Dr. Dean addressed the California Democratic Party convention over the weekend, calling for an extreme makeover.
No doubt, Karl Rove is smiling.
LOS ANGELES – Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean told California Democrats last night the party needs to change its rhetoric on abortion to project a more mainstream image.
"I think we need to talk about abortion differently," Dean said. "Republicans have painted us into a corner where they have forced us to defend abortion. I don't know anybody who's for abortion."
The former governor of Vermont and Democratic presidential candidate addressed the three-day California Democratic Party convention here – a gathering at which the party's long-standing hostility toward President Bush was overshadowed by its newfound vitriol against Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and his assault on Democratic constituencies, especially labor unions.
Dean joined in the Schwarzenegger bashing, beginning his speech in a not-too-convincing Austrian accent.
"Governor, don't go down the same road as (House Majority Leader) Tom DeLay," he said. "We can't use any more corrupt Republicans in office."
...Dean waged a roller-coaster campaign for the 2004 Democratic presidential nomination. On the strength of a vast grass-roots network skilled in raising money over the Internet, Dean surged from an unknown to become the front-runner, only to watch his campaign unravel on the way to the nomination battle in Iowa.
He became chairman of the Democratic National Committee in February, promising to infuse the Democratic Party with the same youthful enthusiasm that made his campaign a phenomenon, however short-lived.
...On abortion, Dean stressed he was not advocating that a party dominated by supporters of abortion rights change its views.
"We can make common ground with folks," he said. "The issue we need to debate is not whether abortion is a good thing. The issue we need to debate is whether a woman gets to make up her own mind about her health care or whether Tom DeLay gets to make up her mind."
...[Marcia] Patt, an activist in the North County Coalition for Peace and Justice, was angered by an article in USA Today in which Dean said "pro-life Democrats" should be encouraged to run for office.
"That's not the Democratic Party anymore," she said. "That's the party of the far right and that's the direction we're moving in when everybody starts talking about abandoning choice for women in the Democratic Party."
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What would a Dean speech or a Dem convention be without the vitriol?
It would be very, very quiet.
Since the Dems have nothing positive to offer the country, there wouldn't be much to say if they weren't propping themselves up with misguided, misinformed personal attacks and accusations.
Without the hate, the party would be completely limp.
Demonize, demonize, demonize.
Paging Dr. Dean---That strategy won't work. There are now so many outlets to deconstruct the Dem propaganda that the lies disintegrate soon after they're spoken.
Vitriol is not the stuff of a winning message.
He tells the party faithful they need to makeover their methods of communication.
For instance, on abortion, Dean is smart enough to recognize that it's a losing issue for the Dems. However, he mistakenly believes that he can trick Americans into believing the Dems aren't pro-abortion. Hillary Clinton is under the impression she can do the same thing.
Their words are shown to be empty as soon as the voting records of Dem candidates are revealed.
Kerry knows that better than anyone. It was a mistake for him to insist he wasn't "liberal." His denials, in the face of the facts, made him look like a panderer at best and a liar at worst.
Now, Dr. Dean is hoping to do the impossible. He wants to give his party a makeoever, having it appear more centrist and in line with the values of the majority of Americans; but to do that, he has to abandon the hard left base, the fringe MoveOn element that is struggling to control the direction of the party.
There are no easy solutions for Dr. Dean's predicament.
It still amazes me that he became chairman of the DNC after his implosion in the primaries. Was it wise to hand over the reins of the party to a loser? He couldn't control himself. He can't be expected to direct the party.
The only suggestion I can come up with is that an anger management seminar be scheduled for all Dem conventions.
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