Dean is not a progressive.
[This article focuses on the need for Democrats to respond to Republican Party “spin” efforts… it is notable for (a) the side references to Dean as the most “conservative” of the Democratic Party candidates, and (b) the implicit assumption, by a progressive, that no “progressive” or “liberal” has a chance on a national stage… are we really that beaten down? The Rosenfeld and Holhut articles both discuss the book “Howard Dean: A Citizens Guide to the Man Who Would be President”, and focus on his “fiscal” conservativism (devotion to a balanced budget, low taxes, economic development, etc.) while only casually mentioning that he constantly fought with his more liberal fellow Democrats in the legislature (hmm… Davis vs. the California Legislature, anyone?)… I see that focus as “spin”, trying to paint Dean’s “conservative” tendencies as minimally objectionable to progressives, and his “liberal” social views as minimally objectionable to moderates and conservatives (who, when all is said and done, generally vote with their pocketbooks). -Thomas]
The Democrats: When Will They Ever Learn?
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In point of fact, Howard Dean is arguably the most mainstream, even “conservative,” of the Democratic candidates, as his record of Vermont governor testifies. (See Rosenfeld and Holhut).
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