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Kerry Spot [ jim geraghty reporting ]
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CHOOSING THE NEXT CHAIR [01/03 07:36 AM]

Who decides who becomes Democratic National Committee chair? The 447 members of the DNC vote in February 10-12 on who will succeed current chairman Terry McAuliffe. Here's a reference guide to some of the names being thrown around.

Candidate: Howard Dean, former Vermont governor and presidential candidate

What has he said about his vision/plan for the Democratic party?

On Meet the Press:

What we do have to do is look at what the Republicans do well and, frankly, what we did well at Democracy for America. We elected candidates in places like Alabama and Utah and Idaho and Georgia. Democrats can win in those places. First, I think we have to have a 50-state strategy, and secondly, I really believe we have to stand up for being Democrats. We have a message to sell. I frankly think it's a better message than the Republicans; we've just got to figure out how to get it out there. Grassroots, empowering people elsewhere in the country, instead of trying to run things from the top down, I think, is the way to do it. It was successful for us. I think it can be successful for the Democratic National Committee.

I think it's accepted that our campaign brought hundreds of thousands of new people, not all of them were Democrats, into the fold especially young people to vote for Democrats which — and they voted for John Kerry by a significant margin.

Second of all, we raised more money than any other candidate because we taught people how to run grassroots. Since that time, we've had an organization, Democracy for America, which has raised even more grassroots money and pumped into the local races and we've had some successes in so-called red states.

I understand what it is to empower people who aren't in Washington. I think we can't win anymore unless the message is made in the states and then filters up to Washington rather than made at the DNC and then we tell the state parties what to do because the message — there'll be an overall Democratic message, but the message needs to come from places like Alabama, not just Minnesota, if we're going to win and have a chance in Alabama.

I have long believed that we ought to make a home for pro-life Democrats. . . . We can have a respectful dialogue, and we have to stop demagoguing this issue.

Key supporters: The Deaniacs, Daily Kos

Weaknesses/Critics: Former Clinton spokesman Lanny Davis, appearing on Fox, Dec. 24: "The problem with Howard Dean now is that as a result of the way he ran in the primaries, he was portrayed, I think, inaccurately as a candidate of the left. And that brought him out of the mainstream, and I think, therefore, he's got a lot of repair work to do before he can be an effective national spokesperson for what I think needs to be a centrist Democratic party that expands our base rather than keeps the base as narrow as it is."

Senator Bob Kerrey: "[Dean's] got tremendous skills, and if he became [DNC] chairman, he'd do a good job. ...But if he runs, he's going to have some `splaining' to do, as Ricky Ricardo used to say. ... Which Howard Dean are we talking about? ...If we're talking about the Howard Dean who was governor of Vermont, I would say fine. But if it's a presidential candidate Dean, I would say probably no."

The editors of The New Republic: "This is one of those key moments when Democrats must decide what course to take in the wake of 2004 election. And making Dean their spokesman is exactly the wrong way to go. ... During the campaign, Dean embraced a particular, and utterly wrong, theory of how Democrats ought to win elections. Rather than focus on persuading centrists, he argued, Democrats should rile up their own base, which required the nomination of Dean rather than a more cautious new Democrat... The liberal base is simply not large enough to win national elections."

Candidate: Tim Roemer, former Indiana congressman and 9/11 commissioner

What has he said about his vision/plan for the Democratic party?

AP: "We need to recalibrate, make needed changes, find our voice, and produce victories," Roemer wrote in a letter to DNC members. He cited his six terms in an Indiana House district as evidence that Democrats can win in red states.

"We must respect the opinions of others and have a partywide conversation about how we assure Americans that we, too, are people of faith who connect with their values and their everyday lives."

"Americans need to feel the Democratic Party can make them safe in a post-9/11 world."

Key supporters: has the strong backing of Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid and House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi, senior party sources have told CNN.

Weaknesses/Critics: "Tim Roemer is the one with a 'moral blind spot,'" Gloria Feldt, president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, has said. "He is completely failing to consider the women whose lives may be in danger." In an open letter to Democrats, she accused Roemer of rejecting Democrats' "core belief that women should have access to the reproductive health care they need."

Candidate: Martin Frost, former Congressman from Texas

What has he said about his vision/plan for the Democratic party?

Frost in The New Republic:

I am running to be the next chairman of the DNC to give voice to the millions of Americans who share the Democratic values that make this country great. Our challenge is to make sure the public knows that Democrats are on the frontlines of fighting terrorism. Too many Americans are unaware of the following facts:

It was a Democrat, Senator Joe Lieberman, who initially called for the formation of the Department of Homeland Security, an idea originally opposed by the Republican leadership and the White House.

It was Democrats who called for the independent 9/11 Commission to reform and refine our intelligence community to be more effective in combating terrorism, another crucial national security improvement that Bush and the Republican leadership opposed.

It was the Republican leadership who stalled the passage of the monumental intelligence overhaul bill due to intraparty struggles over other, less time-sensitive legislation.

It is Democrats who are calling for a stronger commitment to our troops so that they have the tools and equipment in the field to win the war and return home safely. Instead of making the needed financial commitment to win the war on terrorism, Republicans have put their heads in the sand with tax cuts aimed at the highest income brackets, driving the country deeper into debt owed to foreign countries like China.

These are just a few of the examples that show how the Democratic party is taking action to win the war on terrorism while, far too often, the Republican leadership is giving lip service — not real service — to supporting our troops in their efforts. The Republican approach is not only irresponsible, it is dangerous.

He writes, "I would hope that whoever is ultimately selected, whether I am the person or someone else, that that person is neutral as to '08. I don't think the chair should be someone who's trying to stack the deck for one candidate or the other."

Key supporters: Potentially southern and western Democrats, and other DNC members looking for a more vocal pro-military message; members of Congress

Weaknesses/Critics: Potentially Deaniacs; some younger Democrats have dismissed him as too "old school"

Candidate: Harold Ickes, former Clinton adviser

What has he said about his vision/plan for the Democratic party?

Ickes, on CNN, asked why he wants the job:

That's a good question. Some people have analogized it for being the deputy to the assistant sanitation commissioner of New York City. It is a brutal job. Anything that goes right, somebody else takes credit for; anything that goes wrong you get dumped on. It is an important job, however, especially when the party, when we don't have the White House. ... I think there is the basis now for the next chairman to really focus on state parties, helping them get back on their feet technically, financially and also focusing very much on communications...

I think it matters what you talk about and what you say. And the party has a real function in terms of getting state parties back in the business of grassroots activity. ... I think that Terry has laid the basis for that. That's one of the challenges of the next chairman. And I don't think it matters where you come from in order to do a good job at that. I have a lot of experience in the party. I was with the Media Fund. I helped raise money for ACT, America Coming Together, which was the largest grassroots effort ever in the history of the party and it was very successful one.

From the Tallahassee Democrat: "Ickes said the Democrats had the moral high-ground 40 years ago when he worked with the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee to register Mississippi voters. He said state parties need DNC help raising money, identifying likely voters and getting out their message."

Key supporters: From the Washington Times: "Former President Bill Clinton and his wife, New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, who frequently is mentioned as a future presidential candidate, were said to be quietly backing Harold Ickes, who was Mr. Clinton's White House deputy chief of staff and is one of Mrs. Clinton's political advisers."

Weaknesses/Critics: Democratic base voters and activists looking for an "outsider"

Candidate: Ron Kirk, former Dallas mayor

What has he said about his vision/plan for the Democratic party?

From the Washington Post: "There are too many Americans who see our party as nothing more than a coalition of disparate voices, but they don't understand our basic principles. ... And that's our fault... You can't look a this room, and look at this audience full of women, and wonder why there isn't a woman up here on the podium."

"The Republicans will say four things about us... They'll say government is too big and bloated, they want to cut taxes, they'll do something about security and, if that doesn't work, they'll say, 'My opponent is a liberal.' We may laugh, but you know what they've been doing? They've branded their message."

Key supporters: Potentially, African-American DNC members; DNC members looking for better relationship with the business community

Weaknesses/Critics: May not have enough national profile, lost 2002 Senate race in Texas

Candidate: Simon Rosenberg, New Democrat Network

What has he said about his vision/plan for the Democratic party?

Simon Rosenberg wrote in an e-mail to NDN members: "What we need at the head of the DNC is someone who can take on [Karl] Rove, [Ralph] Reed, [Grover] Norquist and [Ken] Mehlman. Someone who understands how to defeat the modern Republican machine at its own high-level strategic game; someone who understands the demographic, attitudinal and socio-economic complexities of the coming America; someone who is deeply rooted in the emerging new media world of databases, digital media, satellite and cable television; someone who understands the internet and modern community-building techniques; someone who can speak for the mainstream of the party and connect with its increasingly youthful activist base; someone who has successfully raised money and worked in all regions of this diverse country; and someone who has a proven track record at running a business or political organization."

"I call upon the members to create a new system that opens up the process, and allows other states, other regions, and other people to vote for our next nominee on a co-equal footing" with Iowa and New Hampshire. "For their years of remarkable service to our Party, we should ensure that the people of Iowa and New Hampshire be part of the earliest phases of the next nominating process. Their roles as early states should be 'grandfathered' in, and no plan adopted that does not have them going in the first wave of states."

"All Democrats are united around the idea that we should make abortion safe, legal, and rare," but "we also have to be open to people who are pro-life," Rosenberg told the Boston Globe.

Key supporters: Young Democrats

Weaknesses/Critics: Iowa and New Hampshire primary fans

Candidate: Donnie Fowler, political director for Gore in 2000

What has he said about his vision/plan for the Democratic party?

Appearing on Hannity and Colmes, Dec. 20: ": "One good thing for the Democrats will be that I'm not going to concede anything if I'm the DNC chairman. And that includes coming on Fox. The Democratic Party needs to change the way it's focusing. It needs to quit conceding territory, and it needs to quit conceding religious voters and rural voters and needs to quit conceding the Rocky Mountains and conceding the South."

From his website:

Before a voter asks what issues a candidate supports, they ask themselves whether they can relate to that person, whether they trust him or her, and whether they are comfortable with his or her philosophy. Voters require a candidate to pass the Budweiser test — would you want to have a beer with him or her? You ask, why am I mixing beer and religion? Let me state it differently. Voters want to feel they would invite the candidate to come to dinner with their families. Only after a candidate (or a party) passes a credibility threshold will a voter listen to his or her views on abortion, the war in Iraq, tax cuts, or health care.

This values threshold is much, much broader than religion. It is about an instinctive impression that a voter gets, just as one might get when first meeting someone on the street. Is this person credible? Can I believe what he or she says? Only the oddest of us wonder where a new acquaintance stands on abortion or the war in Iraq when we first meet someone.

Democrats must restate our core principles — our most sacred values — before we jump into the issues debate.

We've got to quit conceding to Republicans what rightfully belong to us. We are a party that has become afraid to talk about our heart and our soul.

I'm a Democrat because I'm a Christian, not in spite of it.

From the Tallahassee Democrat: "Fowler, the son of former DNC Chairman Don Fowler, told the group that he and his father used to listen to NASCAR races while driving to black churches for campaign forums. He contended that too many national party leaders have lost that kind of multicultural interest."

"In a DNC run by an aristocracy of consultants, you have someone from Washington going to Tennessee and saying you don't get it. This is the way you have to talk to voters in your state."

Key supporters: Opponents of the DNC status quo; potentially southern Democrats

Candidate: Wellington Webb, former Denver mayor

What has he said about his vision/plan for the Democratic party?

From the Palm Beach Post:

Webb said the Georgia state party received only $5,000 from the DNC during the 2004 election and that other states also received far less than was needed to run competitive races.

"You never build a house from second story down. You build a strong foundation."

From the Tallahassee Democrat:

"We can't continue to write off the South, (which) has so many Democratic voters, because we're afraid to compete there... We can't continue to write off the Rocky Mountain states and the West because we're afraid to compete there."

Noting that Bush got 28 percent of the black vote in conservative Oklahoma and more than 50 percent of the Hispanic vote in Florida, Webb observed that the Democrats can no longer count on minority and labor coalitions.

Key supporters: "Webb gets that a lot of us are looking for some resources from the party to help switch some of those colors around," Carolyn Boyce, Idaho's Democratic chairwoman, told the Denver Post. "For all of us \[in\] Western states, we like that he's from a Western state."