Dr Pervez Hoodbhoy
Banned
WI Dean received the Democratic presidential nomination in '04? Assume that shouting incident didn't happen.
Yes, I would agree with that. Although Dean would have been a better campaigner that Kerry, the Rove attack machine would have had a field day. When it looked likely that Dean would be the dem candidate romours said he would pick former General Wesley Clark, or Former Florida Governor Bob Graham as his running mate.He loses. Probably worse than Kerry. Worst case senerio yelling incident or something similar happens after nomintion and he actually manages to give Bush coattails to help out in congress.
I get the impression that Kerry's uncertainty, especially about the war, damaging him.
Maybe a clearer message would have meant that Dean would have done better, and a rather slight swing would have shifted the election to him.
No one wins the Presidency by going too far to the extremes. Mondale, Dukakis, and to a lesser extent Dole, Kerry and Gore all did that and lost.
Reagan was an exception to the rule. Dean does not have the temperment to withstand a long campaign. What happened in Iowa would have happened sooner or later no matter what.