The Finch Formerly Known As Gold

1 February 2005

And whatever became of Hubert?

If you thought Howard Dean was some sort of weird 21st-century non-mainstream Democrat, you might have thought too soon: apparently Dr. Dean, anguished yelp aside, is very much in the Democratic tradition.

Last year Bigwig brought forth this bumper sticker, yoking Dean to George McGovern; I can testify that it got a laugh out of Dawn Eden, which more than justifies my purchase thereof.

Now Cutting to the Chase offers yet another traditional Democratic comparison:

The Association of State Democratic Chairs has endorsed Dr. Dean [for DNC chief] — presumably because Adlai Stevenson is dead and therefore ineligible.

Being the sort of person who can appreciate really finely-tuned smugness, I offer you this interchange from Stevenson's 1956 Presidential campaign:

Enthusiastic supporter: "Senator, you have the vote of every thinking person!"

Adlai: "That's not enough, madam, we need a majority!"

I tell you, Stevenson was born to run the DNC — just fifty years too soon. Dr. Dean just might work out after all. (Then again, speaking as a lifelong Democrat, I'd have to say that a tub of Shedd's Country Crock would probably be an improvement over that McAuliffe guy.)

Posted at 11:52 AM to Political Science Fiction


But Charles - they've raised SO MUCH MONEY under McAuliffe. That's what I keep hearing, anyway. And money is good, right?

Posted by: Dan at 1:58 PM on 1 February 2005

The mighty Georgeosoros himself, thundering through the jungle, couldn't buy the White House for John Kerry.

Dean's a bit farther to the left than I'd like, but he's no slouch on fundraising himself, and he's one of the few non-Clintons in the party who commands more than niche respect. Besides, the GOP loves him. :)

Posted by: CGHill at 2:52 PM on 1 February 2005