Dean: We Gotta Walk the Talk

"Democrats Face a Tough Job, Leader Says," New York Times:

The Democratic National Committee chairman, Howard Dean, warned party leaders on Saturday not to revel too long in the victories from last month’s midterm elections or treat their Congressional majorities as a permanent directive from voters.

“The other party made mistakes in the past claiming that elections are mandates,” Mr. Dean said. “Elections are not mandates. The voters of this country loaned the Democrats the power of the country for two years. Now it’s our job to earn it back again.”

In a speech to the party’s executive committee here, Mr. Dean said “governing is more difficult than campaigning,” and declared that Democrats must not squander opportunities to keep building the party. The modest gains winning over evangelical voters, he said, should be strengthened by asserting that “moral values are an important part of foreign policy.”

“If George Bush made any single huge mistake,” Mr. Dean said, “it’s that he thought he could be president by being president for half of America and by treating the rest of us with contempt. That is not a mistake I ever want Democrats to make.”

Dean: 'It's What We Do, Not What We Say', AP:

Democrats face a challenge defending their gains in the 2006 midterm elections because "now it's what we do and not what we say," national chairman Howard Dean told party leaders Saturday.

"It's what happens in Congress that will determine our message more than anything I say or what they say in Congress," Dean said, adding that Democrats must work in the coming year to prepare for the 2008 elections.

Dean said Democrats must prove to people in conservative and swing districts that they can earn the voters' trust.

"Elections are not mandates. Elections are power being loaned to politicians for a two-year period by the voters of this country," Dean said. "Now it's our job to earn it back again in '08."

That approach is critical if Democrats are to build on their majority in Congress and retake the White House in 2008, said Dean, who said Democrats did well in November because they appealed to all types of voters.

"George Bush made a huge mistake by representing half of America, while treating the rest of us with contempt," Dean said. "We need to reach out to everybody whether they agree with us or not."