Dean Labels Bush 'Reckless'
Candidate Launches Broad Criticisms Tied to U.S. Security
By Ceci Connolly
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, December 30, 2003; Page A04
DETROIT, Dec. 29 -- From Iraq to homeland security to public health, President Bush's "reckless" habit of placing "ideology over facts" has resulted in "the most dangerous administration in my lifetime," Democrat Howard Dean charged over the past two days.
In Midwest campaign stops and an interview, the former Vermont governor said developments both abroad and at home give credence to his assertion two weeks ago that the United States is "no safer" with the capture of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein.
"If we are safer, how come we lost 10 more troops and raised the safety alert" to the orange level, Dean said Sunday night in Ankeny, Iowa.
"All the other Democrats pounced on me and beat me up and said how ignorant I was about foreign affairs," he said. "I think most people in America agree with me today and it's only two weeks later."
Dean has rocketed to the top of the Democratic presidential field with his sharp attacks on Bush, especially on the war in Iraq. Far from backing off his earlier comment about Hussein, Dean has broadened the critique, adding mad cow disease, the national deficit, HIV-AIDS and homeland security to the list of safety failures during Bush's tenure.
"National security and economic security are the touchstones of the election," he said in the interview after a rally Monday in Green Bay, Wis. "I think the president has been fairly reckless in just about every area I can think of."
Dean accused Bush of taking "enormous risks" by refusing to negotiate with North Korea, permitting "warlords" to control much of Afghanistan and failing to address the most serious threats to homeland security.
"We've made progress" on strengthening defenses at home, he said. "The problem is, on the things that are enormously important to us we have apparently made no progress. That is the ultimate nightmare of the so-called dirty bomb or a terrorist nuclear attack on the United States."
As president, Dean said he would initiate bilateral negotiations with North Korea, purchase the entire uranium stockpile held by the former Soviet Union and shift more money into security programs such as cargo ship inspections. "Why aren't these things being done now?" he said. "Why have we dillydallied for 15 months?"
Dean, leading in many polls in early nominating states such as New Hampshire and Iowa, is also on the verge of setting a Democratic fundraising record of $40 million. Aides announced Monday that the campaign had raised more than $14 million for the final quarter of the year from 280,000 contributors. The total is likely to climb by at least $400,000 before the official closing date with more than 1,300 fundraising house parties scheduled for Tuesday night.
Wesley K. Clark is the only candidate who will come close to Dean this quarter -- aides said Monday the retired general will top $10 million. Sen. John F. Kerry (Mass.) is tapping his own fortune to keep pace with Dean.
Dean received glowing praise Monday from Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle and the endorsement of Rep. John Conyers Jr. (Mich.), the dean of the Congressional Black Caucus.
"I am proud to state and stand with the man that's ahead of everybody else, that is raising money from the little guys to the shock of everybody who thought it should always be the big fat cats," Conyers said at a Detroit rally Monday afternoon.
As he traveled across the Midwest, Dean hit familiar themes but with the fresh twist that they fall under the broader rubric of a safety and security.
On domestic policy, Dean said the current $500 billion deficit and losses of nearly 3 million jobs have created widespread economic insecurity. If elected, he promised to raise the national minimum wage to $7 per hour, up from $5.15.
"Our philosophy is give the working people a little more money and they might be able to go down and spend something on Main Street," he told the audience of labor and African American activists here in Detroit.
Rising deficits and a large national debt mean people cannot find jobs, Dean said, and undermine U.S. authority overseas by forcing the government to look to nations such as China and Saudi Arabia for loans.
More than once, Dean drew direct connections between Bush's 10-year, $3 trillion tax cuts and critical security investments. "If you think tax cuts are more important than homeland security, then I think you've made a mistake as president, and clearly that puts us in greater danger," he said in the interview.
A physician, Dean also accused the administration of stubbornly ignoring warnings about mad cow disease and blindly promoting an abstinence-only sex education program that "is not a good solution at all for teens who have decided to have sex."
It may not be fair to blame the president for the recent mad cow case, Dean told Iowa audiences, but Bush is responsible for failing to enact broader cattle testing requirements, he said.
"Ordinary farmers in Iowa can't sell their calves right now because the president of the United States did not take the precautions that we could have easily predicted," he said. By choosing "ideology over facts," he added, the Republican administration is "not only a failure, but the most dangerous administration in my lifetime."
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