Now He Has the Power, writes John Nichols.
As has often been the case, conventional wisdom on Howard Dean is dead wrong:
The Washington-insider line on Dean was that he would be anathema to Democrats from “red” states like Kansas, where Kerry won only a single county. The reality was the opposite: Some of Dean’s first major endorsements for chair came from party leaders in Alabama, Mississippi and, yes, Kansas. When Reid suggested that Justice Antonin Scalia would be an acceptable Chief Justice, Dean disagreed. That created a stir in Washington, including an “it’s not your job to set policy” admonishment from outgoing chair Terry McAuliffe. But it didn’t hurt Dean with DNC members. “That, to me, is one more reason to elect him chairman,” says Roy.
(Krugman gets him too.)
Chait at the New Republic still doesn’t get him:
New Republic commentator Jonathan Chait put their fears into words when he grumbled that “Dean, with his intense secularism, arrogant style, throngs of high-profile counterculture supporters and association with the peace movement, is the precise opposite of the image Democrats want to send out.”
What do you mean “we,” white man?