wars in that region? No, it's because of the logic he used. I can quibble with parts of his argument, but he is consistent and smart enough for me to not lose any sleep over the differences. There is no rigid ideology at work in his support or non support. Contrast that with  Hillary Clinton. Nothing wrong in her support for the Iraq war if she can justify it. She gave such vague answers when asked why she voted for the war. It seemed more like a vote to prove she is a moderate and nothing more. That is Moderation by Calculation or Cowardice or whatever you think it is. A lot of senators were afraid of looking unpatriotic. At least Lieberman, as much as I despise his presence in the party, believes in the stupid war. He wants to make sure the mideast is safe for Israel and is aligned with the neocons on this issue.

Why is it that most democratic leaders, even now, when they appear on FOX, have a hard time defending Dean, even though he swallowed his pride and campaigned hard for Kerry and the establishment last year? Why can't they return the favor? Who is being small minded and incapable of compromising - he so called reasonable estabilishment!
Dean was not even on the NRA hit list. And yet they call him a knee jerk liberal. It didn't matter that Kucinich who thinks the UN (the same UN that let Rwanda rot) would make things all hunky dory  had his people support Edwards as a second choice in Iowa. Dean was not allowed to live down the scream while we have to endure Bush butchering the English language on a regular basis. If you see Dean on talk shows, he is able to articulate his views better than other democrats who get intimidated and defensive with talk show hosts.

Personally, I tend to be independent. I am a passionate advocate of vouchers and believe public education has been a major failure in our inner cities. I hate trivial lawsuit  and I think countersuits for expenses in a trivial lawsuit should be made easier to win. However I am against capssince a company or doctor that is truly guilty of criminal negligence should pay. I don't mind if affirmative action is phased out, but I am suspicious of people who make this a large priority when they dont do a thing about politicians hogging all the contracts for their buddies(so much for merit).  I am for the legalization of  drugs like pot despite never taking drugs.

Dean doesnt agree with me on some of these positions, but he still speaks to me because he is sensible for the most part, we agree on some key issues and I TRUST HIM and he has the charisma to lead. It's that simple. When you have a country with a lot of freedom, you don't really need a politician who agrees with you on every issue. Just some core beliefs and there has to be a trust factor. Do i still fit your stereotype of what a Deaniac is?