The 'Perfect Storm' turned against Dean campaign

Burlington Free Press ^ | 02/15/2004 | Sam Hemingway

[Vermonter]

Howard Dean went into the Iowa caucuses riding high as the front-running Democratic presidential candidate, with a battle plan designed to take that state and set him on a course for winning those that followed.

The plan put in motion a flurry of handwritten letters and a blizzard of door-knocking volunteers to convince Iowa Democratic voters that Dean was the person to take on President George W. Bush this fall.

[Vermonter]

Sam is the Free Press columnist who dropped everything else to travel with the Dean campaign months ago. He's a Dean supporter and knows him as well as anyone.

As I type this, Dean is on Fox News Sunday still not willing to admit defeat.

Earth to Howard, your 15 minutes is up!

[cripplecreek]

The clinton "plumbers" did this to Dean, I think he knows it and doubt he will be silent.

[FormerACLUmember]

The Perfect Storm = The Clintons, their pet monkey Terry McAwful, their control of the DNC, and the corrupt rat party media robotically following orders to character assassinate Dean.

[dirtboy]

Gore's endorsement proved to be a double-edged sword. Valuable as the support seemed, it also put a bull's-eye on Dean's back ... Dean, meanwhile, was thrust from unnoticed underdog to high-profile frontrunner

This is simply not accurate. Dean was getting plenty of notice prior to Gore's endorsement, and several "Stop Dean" movements were underway at the time, including a full-court press from the Clintonista machine. It just took awhile for them to get traction.

[ChadGore]

[SkyPilot]

Dean might have a chance now that Kerry's wife is going to kill him.

[YaYa123]

Never forget! Tom Harkin, the cowardly, despicable Tom Harkin, could have saved the candidate he endorsed, Howard Dean.

Tom Harkin was standing behind Howard Dean at that scream speech, clapping and yelling, having a good ole time with Dean and the roomful of supporters. Like Mira Liasson did the next day, Harkin could have been all over television and put a stop to all the ugly insinuation that Howard Dean was crazy, over the top. Liasson said she was in the room, she defended Dean saying it was not as television portrayed it.

Why didn't Harkin step forward and do the right thing?
Well, for starters Harkin had given his own "over the top" speech, turning Wellstone's Memorial Service into a campaign rally, so he wouldn't want to remind people of that. More than that?

I think it's highly likely the Clintons got hold of Harkin and told him to let Dean die on the vine.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Harkin could have stood up and told the story of going toe to toe with North Viet MiGs over Hanoi again...

[Amerigomag]

If you think Bill and Hillary Clinton are the perfect storm then yes, Dean was subjected to the perfect storm.

[gg188]

Gore's endorsement was---for better or for worse---quickly a non-event, shoved out of the news-cycle immediately by the capture of Sadaam Hussein.

[raloxk]

"THE PERFECT STORM"


Is anyone else sorry they ever made that movie?

[bray]

The Perfect Idiot=A village in Vt is getting one back!

Pray for W and The Truth

[DuncanWaring]

... Kerry's wife is going to kill him.

Actually, maim, not kill. ;-)

[PJ-Comix]

"I've decided I want to screw endorse you," Gore told Dean, according to an Associated Press account of the discussion, adding, "I want to do it as soon as possible."