DON'T DIS DEAN

I'm sick of the spectacle of prominent Democratic politicians distancing themselves from Howard Dean, and that includes you, John Edwards, and you, Joe Biden, and you, Bill Richards, and all the rest of you.

Democrats are demonized EVERY DAY by jillions of Republican politicians and their talk radio mouthpieces. We're "traitors," we have a "mental disorder," Howard Dean has a "screw loose," John Kerry betrayed his country and his fellows in the military, we harass and oppress Christians, we hate America, we're appeasers, we're immoral, we're destroying the family, we always side with anyone who is against America, etc. Every day we are insulted and maligned, and it's been happening forever; but since FDR it seems to be a deliberate strategy on the part of the Republicans.

These big famous Democrats who are now criticizing Dean better begin to understand that the rank and file LIKE Howard, we LIKE his toughness and his candor. We don't like their cynical, mealy-mouthed compromises on judicial filibusters, we're appalled at the bankruptcy "reform" bill. Howard DOES speak for us, and WE are the Democratic Party. We will remember in 2006 and 2008 just who continued the fight against this corrupt administration and the radical right and who caved.