For those of you just waiting for Howard Dean to start making gaffes, see the Saturday Washington Post account of his tour through the party’s special-interest caucuses. I’m somewhat shocked the Post publicized this little tour. For pure, unadulterated Dean, you get this: “You are among the most persecuted people in the history of mankind,” Dean tells his first audience, the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Caucus. Let’s hope the African-American caucus didn’t hear that. (Not to mention anyone who remembers the Holocaust, the Huguenots, throwing Christians to the lions…)

As for what Dean said to the black caucus, he kicks the GOP in the groin. “He surveys the crowd of 150 crammed into the room. ‘You think the RNC could get this many people of color into a single room?’ he marvels. ‘Maybe if they got the hotel staff in there.’”

It’s also somewhat entertaining to read Dean trying to adopt spin control about the party’s ultraliberalism. http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/ap/20050213/ap_on_el_ge/democrats

Dean says that no one is “pro-abortion,” but “we are the party in favor of allowing women to make up their own minds about their health care.” And Democrats are not for “gay marriage,” but “we are the party that has always believed in equal rights under the law for all people.” Voters are smart enough to know that the Democrats are staunch defenders of abortion and homosexuality, whatever rhetorical embroidery Dean attempts. How he will help in red states with this kind of talk is a mystery.