Just thought I'd re-post this article for any Dean supporters who need a boost.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,3604,1120778,00.htmlI write this as a Vermonter who has known Dean personally (as an acquaintance) for many years. Several of my friends worked with him closely when he was governor, as members of his staff or advisers. Only a few weeks ago I had dinner with him and he brought up the McGovern comparison himself, drawing a chuckle from everywhere in the room. Dean is, let me tell you, no George McGovern. He is actually the furthest thing from a typical north-eastern liberal that can be imagined.
It is worth recalling that Dean was elected governor of Vermont five times in a row - a tribute to his appeal in this largely rural state. Indeed, there are many more cows than people in Vermont, which has a population of just over half a million people. Pick-up trucks are the vehicle of choice around here, and deer hunting is immensely popular. Dean is popular with the hunters. Indeed, the National Rifle Association has bestowed upon him its highest rating. Every citizen, in Dean's view, has the right (if not the duty) to blow the back end off a buck or doe. Few liberal politicians in the US, I should note, have ever received such positive attention from the National Rifle Association.
During his years as governor, Dean was mainly known as a fierce budget cutter, a proponent of fiscal responsibility. I remember complaining loudly to friends that he was just a Republican in disguise. He balanced the state's budget year after year, even though Vermont does not require a balanced budget, as do many states. My friends in the environmental movement were often unhappy with Dean's refusals to support their cause if it meant spending money or doing anything that might inhibit the growth of business in our state. Dean's own father was a well-known figure on Wall Street, and he grew up among business people, in New York City and Long Island. He understands them well, and is genuinely in sympathy with their needs: not something one could say of George McGovern or most liberal Democrats.
Dean is, I think, a pragmatist without an obvious ideological bent. Trained as a physician, he studies a given situation, assesses the facts, and makes a diagnosis. As governor, he was remarkably decisive, even combative, willing to make cuts in healthcare and education to balance the budget. On the other hand, he strongly backed the idea of universal healthcare, and made sure that medical assistance for Vermont's children under the age of 18 was guaranteed - a real achievement. Famously, he supported the idea of civil unions for gay couples in Vermont, although he did so rather quietly, signing the act presented to him by the legislature behind closed doors. In a sense, this pragmatic governor simply went along with the majority opinion in Vermont, where a substantial gay population exists.
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