dean on demohacks:Dean Assails 'Washington Democrats' on Iraq
By Paul Farhi and Jim VandeHei
Washington Post Staff Writers
Friday, December 19, 2003; Page A10
MANCHESTER, N.H., Dec. 18 -- In a pointed blast at his presidential rivals Thursday, Howard Dean criticized "Washington Democrats" who "want to declare victory in the war on terror" after Saturday's capture of Saddam Hussein.
The former Vermont governor expanded on his earlier assertion that the arrest did not make the nation safer, saying Americans are no safer now than they were before the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
"For the past four days, the Washington Politics as Usual Club has taken every opportunity for attacks on me and my campaign that go far beyond questioning my position on the war," Dean said in a campaign stop. "The capture of one very bad man does not mean this president and the Washington Democrats can declare victory in the war on terror."
Saying "the soul of the Democratic Party is at stake," he added: "The Washington Democrats fell meekly into line" with President Bush and "failed to ask the tough questions" last fall during the run-up to the war.
Dean's rivals in the Jan. 27 New Hampshire Democratic primary have seized on his comments about Hussein's capture. Sen. John F. Kerry (Mass.), Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman (Conn.) and Rep. Richard A. Gephardt (Mo.) have called Dean inconsistent and wrongheaded. They cite his remarks about Hussein as evidence of his lack of experience in foreign affairs, a key campaign issue.
Lieberman has dubbed Dean "Dr. No," for his war opposition and some of his domestic stands. Kerry accuses Dean of seeking to give the United Nations veto power over the use of U.S. military force. And Gephardt emphatically disputes Dean's assertion that the nation is no safer with Hussein in custody. They are hoping to slow Dean's momentum in New Hampshire, where new polls suggest his lead is widening.
Dean returned fire Thursday, accusing his rivals of basing their positions on the Iraq war on opinion polls -- supporting it at first, then speaking against it when casualties mounted and its "true costs" became known. Now that public support for the war is rising, and Hussein is no longer at large, Dean said, "the Washington Democrats began to redraft their talking points."
Speaking Thursday on domestic policies, Dean repeated proposals he has advanced before on the need for affordable health care, child care, college education and a secure retirement. He denounced what he termed "the Bush tax": higher federal budget deficits and increased state and local property taxes in many states. He called them the unintended consequences of Bush's federal tax cuts in 2001 and 2003.
After the speech, Lieberman accused Dean of adding to the burden of middle-class families. Alluding also to Dean's foreign policy speech Monday, Lieberman said, "Howard Dean is soft on defense and hard on the middle class."
Gephardt's campaign attacked Dean over earlier tax incentives offered to corporations, including Enron Corp., to establish what are known as captive insurance firms in Vermont. Dean said Thursday the tax break was not tailored to Enron. Gephardt campaign manager Steve Murphy said Dean, as governor, signed legislation that reduced disclosure requirements of those companies, and called on Dean to open his records.
Dean said he had no comment on the legislation and would let a court decide about the possible release of his gubernatorial records.
At a news conference after his speech, Dean was asked repeatedly about a Washington Post report that detailed instances in which his comments on a variety of subjects proved to be untrue or misleading. Dean did not address the article's specifics, but said voters can believe him "or they can believe The Washington Post."
Staff writer Dan Balz contributed to this report from Washington. |
