Monday, September 22, 2003

About Howard Dean

Howard Dean has turned the tables
on the "establishment Democrats"..
Progressives are seeing the wisdom of his campaign.
The mainstream media is just beginning to catch on.


Dont miss: The Progressive Case for Howard Dean
By Nico Pitney, AlterNet
August 12, 2003


Excerpt:


..."Surprisingly enough, one of the few prominent progressives to make a substantive link between Dean and Kucinich was Ralph Nader, who noted that Bush "is very vulnerable but not if you campaign the way the major candidates – except for Dean and Kucinich – are campaigning."


There is, in fact, good reason to believe that progressive supporters of Dean are well aware of his record, and are choosing to support him despite its flaws. As American Prospect senior editor Garance Franke-Ruta points out, "the most important part of the Dean message is that it makes supporters feel that they have the power to control their own destiny. ... This sense of renewed personal power and hope seemed more important to most posters [to Dean's weblog] than any specific policies that Dean supports or does not support, and few on the threads agreed wholeheartedly with the former governor on all his positions. Most recognized that he is a centrist who is fiscally conservative and socially liberal.".....


~~ ~~

Dean, Driven by the Grass Roots
Bottom-Up Strategy May Turn Politics Upside Down

By Lois Romano
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, September 22, 2003; Page A01


Excerpt:

..."Political strategists say that what began in January as a quirky, long-shot Internet strategy to attract online supporters to the dark-horse candidate could revolutionize presidential politics by minimizing the importance of television media and empowering grass-roots organizers...

...."It's just extraordinary," said Dick Morris, a political consultant who advised Bill Clinton. "It's part of a new era -- back to basics. Howard Dean is using the Internet in an entirely guerrilla marketing approach. By this process, he's developed a massive grass-roots list. It's active and participatory, and people feel engaged. . . . You're brought in by friends and family. It's bottom-up, and people love that; they feel empowered.".....


**Thanks to members of the Syracuse for Dean Yahoo Message Group**