Dean critiques "in-your-face attitude of the White House staff, and I'm not just talking about Rahm"

[madfloridian]

In an interview with National Journal Hotline today, Howard Dean has some words on the topic of attitude toward your base.

"Liberal" Flap Has Dems Worrying About Enthusiasm

"The problem is the enthusiasm gap," said ex-VT Gov. Howard Dean, in an interview with The Hotline this morning. "If you treat people like that, they're not likely to respond in a warm and fuzzy way."

"Part of it is the kind of in-your-face attitude of the White House staff, and I'm not just talking about Rahm," Dean added. "I think it's pretty universal."

.."But, Dean and others said, different groups are angry for different reasons. Gay rights activists have interrupted Obama at fundraisers before, demanding action on Don't Ask, Don't Tell. Unions have voiced their displeasure with one of the WH political department's picks, running millions in ads against Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR). And groups that supported health care reform grudgingly backed the final legislative product, even though it wasn't perfect.

"It's not one group of liberals or progressives. There are gradations of them, and some of them are really upset and some of them are modestly upset," Dean said. "While the president certainly hasn't done things as well as we might have liked, in terms of health care, in general, he has a pretty good record. ... The financial regulatory bill wasn't everything, but it was a very good step."

He said something in 2004 about reconnecting to the base. He is right.

In recent years the Democrats, in our pursuit of big dollars, have neglected the people we're there to serve. We let our connection to our base atrophy and have forgotten, as they say in politics, who brought us to the dance. In service to a falsely named "centrism" we've sidestepped every major request from labor unions, especially on including worker protections in our free-trade agreements.

True moderation versus false centrism

[myrna minx]

1. K&R n/t

[Jackpine Radical]

12. Indeed.

[MannyGoldstein]

2. I wish Dr. Dean would primary Obama

He won't though. Shame.

[madfloridian]

4. No, he won't do that.

[ProSense]

13. You know why he won't do that?

This, which some refuse to acknowledge: "While the president certainly hasn't done things as well as we might have liked, in terms of health care, in general, he has a pretty good record. ... The financial regulatory bill wasn't everything, but it was a very good step."

Also, the President still has tremendous support. Like Dean said, people are upset for different reasons and at varying degrees, but there are also people who understand that progress is being made, significant in some areas.

[madfloridian]

18. Well, good for you.

Give yourself a pat on the back.

My feelings are not that positive right now.

All the antagonistic words and lectures don't help.

[tsuki]

23. You getting those lectures also. No, they don't help. nt

[bonnieS]

40. re health care reform

I have started to hear from friends about how much their premiums are going to increase and what they will be entitled to. Nothing to cheer over --very high rates. If enough people actually get this information before November it will depress the vote even more.

[bc3000]

102. The health care bill will be an albratross for the democrats for years.

[SammyWinstonJack]

50. Obama doesn't have tremendous support from me, not with his cat food commission.

If he succeeds in gutting SS, he takes away my life/livelihood. Mine and thousands more like me. That's enough fro me not to support him and his Wall St/Corporate policies/agenda. x(

[dflprincess]

86. All the antagonistic words and lectures make it worse

Those of us who are disappointed in the administration cannot be bullied into returning to the fold.

[Jakes Progress]

32. "We're Pretty Good"

Not the most inspiring campaign strategy.

[russspeakeasy]

82. Jakes Progress.......NAILED IT !!!

[dflprincess]

87. Exactly

And neither is "Support Obama, he's not Palin" (or whoever they run)

[Matt Shapiro]

107. Yes, they're saying "We're Pretty Good", but

The reality is more like "Sometimes we do good things, but we make sure to do something bad at the same time as we do anything good. And sometimes we just do bad things. So you'd better shut your professional mouth, or you'll get someone who will do bad things ... I mean more bad things."

Highly motivating.

[iamthebandfanman]

52. lmao

'significant in some areas'

[rhett o rick]

64. Yes the Pres is gaining support from the center-right, since he has made is crystal he isnt aligned

with the leftists.

[DFW]

110. Here's the reason Howard will not be running, not in 2012, and not after that

Howard is firmly convinced that a generation younger than his needs to be running things. He thinks
he is already too old to be president (he'll be 62 this November). The Republicans obviously disagree,
seeing as how they have nominated Reagan, Dole and McCain in the last 30 years.

Age is not the sole factor, of course--Rahm as WHCOC has not done us any good. The lack of young bright
firebrands on our side has not escaped him, although Howard has his eye on a few that he thinks show
promise. One of them, a guy I know, will really be a boon to us if he wins his House race this fall,
although he's an underdog in his first election trying to unseat a long-established Republican in a
red state. He may no longer be DNC Chairman, but he still keeps a close eye on things.

If I thought it would do any good, I'd go down on my knees and beg Howard to somehow retake his seat as
DNC Chairman, but he's happy "raising hell for causes I believe in" right now, and I wouldn't look for
him to be doing anything else in the near future. And my source for that is VERY reliable, better than
any link I might dig up somewhere.

[Jackpine Radical]

14. He won't, Kucinich won't, Grayson won't. Nobody will.

And that is no doubt for the best, all things considered. That kind of primary battle would guarantee a loss like 1980. The left doesn't need to carry the can for getting Obama unelected; he seems perfectly capable of arranging that for himself. I'll no doubt vote for Obama in another Hobson's Choice. The alternative is truly worse.

[rhett o rick]

65. It appears the Pres is confident of winning without the left. Once again the left is left out. nm

[On the Road]

112. That is True

but this time I have a feeling that the voting segment left out is a lot bigger than the administration is counting on. I guess we'll find out in November. A few months ago, I was skeptical that this would be like 1994, but now I'm no so sure it won't be a rerun. The only thing preventing it is the craziness of the Republican candidates.

[rhett o rick]

120. The mistake the Pres and Rahmbo are making is that the small vocal left not only provided

a voting block. They were very active in getting the other Democrats out to vote. I was involved in phoning and door to door, etc. The Left helped get the lazy base off their asses and vote.

[Bitwit1234]

72. We see now where we made a mistake

There is nothing wrong with Obama that a new set of brass ones wouldn't hurt. He is too damn wishy washy and does not stand up for the people who voted for him, it seems he likes to BI-PARTISAN much better. I think he was too politically immature as of yet. He should have waited a couple of years.

[Usrename]

28. I wish he would leave the party.

Challenge him as an independent.

on edit> Grayson should challenge him as a Dem in the primary and Dean should beat him in the general.

[BonnieJW]

49. What about a Grayson/Dean ticket in 2016?

That's a winner. I think even repubs would vote for them.

[rhett o rick]

67. What party? And dont bother saying the Democratic Party as that wont happen. nm

[BlueMTexpat]

123. Check out DFW's post #110.

It rings true. From what I know of Dean. And I've been a fervent Dean believer and supporter since 2003.

[20score]

33. Wish someone would. Gore, Dean or Grayson. Maybe just to get him to act like the person we thought

we were electing. If everyone stood for ideals and not marched in lock-step - no matter how far our leaders have drifted from their stated platforms - we would have the change everyone said they were hoping for two years ago.

[MissDeeds]

42. I wish he would, too

I know he won't, he's too much of a team player, but we sure need him or someone like him in the WH.

[wisteria]

70. Oh please, that would be detrimental to our party. n/t

[nadinbrzezinski]

3. Kick

[patrice]

5. Dr. Dean speaks for me.

[mod mom]

41. me too.

[truebrit71]

55. me three

..I am still pissed at how he got taken out by the M$M in the primaries..Can you imagine how sweet Dean vs bush would have been in the debates? No amount of spin would have prevented that sort of blowout..

[russspeakeasy]

83. Me Quatro........

Bush/ Dean???  Wow...That would have been fun...George would
have to have had wires in both ears.....

[patrice]

113. lol

I would like to have seen that!
:rofl:

[shireen]

74. +1

[tnlefty]

6. I remember a time not so long ago, although it seems like ages, when

someone came along and encouraged and inspired many, many, many folks of differing political persuasions to get to work for the people of America; to build from the bottom up. Someone who helped to rebuild beleaguered, underfunded state parties, inspiring along the way.

Someone who connected with those who were sick of the establishment taking some of us for granted. Oh, well, it was nice while it lasted, but I sure do miss him.

K&R, btw.

[wtmusic]

8. +1 nt

[tnlefty]

16. Yes he is. I just don't see him much anymore.

:hi:

[Autumn]

9. He is still inspiring,

someone who cares. Sometimes my heart breaks for what might have been.

[tnlefty]

15. After I posted that, I went outside and got into the water with

hubby and asked:

"Do you remember how you felt when we were involved in Dean's campaign and then DFA, and when he was DNC chair?"

"Yeah"

"Compare that to how you feel now."

"You worked your ass off trying to get Obama elected after the primary. We had a county party headquarters because of Dean. Election night was fantastic. I feel nothing like any of that now, just the same old shit.:

Heavy, heavy sigh.

[madfloridian]

20. We know that feeling.

We were so active here. Even in 2008 we did a lot.

[The Wizard]

94. Someone of consequence

to be the first to speak out against Bush's military aggression and empire building and war crimes.
Remember when he said the United States was not one whit safer with the capture of Saddam Hussein? The rest of the Democrats cowered in fear while Howard Dean spoke the truth. By rights he should have been president.

[LAGC]

7. Give 'em hell, Dr. Dean!

Make them pay for criticizing their base!

[bluethruandthru]

10. It's nice to hear from someone who understands the problem. n/t

[Sebastian Doyle]

11. YEEAARRGGHH!

Dr. Dean remains the only true LEADER in this party.

[LWolf]

17. k&r

[madrchsod]

19. i wonder what paul would say about this problem.......

[bvar22]

21. Dean is a good soldier,

and his home & livelihood IS the Democratic Party.
He will do his duty for the Party,
even if they treat him like shit.

He really struggled to keep his assessment positive.
"pretty good", and a "positive step" is pretty light coming from an enthusiast (Yeeeeaaaaarrrgh!) like Dean.

"Damning with feint praise" is more like it.

[madfloridian]

22. Good points.

:hi:

[saracat]

30. Exactly how is it his livelihood? He is part of Dean Witter

at least his family was and he is a former stockbroker who became an MD married to an MD. He no longer is DNC Chair, which isn't a paid position anyway and no longer holds elective office. How is it his livelihood? I understand it is his home in the sense he is loyal but livelihood? I don't think so.
And yeah, he "worked" to find positivity.

[zipplewrath]

48. "Lifes work" might be a better expression

I wrote similar things about Franken and Kucinich when HCR was being passed. I can understand their votes. They have decided to "play the game" or "work within the system". As such, they had to make decisions less about the actual bill, and more about what they would have to do tomorrow on other bills. They decided to "stay on the team". I'm not "in the game" so I don't have to "live to play another day".

[saracat]

89. I think "life's work" is much better. The Party doesn't pay Dean

at least not in money(Nor anything else that I can see! LOL)

[zipplewrath]

47. yeah, this is like the ACLU

I do this myself with employees who need some harsh truths told to them. I need to keep them motivated, but I need to explain how they are failing. You couch everything in positive terms, but if you listen closely, every single positive comes with a large negative.

"you're working real hard, we appreciate that and it doesn't go unnoticed. But it is important for your work to be accurate and you've had repeated problems there".

Translation: You haven't produced a single thing worth paying for in the last quarter.

"You're doing some high quality work. But it is important for you to coordinate your efforts with the other business areas".

Translation: You work in a vacuum and by the time anyone knows what you've accomplished, it's too late to make use of it.

I have supervisors that prefer the more "blunt" approach. I can see their point of view quite often. But generally I see it just shuts down the employee. I'm perfectly willing to be blunt with supervisors, it's not my job to keep them motivated. And with customers, you have to be even more circumspect. But other supervisors tend to get the more direct assessment when they are looking for employees for particular assignments.

Obama, gets to hear both versions. He shouldn't take too much to heart about the softer version. The harsher version is the one that matters.

[amborin]

24. K&R

[girl gone mad]

25. Exactly.

They act like a clique of teenage douchebags, oblivious to the fact that nobody outside of their gaggle actually likes them.

[madfloridian]

26. lol at that comparison. Good one.

It really is a lot like that...superiority attitude showing through.

[saracat]

31. Very apt! LOL!

[ibegurpard]

27. k&r

he's being much too kind though

[leftstreet]

29. K&R

[laughingliberal]

34. K & R nt

[democrank]

35. I`m proud of Howard Dean and everything he stands for.

The Democratic Party needs more leaders like him.

[cate94]

36. K & R

[cornermouse]

37. k & r

I miss him too.

[old mark]

38. I'm sorry Howard Dean won't run again in '12, but I understand...

I certainly one of those ego-driven jerks in the administration would pay attention to him from time to time, but I suspect they are too busy being superior...

Fired Up?:mad:

mark

[defendandprotect]

105. Understandable . . . but IMO, the Democratic wing of the party -- Dean and others --

should be organizing to help us rid ourselves of this corporate cancer

which has invaded the party.

We need a new candidate for 2012 -- Grayson, Whitehouse?

[mdmc]

39. ..

[Jeffersons Ghost]

43. K&R

[Buns_of_Fire]

44. An "in-your-face" attitude wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing...

...if they'd only aim that attitude towards the right faces. But, no. The likes of McConnell and Boner might say something bad about them, as if they haven't been doing that for the last eighteen months anyway.

[John Agar]

45. I have always admired Dr. Dean, and he is right again.

It is bad enough to see the administration backing so many conservative policies.

That is off-putting enough.

But adding insult to injury at Gibbs has done seems almost like a death-wish.

I don't understand why they would want to alienate a significant part of their voting base, just a few months before the mid-terms.

Are they that confident? Do they even care if they lose control of congress?

[iamthebandfanman]

53. depends on the definition of 'they'..

if by 'they' you mean the corporatists in both partys...
no, they dont care... either way they win.

[John Agar]

57. I guess if you look at it that way, it makes sense.

Dean seems to be more principled, I think.

[kenfrequed]

91. Hmm

Maybe because the DLC wing of the party benefits from two things. 1) an increasingly divided congress where the right wing is stronger, thus giving them more people to triangulate with. and 2) It would re-isolate the left still further making it even less important for them to consult with or listen to us.


The great blue wave in 2006 and the subsequent victories in 2008 should have created a huge shift leftward of where the center is supposed to be. But if anything, many of the conservative Democrats and pseudo-moderates became louder and more entrenched with the traditional conserv-dems forming a Blue Dog Caucus in the Senate to resist any possible progressive change.

[politicalmajority]

46. Howard Dean for President in 2012!

Who cares about Barack Obama, Rahm Emanuel, David Axelrod, Robert Gibbs, Larry Summers, and Tim Geithner?

They are all losers.

[txlibdem]

51. Dean/Hillary 2012

I'm ready to elect a real Democrat for a change.

[Poboy]

54. rec'd and kicked.

[JamesA1102]

56. Dean had a "in your face" style in 2004

So it is a bit like the pot calling the kettle black.

[lurky]

58. Yes, against the Republicans.

He wasn't stupid or unprincipled enough to attack his own constituents.

[JamesA1102]

60. No mainly he was attacking the other Dem candidates nt

[madfloridian]

63. For supporting the Iraq invasion.

Bye for now.

[JamesA1102]

76. So is that why he had to apologize so many times

for mistating their positions?

[Le Taz Hot]

122. I'm still waiting for

the Kerry/Gebhardt/Edwards/Gibbs/Emmanuel/Clinton apology for running attack ads AGAINST ONE OF THEIR OWN PARTY. Misstating positions? Like, "I was against it before I was for it." Like that? :eyes:

[lurky]

66. Not his constituents.

That's just stupid and offensive.

[JamesA1102]

77. Not from what friends in Vermont tell me nt

[madfloridian]

59. He did not look down his nose at us. That's a big difference.

.

[JamesA1102]

61. Do you know that for sure? nt

[madfloridian]

62. I know for sure this WH has scorn for us.

Sorry but that is the truth.

[harun]

69. +1 for truth.

[Name removed]

78. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Flubadubya]

80. You call madfloridian a "wackjob"...

and you say this why? :eyes:

There are definitely wackjobs on this site, but not necessarily the lefter-leaning members. :grr:

[Name removed]

96. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[JamesA1102]

97. Maybe for you

and I can't blame them for that.

[Jax]

115. All you have is name calling

what bullshit...

[JamesA1102]

116. Yes what BS

And you're an expert at it.

[Jax]

117. Yes an expert at recognizing it on a message board

your posts are juvenile pathetically transparent bullshit.

You CLEARLY need the last word, most juvenile posts like yours do, so have it, you need it pathetically.

[JamesA1102]

121. Funny that you're doing exactly what you are accusing me of doing.

LOL!

[Fleshdancer]

71. madfloridian can't prove a negative so...

if you have proof to back up your claim about Dean, could you please provide a link or some sort of evidence?

[JamesA1102]

75. He made a claim.

I'm just asking him if he knows it for sure. Why so defensive?

[madfloridian]

68. Watch this video. Gibbs laughs about it. Says not worried about our vote.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=385&topic_id=494421&mesg_id=494421

Arrogant fellow.

[fogonthelake]

84. Thank you for the link. I had not seen that.

[Bluenorthwest]

73. a falsely named "centrism"

Dr Dean calls it with that one. Falsely named indeed.

[DeSwiss]

79. K&R!

:) - Yeah, right.....

[CrispyQ]

81. Tinkerbama!

Love the toon!

[MilesColtrane]

85. All I know is that it's a good thing Obama likes to reach across the aisle...

and negotiatie with Republicans, because it's looking like there will be a lot more of them on the Hill after November.

Perhaps the results of this election will lead to an opportunity for him to find his spine.

I just hope he knows where the veto pen is.

[dflprincess]

88. No. He'll use it as an excuse to move further right

No matter how good someone is at Vulcan chess there seem to be some lessons they just can't learn.

[mzmolly]

90. "in terms of health care, in general, he has a pretty good record. ... The financial regulatory bill

wasn't everything, but it was a very good step."

I can't argue with anything Dean said, but he also recognizes the progress the WH has made.

[CBR]

92. In your face sounds like many people on DU. Rude and in your face. nt

[The Wizard]

93. As usual

Howard Dean speaks for the center. The White House is too busy appeasing Republicans to notice the disillusioned base. The Administration better do something to motivate the base or Speaker Boner will impeach the President next year.

[walldude]

95. Why is it the "in your face attitude" is never used on

The Republicans? Why is it it's all about Bi-Partisanship with the Republicans but "march in lock step" with the liberals?

And please don't respond with "no one said to march in lock step" the message could not be more clear.

[derby378]

100. Because too many people in DC still seek "compromise" with the loony far right

If you mix equal parts water and dirt, the "compromise" might still be liquid, but it's still undrinkable.

[NJmaverick]

98. Did you actually read the article you referenced? You have completely distorted Howard Dean's and

article's message. This is about helping the Democrats win and there was this critical (but deliberately omitted passage):

{the WH has it right, and that liberals should be pleased with what Pres. Obama has been able to accomplish even under the strains of a still-weakened economy.
"Liberals have been to more signing ceremonies with this president than since Roosevelt. Think about it -- health care, financial reform, student loan reform, stimulus, auto bailout, Sotomayer, Kagan, et cetera. This is the most activist president in our lifetime and he is doing it all in the worst economic crisis in our lifetime," said John Anzalone, one of Obama's pollsters. "A double back flip with a twist."


Unrec for distorting an article and Howard Dean's intentions

[PA Democrat]

101. The OP did NOT misrepresent Dr. Dean's message and she never made a claim about

the article's intent. It is a NEWS article not an opinion piece and quoted several sources on the subject. Those other quotes are from other Democrats, the first by un-sourced "other Dems" (which you is omitted from your post) the second by one of Obama's pollsters.

Other Dems said the WH has it right, and that liberals should be pleased with what Pres. Obama has been able to accomplish even under the strains of a still-weakened economy.

"Liberals have been to more signing ceremonies with this president than since Roosevelt. Think about it -- health care, financial reform, student loan reform, stimulus, auto bailout, Sotomayer, Kagan, et cetera. This is the most activist president in our lifetime and he is doing it all in the worst economic crisis in our lifetime," said John Anzalone, one of Obama's pollsters. "

[deaniac21]

99. Once again, Dean nails it!

[defendandprotect]

103. Howard Dean is the LEAST of where we should be in government ....

Good for Dean for speaking out -- proving one again his mettle --

We need the Democratic Wing of the Democratic Party to come together as a

voting bloc for 2012 --

[defendandprotect]

104. IMO, this is more than "in your face" ... it's an attempt to dismiss and demoralize the left ....

where rather we should be ridding ourselves of the corporate cancer co-opting

the party via DLC drones -- Emmanuel, Gibbs --

Dean is continuing to be as blunt as he can while still remaining on friendly terms

with White House --

What we need is for the Democratic wing of the party to unite against this cancer --

[BrklynLiberal]

106. It would appear that the only group that this administration has gone out of its way to please is

the repukes...

[BrklynLiberal]

108. David Frum : "Republicans fear their base and the Democrats hate their base."

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x8924978

Old, but not outdated: George Lakoff on Centrism

One of many significant and thought provoking quotes from this article that is from 2007!!!

"It is important to stand up to the DLC, and to the idea that there is a unitary mainstream center, that they are it, and that progressives are extremists and deserve to be marginalized."

[Overseas]

109. K&R. I agree. //nt

[TNLib]

111. I so Agree especially when it comes to Unions.

If Obama wants to win his base back and win huge public support he needs to get our jobs back from China. This would make him very popular among all Americans.

[patrice]

114. Funny, I don't see hardly any of those DU-ers who were yelling about not voting Dem when this story

first hit the other night . . . uh, the Professional "Left"?

whatever that refers to.

[Jax]

118. Howard speaks the truth as always.

choke on it Howard haters.

[mother earth]

119. K & R, madfloridian! I'll be hoping our President wakes up and

represents the progressive causes, because afterall, we are the driving force that elected him. Wake-ups can be nasty & an angry base does not smile fondly upon 2nd term wannabes. He needs to move to the left, centrism is BS and status quo. He's got the extremist right against him, you don't smite that without a little left swing.

Dr. Dean is a man of the people, President Obama has an ally in him, and obviously we've always known the people do, without question. Dr. Dean's wisdom has won respect and his actions and words ALWAYS align. God, I love that man, he's presidential mat'l all the way, we are blessed to have him in our corner. Dean's very large following has only grown in realization of his value over these years.

While Dr. Dean is a democrat through and through, the people's causes are crucial. We wish only for true representation and true reform, there's no middle, there's right, wrong and status quo.