Random Comment on the new DNC chair (from Nebraska Democrats blog) #1

At 12/15/2004 02:06:29 AM, Kyle Michaelis said...

I appreciate Howard Dean as a human being and believe him to be a good man, but as head of the DNC I fear he'd be an unmitigated disaster.

In this largely symbolic election, we should remain grounded by a fundamental idea that Dr. Dean himself should be familiar with, "First, do no harm." While the election of Dean to DNC chair would temporarily placate those clamoring for top-to-bottom dismantling and reorganization of the Democratic party structure, it offers little in the way of real solutions and ultimately reeks of desperation.

Of course, desperate we are, but there are candidates available who offer the same promise of reform without the monstrous downside that a Dean chairmanship would entail. Dean's celebrity alone makes him an unsuitable candidate unless a radical re-thinking of the position is at-hand.

As is, this is not a sexy role. The nitty-gritty of party politics, especially when a real shake-up occurs, can get very ugly and demands a level of discretion made impossible (or, at least highly destructive) under the increased media attention that a Dean chairmanship would attract. We will, essentially, be inviting our own destruction (or public execution) by bringing to plain sight what can only be a highly contentious and possibly quite brutal LONG-TERM power struggle, in which case we all lose.

Then again, if the DNC chair is to be more than a titular head and fund-raiser, making an attempted transformation into the appointed "conscience" of the party, maybe a big name like Dean's would function well. However, Dean still would not be the man for the job.

It's important to realize the untold baggage that Dean carries with him in the mind of the average American voter. Say what you will for his history as a moderate, centrist governor, Dean made his name and is etched in people's memory (whether unjustly or not) as a fringe character. To large portions of the American electorate, he appeared unstable and, at times, dangerous. I disagree with such assesments but they are not so very few and far between as to be disrgegarded but at our peril. These are the voices we would hear over and over, and they'd come from unexpected and most unfortunate places.

Although Dean was impressive at firing-up the base (or activating a long dormant one), his appeal to common voters is questionable at best and he may even be a turn-off to the majority of Americans in the vital center - not necessarily independents, we're talking traditional Dems (ie. Catholic voters, married women) whose loss is what has truly crippled this party to such a degree.

An elected Howard Dean makes a needless issue that will not die of the chairmanship of the DNC. It's not moving to the left - it's jumping off the deep end precisely because of the candidate's high-profile. We'd be playing directly into the hands of those who have so effectively marginalized us already, not by making a stand but by foolishly painting the entire party into a corner in which few fit and fewer can win (including Dean himself, on both accounts). The possibility of true reform would be dead on its much-celebrated, long-awaited arrival - probably along with our chances in the next two election cycles.

WHY would we do that to ourselves?

Hopefully, I'm being overly-cautious and pessimistic. Maybe the American peole don't have such preconceived notions of Dean, or maybe they will care just as little about his chairmanship as they have chairs past. But, I think there's a definite risk here that needs to be understood and discussed more than it has been - again, a needless risk.

Personally, in an attempt to be constructive, I lean towards Rosenberg or Ickes, two qualified, distinct choices that will signify a definite choice of direction for the national party (with Rosenberg the "Dean" candidate, minus the lethal baggage). Theirs is the strategist-mold in which I believe the party will be best-served at every level, with their respective experiences and expertise paving a clear way for a Democratic future. Or, so I hope.

Choose well - as well as your gut, conscience, and intellect will allow. That's all any of us can ask.

Nebraska Democratic Party Blog: The DNC, State Parties and the next Chair