Dean for President in 2004?

Vermont Governor Howard Dean is currently the only declared Democratic candidate for President. I've been thinking for quite some time that in order to bear Bush in 2004 the Dems will have to run an outsider. Dean is the ideal dark horse candidate, and he has the courage to say things about the current administration that other potential candidates (Kerry, Edwards) have not. The Bush tax cut is "hooey," as Dean puts it, and the war against Iraq is "illegitimate." These are strong words the national party has been unwilling to speak.

The big time media coverage hasn't caught on to Dean yet, but you can read an article about him in today's Boston Globe Magazine.

Dean also has a website.that details his health care and education achievements.

It's a little early for me to talk about supporting Dean, but I'll be watching him closely and posting interesting tidbits.

Deeply Amused
Sing this one to the tune of "If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands."

"George's Song"

If we cannot find Osama, bomb Iraq.
If the markets hurt your Mama, bomb Iraq.
If the terrorists are Saudi
And the bank takes back your Audi
And the TV shows are bawdy,
Bomb Iraq.

If the corporate scandals growin', bomb Iraq.
And your ties to them are showin', bomb Iraq.
If the smoking gun ain't smokin'
We don't care, and we're not jokin'.
That Saddam will soon be croakin',
Bomb Iraq.

Even if we have no allies, bomb Iraq.
From the sand dunes to the valleys, bomb Iraq.
So to hell with the inspections;
Let's look tough for the elections,
Close your mind and take directions,
Bomb Iraq.

While the globe is slowly warming, bomb Iraq.
Yay! the clouds of war are storming, bomb Iraq.
If the ozone hole is growing,
Some things we prefer not knowing.
(Though our ignorance is showing),
Bomb Iraq.

So here's one for dear old daddy, bomb Iraq,
From his favorite little laddy, bomb Iraq.
Saying no would look like treason.
It's the Hussein hunting season.
Even if we have no reason,
Bomb Iraq.

I am not sure where this originated, but I got it from the fine folks at the History News Network.

Tom Delay doesn't believe in evolution...

Or, apparently, in women politicians, since his office's reponse to Nancy Pelosi's election as minority leader has been so vitriolic. Thank goodness for Ellen Goodman, whose column today points out that Delay is infinitely scarier than Pelosi.

The Amazing Mr. Franklin

Two weeks ago, I had the privilege of seeing clips of a new three-part documentary about Benjamin Franklin. The film, by Muffie Meyer, Ellen Hovde, and Ronald Blumer of Middlemarch Films, premieres next Tuesday, November 19, at 9pm on PBS.

I quite enjoyed Middlemarch's series Liberty! about the American Revolution. What I saw of the Franklin film indicates it will be an informative and enjoyable experience as well. Mark your calendars!

Dems in Boston?!

Boston.com is reporting this evening that the National Democratic Convention in 2004 will be held in Boston. Boston, apparently, has pledged not to hold the Republican Convention as well (a promise New York refused to make.)

If this rumor is indeed true, I can't help but hope that this event will help galvanize Massachusetts Democrats. It would also be an in-your-face for Mittie.

Mitt's Missing...Never Mind

Several weeks ago I published an indictment of Mitt Romney's campaign for Massachusetts governor and declared my certainty that of course Shannon O'Brien would win, It's a good thing I'm an historian and not a political scientist--Republican Romney trounced Democrat O'Brien in Tuesday's election.

I imagine this means that little will change in Massachusetts. After all, we've had Republican governors for the past twelve years. Bill Weld and Paul Cellucci both bailed out--Weld to push to become Ambassador to Mexico (that didn't happen...thanks to Jesse Helms) and Cellucci to be Ambassador to Canada. That left us with Jane Swift, widely acknowledged to be a nice lady though completely incompetent. Republicans have been running in MA for that long, claiming to be Beacon Hill outsiders, as did Romney, and they've been winning. Yet Massachusetts voters also vote overwhelmingly to elect a Democratic General Court and send Democrats to the US House and Senate.

I find this schizophrenia puzzling. It's fine not to like Tom Finneran (heck, I don't like that man, and I'm a die-hard Democrat) but I can't see that electing a Republican governor solves that problem. And Republican governors have been unable to solve other MA troubles...budget difficulties, out-of-control Big Dig...etc. So why elect another one?

I suppose Romney resonates with people. He sided with an English-only ballot measure. He pledged to lower taxes. He promised jobs and pointed to his record at the Olympics. And, as a friend who works in the state Senate told me, Shannon O'Brien was widely perceived as rude and pushy (I read this assessment as: Shannon O'Brien was not feminine enough, but that is another can of worms). So now we're stuck with him, for four long years. I bet in 2006 he runs against Kennedy (again) for US Senate.

I have had five days to get used to the Republican victories of last Tuesday. Suffice it to say I am not a happy camper. But I'll be spending some time looking down the road to the presidential election in 2004. Today's Boston Globe suggests US Senator John Kerry will run. An interesting suggestion, although it raises the specter of a previous election in which a Massachusetts man ran against a different member of the Bush dynasty. I'm also interested in Howard Dean, MD, the current governor of Vermont. Plenty can happen in the next two years; I'll just have to keep my hopes up.

Which Founding Father Are You?

Take the quiz and find out.

Which Founding Father Are You?

As you can see, I'm John Adams. I will now be sure to read the David MacCullough biography much more closely...

Incidentally, I came by this link via cooped-up. A fun legal blog...be sure to check it out on Sunday evenings, when the good professor posts his Wine of the Week.