The Dean Substance
Paramendra Bhagat
February 10, 2004

Dean is 33 points behind Kerry in Wisconsin. He has also said he will stick around even if he loses in Wisconsin. And he has been widely credited with having given the Democratic Party its backbone, finally. Kerry and the rest have copied his style. But the Dean substance remains uncopied. Just look at some specifics:

• Raise the minimum wage to $7.
• Health care for every American. "And I delivered as Governor of Vermont. 99 percent of children, 92 percent of adults in Vermont have health care. We expanded prescription coverage for seniors."
• Bush' half trillion dollar deficits are like swiping the credit card that belongs to the future generations. "As Governor, I balanced eleven budgets in a row."
• Iraq. "More than 500 brave Americans killed. Thousands injured. More than $160 billion already committed. Our alliances torn. No exit strategy in sight."
• "...a cap on campaign donations of $250 per person."

• My favorite blog entry of all is one on campaign finance reform: Taking Back Democracy
• "96% of the most active political donors have incomes over $100,000 - 82% male, 92% white. If money is a form of speech, as the Supreme Court has regrettably found, rich donors will always be the loudest speakers."
• "McCain-Feingold Reform Act is not enough."
  1. "Fix the Presidential Public Finance System. The current presidential campaign financing system is on the brink of failure because the incentives for candidates to participate are shrinking and their chances of election if they do may be hurt. Governor Dean will propose legislation to:
     � Increase the public match. Match the first $100 of every donation on a five-to-one basis.
     � Improve incentives for candidates to accept public funding. If one candidate opts out of public financing and exceeds the spending limits, his opponents should receive additional public funds to level the playing field.
     � Raise the primary spending limits. Double the primary limit, placing it at the same level as limits for the general election. Candidates must opt in/out for both primary and general.
     � Fix the funding mechanism. Too many people fail to check the box on their income tax forms because they incorrectly believe it will cost them more money. The amount should be raised from $3 to $5, and a program of public education should be started to explain what this program is all about: limiting the influence of big donors and special interests.
  2. Public Financing Option for All Federal Elections. The same principles that govern public financing of presidential campaigns � spending limits and public funding, including the new multiple match rate � should apply to U.S. Senate and House elections too.
  3. Offer a �Take Back Our Democracy� Tax Credit. Establish a dollar-for-dollar matching tax credit on the first $100 of every individual contribution made to a presidential candidate. This incentive would apply only to individuals making under $50,000 a year, or $100,000 in the case of joint filers.
  4. Take Back the Public Airwaves. Reclaim the public airwaves by requiring that TV and radio broadcasters offer a few hours of civic broadcasting every week around election time. Low dollar contributions will be matched with advertising vouchers. This will be funded entirely by a small spectrum use fee � an entirely fair reclamation of the public airwaves.
  5. Abolish the FEC and Start Over. All the reforms in the world will fail unless there is meaningful enforcement. With three commissioners from each party on a six-member panel, the commission repeatedly deadlocks on party lines, and fails to punish even egregious violations of the law. Governor Dean supports bipartisan legislation now before Congress to create a new, independent three-member Federal Election Agency, with administrative law judges to enforce the law objectively. In the meantime, he will appoint independent, tough-minded commissioners who will enforce the law in the public interest.
  6. No More Hanging Chads. Reliability of voting systems is vital. Electronic voting may be the wave of the future, but these voting systems are susceptible to software glitches. Governor Dean supports pending legislation to require that all voting machines produce a paper record that voters can view to check the accuracy of their votes, and allow election officials to verify votes in the event of irregularities.
  7. Embrace Non-Partisan Redistricting. In almost every state, politicians control the redistricting process. Only Iowa, Arizona and a handful of other states have chosen a different path: non-partisan redistricting. An expert body draws legislative maps that disregard partisanship and incumbency, creating compact and contiguous districts. Governor Dean will work to move every state toward non-partisan redistricting for congressional districts and to limit redistricting to once every ten years to prevent repetition of the debacles in Texas and Colorado. Citizens should choose their representatives instead of politicians choosing their voters.
  8. Protect the Voting Rights Act. Protect the Voting Rights Act when it comes up for reauthorization in 2007. The Act contains key provisions protecting minority rights, and the Governor wants to retain what is best about the Act, and fight attempts to use the Act for partisan advantage.
  9. A National Commission to Strengthen American Democracy. Governor Dean would establish a commission of ordinary Americans � not politicians � to consider such cutting edge ideas as instant runoff voting, internet voting and abolition of the Electoral College."

And I owe an apology to Trippi about my comment about him in my last post. He is in news saying he made $ 165,000 for his work for the campaign. I still think 41 million dollars were not spent wisely enough, but that is not to cast doubts on Trippi's motives.

I hope the $1.3 million Deaniacs have raised for Wisconsin will be put to good use. Let the ad campaign begin. I believe people need to know more about how Howard Dean is as a person. They need stories about him. So they can relate to him one on one.

And I wonder why we did not try inexpensive ideas before, ideas like flash animations, and burning CDs and DVDs. Stuff that would be much cheaper than TV ads, but would have similar impact.