ABC News: Dean Blasts 'Washington Claptrap' Dig
Dean Dismisses New Charge As 'Washington Claptrap,' Says Surging Campaign Builds Momentum
[[RGD: Gephardt is blowing it. He's whining about Dean for being fiscally conservative. That's a winning position, IMHO. Gephardt's "tax & spend" profligacy isn't playing in Peoria.]]
abcnews.go.com
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa Nov. 23 — (AP) Howard Dean dismissed the latest criticism against him by rivals for the Democratic presidential nomination as "Washington claptrap" and said criticism has escalated as his surging campaign built momentum.
"I think it's because they think I'm in the lead," Dean said.
The latest assault came Sunday in a speech in Cedar Rapids in which Rep. Dick Gephardt, in a pitched battle for Iowa's labor vote in January's caucuses, said Dean was too eager to cut social programs for the disabled and funding for children in poverty during his 12 years as Vermont's governor.
"Time after time, when faced with budget shortfalls, Howard Dean's first and only instinct was to cut," Gephardt said. "This is the measure of the man who would be president. I believe in a very different approach from Howard Dean."
As Dean has surged in polls he has come under increasing fire, particularly from Gephardt's belittling of Dean's commitment to bedrock Democratic issues like health care and Medicare.
Speaking in a telephone interview from New York, Dean responded with his own assault on Gephardt's record in Congress.
"My response is this is a guy with no executive experience and who has never made a tough decision," Dean said.
Dean said Gephardt, D-Mo., former Democratic leader in the House, has been talking about expanding health coverage for nearly 20 years, but nothing has happened.
"Dick is great at criticizing, but what has he accomplished?" Dean asked. "This is more Washington claptrap."
Gephardt said his remarks merely underscored fundamental differences between his record and Dean's.
"Howard Dean wears his bravado as a budget cutter like a badge of honor," Gephardt said. "There is no place for governance without compassion." |
