A Call To Arms: Republican Special Interests Attack Dean

[slinkerwink]

Special Interests Attack Dean

Just two weeks ago, the RNC launched an ad in Iowa questioning the patriotism of those who opposed this president's reckless foriegn policy. Bush attacked-- and you responded, raising more than $608,000 to tell the truth about what Bush has done to our country.

And today, they're at it again. The Club for Growth-- a corporate-backed group whose goal is "to bundle campaign donations for pro-business Republicans"-- is attacking Howard Dean by name in television ads that are going up in Iowa and New Hampshire.

Last month, you declared your independence from the special interests. Now they're trying to define and distort Howard Dean's record in an attempt to slow your campaign.

Don't let them.

The Dean campaign is responding immediately, combating the false accusations of Bush's special interests by preparing a television ad of our own:

Title: “Club for Truth?Length: 30 seconds
Video: Image of George Bush over a closed factory; footage from Club for Growth ad; footage of Howard Dean on the campaign trail.

Audio:

George Bush.

His economic policies created the largest deficit in our county's history.

Now he's hiding behind negative ads that falsely attack Howard Dean.

The Truth?

Howard Dean balanced budgets 11 years in a row. He's a fiscal conservative who cut state income taxes—twice. Raised the minimum wage. And provided health care coverage for nearly every child in his state.

I'm Howard Dean. I approved this message because they’re not trying to stop me, they’re trying to stop you.


Don't let the special interests stop you from taking our country back. Click here to contribute and to show that you are willing to match the special interests dollar for dollar. Let Bush know that he can't hide behind the special interests-- and that we, the American people, are going to stand up for the truth.

http://blog.deanforamerica.com

[slinkerwink]

1. I'm going to donate tonight.....

looks like the RNC is opening their salvos on Dean this early in the campaign season----looks like they're frightened of Dean! ;-)

[killbotfactory]

2. Wait, I thought they wanted Dean?

Did they change their mind or is this just brilliant political skullduggery? I'm so confused.

[Renew Deal]

34. They still do.

http://www.nypost.com/commentary/12578.htm

GOP TRIES TO BOOST DEAN BY BURYING HIM

By DEBORAH ORIN
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

December 4, 2003 -- HOWARD DEAN and Republicans share one big dream - to see Dean become the Democratic 2004 presidential nominee.
It's fascinating to watch Republicans do their best to boost Dean.

Take the Republican National Committee's decision to run a TV ad in Iowa that paints Democrats as undermining President Bush in the war on terror. It says, "Some are now attacking the president for attacking the terrorists."

Antiwar, anti-Bush anger boosted Dean to the top of the Democratic pack and a pro-war Republican ad is sure to infuriate and energize Dean fans - and focus political debate on the very issue that helps Dean the most.

"It's very smart - every time they pick fights with Dean, it just serves to elevate him in the Democratic race," says a Republican strategist. "It's good for both of them. Both sides want a Dean-Bush race."

Why? Because polls suggest Dean would be pretty close to the weakest Dem against Bush and he offers the sharpest contrast in ideology and personal style.

http://www.nypost.com/commentary/12578.htm

[slinkerwink]

36. that's still a weak argument when the unnamed Dem in polls still beat Bush

[killbotfactory]

43. Well, if it's in the NY post, it must be true

All this reverse psychology crap is exhausting.

[slinkerwink]

44. I agree----it's just desperate spin

;-)


here's a :beer: on me.

[Renew Deal]

45. It appeared somewhere else also.

I am not sure if the post just picked up on it or not. That's where I saw it.

[killbotfactory]

51. If they honestly believe that Dean is the easiest to beat

They are seriously misunderestimating him by this strategy. He's the best fundraiser, has the best organization, and he's not afraid to fight back. You don't stop an enemy from making a mistake, and this is a big one.

If they don't and actually don't know how to handle Dean (which I've read in other reports) then they're trying to bury him by planting the idea in democrats heads that he's the one they want and will be easy to beat.

[ShimokitaJer]

54. "he offers the sharpest contrast in ideology and personal style."

... and this is supposed to be a bad thing? Do the Repubs really think they're going to bound back into the oval office on GW's charm?

[killbotfactory]

57. All the polls I've seen show most people disagree with Bush on policy

The only strong point is national security.

And that's not going to change if we pander to the idea that Bush is strong on national security and we'll be "just like him, only better!" Dean offers that.

[ShimokitaJer]

61. I agree

so why should the Repubs be saying that they want Dean because they think he presents the strongest contrast with Bush? You'd think that presenting a strong contrast with Bush would be a good thing for the Dems.

[killbotfactory]

65. I don't get it either

But if they want to shoot themselves in the foot, I'll buy the gun.

[janx]

3. HA! One more thing I like about this campaign:

It's FAST!

[denverbill]

4. I love it!!

Finally, a candidate with some balls!

[slinkerwink]

16. can't wait to see Dean teabag Bush!

;-)

[LittleDannySlowhorse]

Noooooooo...

You have an unhealthy obsession with Dean teabagging Bush.

I'd say a Cleveland Steamer is more appropriate.

[slinkerwink]

28. what's a cleveland steamer?

:shrug:

[LittleDannySlowhorse]

63. A Cleveland Steamer

is when one expels solid waste onto the bare chest of a lover. Bush is much more deserving of that, especially since, after his steel tarriff decision, that's the only piece of Ohio he's ever going to get.

[slinkerwink]

79. ewwwwww

that's grooossss....

[LittleDannySlowhorse]

93. Gross, yes

But you've learned something. Go run out and tell everybody!

[HFishbine]

62. Eeewww

I'm gonna have nightmares now. Thanks a lot.

[Eloriel]

5. Wow -- this is a GREAT line:

"I'm Howard Dean. I approved this message because they’re not trying to stop me, they’re trying to stop you."

Eloriel

[drfemoe]

6. chilly bumps

and imo he is the only one that can stop this crap.

[slinkerwink]

9. I agree......it gave me chills.

can't wait to see Howard look into the camera and say that. Talk about energizing the Democratic base!

[Demobrat]

7. We know what this means, don't we?

Rove wants to run against Dean! Quick! Switch to Kerry! Switch to Clark! Dean can't win! Anybody but Dean!

[slinkerwink]

10. oh, that's right! Rove wants Dean so he's going EASY on him....

because that's the right strategy to go up against the Dem candidate, right? <sarcasm>

[Capn Sunshine]

92. Doesnt this shift mean that they want Dean because Clark ...wait Kerry....

Who's the one they currently "want" again? :silly:

[Bombtrack]

8. They know that Dean's campaign loves this

that's why there doing this before the nomination.

[killbotfactory]

11. Aha! Reverse psychology!

I'm sure they're just drooling at the chance to run against someone who balanced budgets, lowered taxes, provided healthcare to nearly every child in his state, cut child abuse, raised the minimum wage, and opposed a war that's turned into a boondoggle with no apparent purpose!

Those crazy liberals! Haw haw haw!

[slinkerwink]

14. Darn that Dean!

It's good that we're responding fast to this...

[Bombtrack]

18. if that person is Howard Dean then yes absolutely

he provided healthcare to an additional 3 percent of kids, which is about 2500 hundred kids probably

and he apposed a foriegn policy decision which less than 40 don't appose and more than 60 suppport

which would ensure his defeat far less than his proposed middle class tax hike

[slinkerwink]

20. Um.....in polls, Democrats would rather vote for someone that opposed

the war in Iraq than for someone that supported it, and I believe that includes your candidate, Edwards.

[killbotfactory]

23. Yeah, and he'll have no money to fight back!

Because he's crippled by public financing.. and has little support among voters!

Haw haw haw... err.. no, nevermind.

[slinkerwink]

24. oh, that's right...Dean has NO grassroots support.....

how dare Dean finance his own ads?! Darn that Dean! </sarcasm>


;-)

[blm]

21. It's Dean's old CATO buddy, Stephen Moore

Club for Growth. Interesting that they'd do this now, playing the "inevitability" card.

[killbotfactory]

25. They're repeating the "Dean is the next (insert loser here)" card

That other dems have been playing.

Seems kind of stupid to do it before there's even a primary.

[slinkerwink]

26. yeah, they might run the chance of making that meme really OLD

in IA and NH, so the next time they try it again, it won't wash.

[Scott Lee]

35. And right on time to help the cause - ADJHS! Wave, everyone!

I'm so happy you showed up to show your support for democrats against Bush attack ads. I just knew you couldn't stay away, if Dean was being praised by Dems or attacked by Bush!

Do you find it easier to sneak up on someone before you back stab them, or just get friendly and close first?

[slinkerwink]

38. ahhhh, where are the cheerleaders?

::looks around::

[sangh0]

48. At the CATO Institute

"The Appeal of Howard Dean
From the September 15, 2003 issue: Why he could be Bush's more dangerous opponent.
by Stephen Moore
09/15/2003, Volume 009, Issue 01


SEVERAL YEARS AGO an obscure Democratic governor from the politically inconsequential state of Vermont was the guest speaker at a Cato Institute lunch. His name was Howard Dean. He had been awarded one of the highest grades among all Democrats (and a better grade than at least half of the Republicans) in the annual Cato Fiscal Report Card on the Governors. We were curious about his views because we had heard that he harbored political ambitions beyond the governorship.

Dean charmed nearly everyone in the boardroom. He came across as erudite, policy savvy, and, believe it or not, a friend of free markets--at least by the standards of the Tom Daschle-Dick Gephardt axis of the Democratic party. Even when challenged on issues like environmentalism, where he favored a large centralized mass of intrusive regulations, Dean remained affable.

"You folks at Cato," he told us, "should really like my views because I'm economically conservative and socially laissez-faire." Then he continued: "Believe me, I'm no big-government liberal. I believe in balanced budgets, markets, and deregulation. Look at my record in Vermont." He was scathing in his indictment of the "hyper-enthusiasm for taxes" among Democrats in Washington. ..."

http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/003/073ylkiz.asp

[Scott Lee]

82. Meanwhile, the Kerry/Gep machine brought us subjugation and failure

"You folks at Cato," he told us, "should really like my views because I'm economically conservative and socially laissez-faire." Then he continued: "Believe me, I'm no big-government liberal. I believe in balanced budgets, markets, and deregulation. Look at my record in Vermont." He was scathing in his indictment of the "hyper-enthusiasm for taxes" among Democrats in Washington. ..."

Notice this statement is years old, and Dean has actually tempered such comments by action (he is for re-regulation of some industry, for instance that which poses a demonstrable threat to environment).

If Kerry and or Gep is indeed the opposite of Dean, let's look at what they helped get us...

IWR (war)

Patriot Act (police state)

Degredation of the Democratic Party (quod errat demonstrandum)


I think I'll give Dean a try. I'm not sure how much more of the Kerry/Gep Democratic Party we can take.

[ibegurpard]

40. But Dean started it!

Or haven't you heard?

[slinkerwink]

75. oooooh, the nerve of that DEAN!

;-)

[Hep]

74. But Dean and Cato are so close!

How on earth could such a pal turn on him like that?

[HFishbine]

12. Here's the ad

http://www.clubforgrowth.org/video/tax-redux.ram?clubforgrowth=d8c666e0dc7fe9ec50ceb86398570235

[slinkerwink]

13. yep, and that's why we need to respond fast......

[janx]

19. Wow. He hasn't even gotten the nomination yet, and they've

spent money making this ad that is nothing but an attack on him.

[slinkerwink]

22. yeah....they're running scared

;-)

[janx]

56. I sort of liked it better when they were still under the illusion that

he was a hopeless and crazed leftie. But the truth had to come out at some point, I guess.

[blm]

29. It helps solidify support for both. It's called the "inevitability" card

and Dean's old CATO buddy Stephen Moore put this ad out. He's doing Dean a favor by targeting him only. This is a PRIMARY and they are singling Dean out while elevating and solidifying support for Dean.

[Scott Lee]

39. Yes, more "proof" that the GOP loves Dean, no doubt *snicker*

Up is down, black is white, freedom is slavery, Dean has peaked...

And the beat goes on.

[slinkerwink]

42. I just like the argument that blm makes....

because it's based on a silly premise of "What if?"

[blm]

58. You're wrong and obviously unaware of the "inevitability" card the GOP

plays. You should be familiar with it though, because some Deanies have been playing the card for months here at DU.

Would you like to argue that it doesn't exist?

Or would you like to argue that Stephen Moore and Howie Dean are NOT friendly?

[slinkerwink]

60. oh please....

:eyes:

[sangh0]

64. The inevitability card

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=802700#802700

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=795884#798546 (#43)

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=801610#801862 (#23)

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=104&topic_id=780914&mesg_id=781733&page= (#65)

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=748342#748530

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=801562

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=797684#797707

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=104&topic_id=815971&mesg_id=818654&page=

[killbotfactory]

66. Well, that card worked for Kerry

teeheehee

[blm]

67. Kerry never played that game.

But, you all know you did.

[killbotfactory]

68. Yes he did.

He was the favorite son for a while after Gore dropped out.

[slinkerwink]

77. that's why he rested easy on his laurels when Dean was shooting

up in the polls in August.

[blm]

80. and Dean's favorite target for attacks, even while recovering from cancer

surgery and off the campaign trail.

Good doctor. Great character, huh?

[Scott Lee]

83. Oooh evil Dean! Picks on cancer victims!

And kills puppies and kittens and eats babies and drinks the blood of the dead and...


(wonders what's for dinner....)

[Hep]

84. Because everyone knows his campaign shut down those days.

n/t

[Scott Lee]

89. Well, everyone but *looks down the hall*......

[Andromeda]

91. Kerry invented the game.

Kerry was supposed to be the "heir apparent." That's why you and the other anti-Deanies are so pissed off and can't accept the fact that Dean is so popular.

Why do you think the Democratic convention is going to be in Boston? So home-boy Kerry could bask in the glory of winning the nomination on his own turf.

[AntiCoup2K4]

59. Or more specifically, "what if......

....Kerry had a snowball's chance in Hell.."

[w13rd0]

15. they are hoping to exhaust...

...their strongest potential opposition by relentless attacks between now and November. Seems that Bush is already running against Dean, and with responses like this one, he's losing.

[slinkerwink]

17. that's what I think too.....

to respond this early for an incumbent president isn't good news for Bush.

[mandyky]

31. The thing shrub and crew don't realize is that

they are not just running against Dean, they are trying to do this to us and they underestimate the power of a pissed off electorate. Boy, have these folks got a RUDE awakening coming, and hopefully very very soon!! Or maybe we should let them spend another 50 million before we clue em in...

[slinkerwink]

33. "Ahhh.....who cares about those little grassroots supporters?"

"They won't harm us"---Rove in his office

Meanwhile, thousands of Deaniacs are pouring in money to beat Bush.....;-)

[slinkerwink]

27. "They're not trying to stop me, they're trying to stop you"

I love that line!

[janx]

50. I like that line too, primarily because it's true.

(Though they're coming after him as well.)

[slinkerwink]

53. it's never been so true before in this election...

[Closer]

30. It's called Rapid Response

and you better BELIEVE BushCo. are scratching their heads over Dean and his army.

Bring it on you bastards! We're not taking the shit anymore. There's a "sea of change" happening in the Democratic Party, and we're fighting back to kick your Republican asses!

[slinkerwink]

32. and that's exactly what Clinton did in 1992

they didn't let any charge go unanswered----just like what the Dean campaign is doing now!

[Scott Lee]

37. Dean's team is really adept at this...I'm impressed.

That takes one hell of an organization to do that.

[slinkerwink]

41. no wonder why the AFSCME and the SEIU endorsed him....

;-)

[JNelson6563]

46. Give 'em hell Doc!!

Rock on Dr. Dean. We're right behind you!

:toast:

Julie

[slinkerwink]

47. yep....*hi-fives*

[sangh0]

49. I thought Stephen Moore LIKED Dean!!!

"The Appeal of Howard Dean
From the September 15, 2003 issue: Why he could be Bush's more dangerous opponent.
by Stephen Moore
09/15/2003, Volume 009, Issue 01


SEVERAL YEARS AGO an obscure Democratic governor from the politically inconsequential state of Vermont was the guest speaker at a Cato Institute lunch. His name was Howard Dean. He had been awarded one of the highest grades among all Democrats (and a better grade than at least half of the Republicans) in the annual Cato Fiscal Report Card on the Governors. We were curious about his views because we had heard that he harbored political ambitions beyond the governorship.

Dean charmed nearly everyone in the boardroom. He came across as erudite, policy savvy, and, believe it or not, a friend of free markets--at least by the standards of the Tom Daschle-Dick Gephardt axis of the Democratic party. Even when challenged on issues like environmentalism, where he favored a large centralized mass of intrusive regulations, Dean remained affable.

"You folks at Cato," he told us, "should really like my views because I'm economically conservative and socially laissez-faire." Then he continued: "Believe me, I'm no big-government liberal. I believe in balanced budgets, markets, and deregulation. Look at my record in Vermont." He was scathing in his indictment of the "hyper-enthusiasm for taxes" among Democrats in Washington. ..."

http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/003/073ylkiz.asp

[slinkerwink]

52. ha, looks like his group which raises money for Bush is

SCARED.....

[sangh0]

55. "Believe me, I'm no big-government liberal...."

"...I believe in balanced budgets, markets, and deregulation.

[Scott Lee]

85. "I believe in the Patriot Act, Unilateral war on a sovereign nation..."

- Kerry, Gephardt, Lieberman

[blm]

69. This is Stephen Moore assuring that Dean is Bush's opponent.

If anyone knows what a flip flopper Dean is, it's Moore. He no doubt has Dean crowing on tape about his deregulation efforts. Dean and his CATO Institute buddies, the Koch brothers.

[dave29]

71. Have you ever changed your mind?

I'm just curious, because if you have, you are nothing but a flip-flopper.

Damn flip-floppers every where I look

[slinkerwink]

73. lol, some people here don't believe that a candidate actually

can change their mind after being presented with new facts.

[blm]

81. In an election year?

.

[Scott Lee]

88. It's been known to happen. Dean is proving he's a real liberal

Unlike some people who claim to be liberal, yet are really stagnate statists supporting an Insider statist candidate.

Go Dean.

[Hep]

76. No doubt

And I killed Kennedy. If only someone could PROVE it!

[Scott Lee]

87. Your boy Kerry just pulled the mutha of all flip flops

On troop strength and time of presence in Iraq. You'd better stay up on these things blm, lest ye end up with even more egg on your face.

[unfrigginreal]

70. I've got your back Doc!

As long as your fighting I'm contributing - another $50 sent.

[slinkerwink]

72. count me in for the $50 too!

;-)

[Hep]

78. I'm here for ya.

They don't have a prayer.

[Cooley Hurd]

86. They have $100k to run this lame-o ad...

They're get probably 15-20 ad slots for $100k in larger markets(actually, I don't know how much ad slots run in larger market cities. If someone does, please post it). And, it's a lame ad to boot (same bs comparing Dean to Dukakis and Mondale). This will have minimal impact...

[brent of rppper]

90. More on the whole dean subject.....

i looked up something on it..aswell my dad helped me out it too aswell...check it out..it's an older post on the site but if nothing else it'll be usefull in the disscusion.

http://www.esoterically.net/log/archives/001177.html


:kick:

November 26, 2003
The softer side of Gov. Dean

On trail, Dean hones a populist message


OTTUMWA, Iowa -- As a presidential contender, Howard Dean has made a name for himself as a verbal rough-rider -- arguing his case against the war in Iraq and President Bush's tax cuts with the kind of unstinting rhetoric that has won over Democrats eager to see a bruising battle against Bush next fall.

But on the campaign trail, Dean's throw-down-the-gauntlet mantra is woven with another message, one strikingly different in tone, that preaches the virtue of community and the evil of corporate behemoths unconcerned, he says, with the collective good.

"Bigger and bigger corporations might mean more efficiency, but there is something about human beings that corporations can't deal with, and that's our soul, our spirituality, who we are," Dean told a breakfast crowd in Sidney, Iowa. "We need to find a way in this country to understand and to help each other understand that there is a tremendous price to be paid for the supposed efficiency of big corporations. The price is losing the sense of who we are as human beings."

This Dean message, delivered in a lilting cadence different from the partisan fire and brimstone he serves up in television ads and debates, strikes a chord in some quarters.

"I love that talk about community because we are supposed to be a Christian nation, and if we are a Christian nation, I have to be concerned about you, I have to be concerned about him," said Paul McFarland, 62, a retired military man who listened to Dean at an Ottumwa VFW Hall. "That's the way God wanted it, that's what a Christian nation is all about and we have strayed away from that."

Dean's message is tactically sharp, capturing what his campaign believes could be an important factor in the 2004 presidential election: Americans' anxiety about the future -- about jobs and financial security -- born of corporate mistrust and an attendant craving for more control over their lives.

The message dovetails with a larger critique of "special interests" -- a loosely-defined group of rich, powerful, entrenched corporations, institutions, and lobbyists -- that virtually all the Democratic presidential hopefuls have been assailing. In California, Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger campaigned against special interests in unseating Gray Davis as governor.

Dean, in particular, has used the anti-special interests idea as a battering ram. At a rally in Houston this month, the former governor of Vermont railed against the bankrupt Enron and called for greater regulation of industry.

But in the quieter settings, Dean often launches into the theme of uncontrolled power to highlight social policy issues. He points out the importance of structuring the sale of Canadian drugs in the United States without enriching middlemen, so that Main Street pharmacies can be saved. He talks of the need to do away with "No Child Left Behind" legislation, to give control back to local school boards.

This softer side to Dean's rhetoric can be jarring for those accustomed to seeing him in attack mode. It comes, after all, from a man seemingly determined to keep his personal biography -- and sentiment -- out of his campaign, and often seems oddly juxtaposed with Dean's militaristic march though his stump speech or his thunderous "You have the power" call-to-arms for disaffected Democrats.

Indeed, some voters, are taken aback by Dean's political alter ego.


Click on the headline to read the rest of the article.


Posted at November 26, 2003 03:37 AM


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