Howard Dean Slams WSJ‘s ObamaCare Op-Ed: I ‘Generally Don’t Bother’ With WSJ Editorials' (with video)

Alex Alvarez, MEDIAite with video (07:03):

“Really?” asked Scarborough. “Does that mean I shouldn’t read the editorial page of the New York Times?”

“I usually don’t read that either, except for Kristoff and Krugman,” Dean responded.

“That was a silly thing to write,” he then said of the WSJ piece, calling it utterly wrong.

Dean went on to comment that ObamaCare is a very “centrist” piece of legislation and a “relatively free market reform,” which is “probably one of the reasons why I don’t like it.” MORE...

"Howard Dean: Obama’s America Jobs Act Is A ‘Brilliant Political Move’" (with video)

Zara Golden-MEDIAite, with video (04:03):

“I think the President’s team has been rather brilliant in putting this one together,” said former DNC chair Howard Dean, speaking on the American Jobs Act with Lawrence O’Donnell last night, sounding confident and convinced that the bill puts sufficient pressure on Republicans to get passed. “It would be hard to devise a better bill than this to put these guys on the griddle,” he said. “They’re in big trouble.” MORE...

(Updated) Howard Dean on "Face the Nation" Today (with video)

UPDATE II: CBS News-video (09:32):.

Bob Schieffer spoke with Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Gov. Howard Dean (D-Va.) on the bipartisan efforts needed to resolve the issues that lead to Standard and Poor's downgrade of the U.S. credit rating.

UPDATE: Rachel Maddow will be on "Meet the Press" today, which airs in Seattle @ 10am on KONG (16).


CBS News, with video (00:39):

This Sunday's Guests on "Face the Nation" are Obama Campaign Adviser David Axelrod, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham and Howard Dean, the former chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

Months of debate over the crisis created over the debt ceiling have given way to a new cold reality in Washington - the economy. As the government dithered to fix its own mess, the stock market erased all of its gains from 2011, roughly a trillion dollars in value lost in a matter of weeks, capped off by a 513 point drop Thursday.

Howie P.S.: Face the Nation airs live in Seattle @8:30am on KIROTV (7). I have been wondering what Howard Dean has to say about our current situation. I will post video of the show when it becomes available online.

Howard Dean on Obama, the current political scene and the 2012 election (video)

CNBC, video (08:50).

NPR: "Howard Dean Discusses Obama's Budget Proposal" (with audio/text)

NPR with audio (05:42)/text:

While the Republicans on Capitol Hill crow over budget cuts, some liberals say deep cuts will upset voters and spell Democratic success in the next elections. Robert Siegel talks with Howard Dean, former governor of Vermont and former chair of the Democratic National Committee. He is the founder of the liberal political action committee, DemocracyforAmerica. MORE...

"Howard Dean Defends US Mission In Libya: This Time Our Government Isn’t Lying To Us" (with video)

MEDIAite with video (08:58):

The discussion on Libya certainly makes for some strange bedfellows. On Morning Joe liberal columnist Joe Klein and conservative commentator Pat Buchanan agreed that American military involvement in Libya was not a good idea, while former anti-war Democratic candidate Howard Dean was all for it. MORE...

"Q&A with former DNC Chairman Howard Dean"

Former Vermont Governor, presidential candidate, and DNC Chairman Howard Dean at the St. Regis Hotel in Washington, DC, Jan. 5.

Christian Science Monitor:

Former Democratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean discussed President Obama's choice for his new chief of staff, the Tea Party's likely impact in the 2012 presidential election, and his current role in the Democratic party at a Jan. 5 Monitor breakfast. MORE...

Op-Ed: "Dean (and Ari Berman) Say Tax Deal Is A Bad Compromise" (with audio)

NPR, with audio (16:54):

The tax deal would extend Bush-era tax cuts for two years and unemployment benefits for 13 months. Many Democrats, including Howard Dean, say this deal is not the answer. Dean and Ari Berman, a contributing writer for The Nation talk about when presidents should — and should not — compromise.

Jane Hamsher, Howard Dean and Greg Sargent on Tax Cuts and 2012 (with video)

FiredoglakeTV, video (03:06).

Jane Hamsher says "Obama Primary Challenge Unlikely Though Tax Cut Deal Angered Left."

Howard Dean:

"I don't think he's going to face an opponent in the Democratic primary," Dean said on CBS' "Face the Nation." "I think that would be a bad thing for the country and I think that would be a bad thing for the Democratic Party." MORE...

Greg Sargent:

Democrats acknowledge the inevitable: The tax deal will pass. House Dems will be forced to swallow one last compromise before heading into the minority.
(SNIP)
Could Dems end the year with some -- gasp -- victories? Andrew Sullivan posits that if Dems pass the tax deal containing a second stimulus and go on to repeal don't ask don't tell, Dems could close out with "a year-end triumph for the president and this party." MORE...

(Updated) CNN: "Democrats (including Jim McDermott) clash over tax cuts" (with video)

UPDATE: CBS News-Face the Nation, video (09:10)--Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) and former Governor Howard Dean gave Bob Schieffer their stance on President Obama's tax deal.


CNN, video (03:31)

Howie P.S.: brooklynbadboy on Kos:

Plain and simple: technique over substance. The president isn't in favor of discrimination against LGBT members of the military. He just wont disturb the chain of command or legal machinery over it. He favored the public option, but he wont get tied up into a filibuster over it. He wanted a bigger stimulus too, but wasn't about to engage in a political fight for it. On issue after issue, the president more often agrees with Democrats than not. The only difference is that he isn't willing to have a big fight over any of it. When it comes to the actual doing of the things he is for, he becomes an impartial observer mediating negotiations. Otherwise, he believes he won't get things done. It doesn't so much matter what those things are, so long as they are happening. MORE...

Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md.on "Fox News Sunday":

....despite "some Democrats who will refuse to go along" with anything, the House "will have an opportunity to work its will."

"We're not going to hold this thing up at the end of the day," Van Hollen added, noting that it's "very reasonable for us to ask the wealthiest estates to pay their fair share."

He said he wants to put the question to the test, but repeated that Democrats would not block the whole package over the estate tax.

(SNIP)

"The main sticking point ... is this particular issue with the estate tax," said Van Hollen, who equated the new rate to giving $25 billion to 6,600 families. MORE...

Howard Dean on Teabaggers, Palin and 2012

Kyle Blaine (InsideVandy.com):

“I think in addition to a bad economy, the Tea Party arose out of a discomfort with the demographic shift going on in this country,” Dean said.

According the Dean, the country is shifting to a group of ethnic and social minorities, and this bothers members of the Tea Party, which he says consists mostly of white people 55 years and older.

“Obama was elected overwhelmingly by voters under 35 years of age,” Dean said. “Obama has not lost any voters to the Tea Party.”

The advantage that President Obama and Democrats have in general, according to Dean, is a younger generation with views more in line with the Democratic Party.

“The problem with Republicans in general is that they offend the younger generation with their attacks on gays and immigrants,” Dean said. “I don’t have much advice for Republican (presidential contenders) other than to abandon their right-wing social agenda.”

Dean also offered his opinions of Sarah Palin and her potential candidacy in 2012.

“Sarah Palin stands for the middle class of the 1950s, when things were much more black and white,” Dean said. “It is interesting that she is a turn off to most women but attractive to older Republican men.”

Despite this, Dean said he cautions most Democrats who write Palin off as a weak contender.

“If she can win a major party’s nomination, she could win the race,” Dean said. MORE...

"Howard Dean Yale ’71 talks Tea Party, Obama"

Yale Daily News:

While Dean said he respects and trusts President Obama’s intellect, he said he is disappointed with how Obama and his staff have handled important political issues, particularly health care reform and the repeal of “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell.”

He said he thinks the health care measures were not radical enough, and were very similar to a plan moderate Republican Governor Mitt Romney implemented in Massachusetts in 2006.

“So what people call ‘Obama care’ really should be ‘Romney care’,” he said.

Dean said that he thinks Obama’s attempt to reach an accord with Congress over “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” is doomed, especially now that the Republicans have taken the House of Representatives in the recent election. Using Lyndon Johnson’s legislative achievements as examples, Dean argued that the president needs to ignore or bypass Congress sometimes. MORE...

Howard Dean on the Midterms (video)

Howard Dean, video, (10:09).

Howie P.S.: "CLICK TO PLAY" UNDER "HOWARD DEAN." Dean spoke at The School of Public Policy at the University of Calgary (Canada) on November 3rd, 2010.

Even More Post Midterm News and Views

"Grayson: Democratic ‘appeasement’ cost us the election" (Raw Story):

Alan Grayson, the defeated Democratic congressman of "die quickly" fame, went on the offensive Thursday, telling reporters that the Democrats' "appeasement" of Republicans cost them the election.

In an appearance on MSNBC and an interview with Salon.com, Grayson argued that the "enthusiasm gap" that prompted millions of liberal voters to stay home Tuesday happened because the Obama administration and congressional Democrats did not fight hard enough for progressive values. MORE...

"Blue Dogs Dumped" (Joe Klein):

Normally, I don't have much patience for the whining on the left about the Blue Dog democrats--who were sliced in half on Tuesday, losing at least 28 of their 54 seats. When they lose, the Democrats lose control of the Congress. This year, however, I do feel that there is an argument that, to an extent, the Dogs brought this on themselves by being penny-wise, dogpound-foolish. The argument goes like this: a larger stimulus package might have helped the economy recover at a faster clip, but the Dogs opposed it on fiscal responsibility grounds. A second argument: the public really has had it with Wall Street, but the Dogs helped water down the financial regulatory bill, gutting the too-big-to-fail provisions. There is real merit to both points. MORE...

"Howard Dean Rules Out 2012 Bid" (Wall Street Journal):

Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, the unofficial general of the liberal movement, has ruled out posing a primary challenge to President Barack Obama, according to his office.

Mr. Dean, who energized the left with his unsuccessful 2004 presidential bid, has been a frequent critic of the president – most notably for the White House’s decision not to push for a so-called public option on the health care legislation. MORE...

"In Feingold’s Loss, Independents Turn on One of Their Own" (NY Times)

The irony was lost on no one. Senator Russ Feingold, a liberal with a fierce streak of independence who crusaded against the influence of money in politics, was toppled Tuesday in a campaign awash in the kind of unregulated cash he had struggled to keep out of the system.

And in a poignant twist, the loss came, in part, because independents flocked to his opponent, despite Mr. Feingold’s record of one maverick vote after another.

He was the sole senator to oppose the USA Patriot Act after the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. He also broke with President Obama on several occasions, opposing the expansion of the war in Afghanistan, the bailing out of financial institutions in 2008 and the regulation of Wall Street this year, saying the restrictions did not go far enough.

Most prominently, he battled his colleagues to overhaul the campaign finance system; the resulting law, passed in 2002, bore his name and that of Senator John McCain, the Arizona Republican (who won re-election Tuesday). MORE...

"Nancy Pelosi, undone by her own success" (Eugene Robinson):

Pelosi did what was right for the country, and what's right isn't always what's popular. Democrats may decide they need a less-polarizing figure as minority leader; if they do, well, that's politics. But I'd love to see her stay in the Democratic leadership - and I'm betting that eventually she'd find a way to take back the gavel that she pounds with such righteous authority. MORE...

"Rich Media, Poor Democracy" (Amy Goodman):

As the 2010 elections come to a close, the biggest winner of all remains undeclared: the broadcasters. The biggest loser: democracy. These were the most expensive midterm elections in U.S. history, costing close to $4 billion, $3 billion of which went to advertising. What if ad time were free? We hear no debate about this, because the media corporations are making such a killing by selling campaign ads. Yet the broadcasters are using public airwaves.

I am reminded of the 1999 book by media scholar Robert McChesney, “Rich Media, Poor Democracy.” In it, he writes, “Broadcasters have little incentive to cover candidates, because it is in their interest to force them to publicize their campaigns.” MORE...

Ben Smith on Tim Kaine: "Nice guy in a nasty time"

Ben Smith:

Kaine was handicapped, particularly at the beginning of his term, by the pressure to keep his focus on Virginia and by rules that forbade him from fundraising while the state Legislature was in session. That local focus, however, didn't prevent an embarrassing defeat for Democrats in the race to replace him.

But Kaine seemed to grow into the post in the substantial aspects of his job; where being a nice guy means a lot, he has triumphed. He seems universally liked, even by people with good reason not to like him. Dean, his predecessor, was not even invited to the announcement of his appointment, but Dean’s supporters blame former White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel for the snub, and Kaine draws warm words even from Dean’s circle.

He’s also managed to avoid a conflagration over altering Dean’s “50-state strategy,” which guaranteed that the party would finance staffers for every state party. The new regime has shifted some of that funding to Organizing for America employees, who don’t report to state party chairmen, but when state leaders threatened revolt, Kaine gave a little, involved OfA staff in state campaigns and smoothed the waters, winning friends across the often-feuding Democratic family. MORE...

NPR: "Howard Dean Peers Into the Enthusiasm Gap" (audio)

NPR, with audio (03:56):

An NPR poll out this week showed that Democrats may be closing the gap in a number of Congressional races across the country, but most polls still show an enthusiasm gap. Republicans seem more committed to voting than many Democrats. Host Scott Simon talks with Howard Dean, former Vermont governor and Democratic National Committee chairman, about the Democrats' prospects in the November midterm elections.

Ari Berman in The Nation: "Forget Gibbs. Bring Back Dean as DNC Chair"

Ari Berman (The Nation):

As it stands, the Democratic base is restless, local party leaders are anxious and Democratic candidates are facing major losses in November. Bringing back Dean, an independent voice who can fight for the grassroots, wouldn’t right all of that, but it would show that Obama is serious about empowering a true team of rivals, not just a bunch of Washington insiders. MORE...

Dean: Obama's staff "misjudged" progressives

Politico:

Former Democratic national chairman Howard Dean says President Barack Obama's staff has "misjudged" American progressives.

White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said earlier this month that the "professional left" is too critical of the president. On Sunday, Dean said on CNN's "State of the Union" that he doesn't know what Gibbs meant by that phrase.

"I think that the people around the president have really misjudged what goes on elsewhere in the country, other than Washington," Dean said.

"I don't think this is true of the president, but I do think his people, his political people, have got to go out and spend some time outside Washington for a while. The average Democrat is a progressive," he said, adding that the administration had made "upsetting" deals on health care to get the bill passed.

But he said Democrats should put infighting behind them and focus on maintaining majorities in the House and Senate in November.