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My correspondence with Howard Dean and the DNC

By SusanUnPC on April 1, 2008 at 5:03 PM in Barack Obama, DNC, Democrats, Foreign Policy, Health Care, Hillary Clinton, Howard Dean, Iraq, John McCain, Nancy Pelosi, Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr.

For some reason, my heart began pounding as I started to prepare this post. My cheeks are flushed. My hands are shaking. I sense it is because this tears at me so deeply, and because I find the events of the past many months to be a betrayal of the Democratic party and of my hard work for Dr. Dean in 2003 and 2004. This is so difficult to bear.

I am sharing two e-mails with you.

FIRST E-MAIL: Today, I received this e-mail in response to the letter I wrote to Howard Dean last week. (That letter is below, in full.)

Susan,

Thank you for your recent email. We value your thoughts. Your comments have been forwarded to the Chairman’s office.

Thank you again.

Molly Barker

DNC Member Services
Democratic National Committee
(202) 863-8000
DNCMemberServices@dnc.org

I hope that the Chairman reads my letter, which is below:

[I WROTE THIS IN RESPONSE to a request for funds to support the Democratic party.]

Dr. Dean, I worked very hard for your campaign in 2003-2004. I was one of a group of your volunteers flown into Burlington, Vermont. We stood beside you, and we each introduced you, on national television the day you declared that you would not accept matching donations from the government.

But the mess we’re in now — with disenfranchised voters in Florida and Michigan — makes me disinclined to support the DNC or you.

It is also troubling that your statements and moves — coupled with the out-of-bounds statements of Speaker Pelosi — seem gamed to give Sen. Obama the advantage. Proof is pouring in that he will have great trouble winning against John McCain in a general election. While the Democratic party elite may not take seriously the statements of his 20-year pastor, average Americans everywhere are horrified by the anti-American and racist rhetoric of Rev. Wright. There are many other troubling issues — including his one speech about Iraq that was not followed by any action on his part or support for others’ withdrawal plans, his pro-privatizing economic advisers, his weaker health care plan, his failure to work “across the aisle” in the U.S. Senate, and his failure to do his job as chair of the European Affairs subcommittee — but Rev. Wright’s remarks, unforgettable as they are, will alone be enough to allow John McCain to win.

Then there is that many people I know are unable to reach Speaker Pelosi either by e-mail or by telephone. They want her to know what they think of her statements, but are unable to do so.

Until you include ALL voters in the primary system, and until you and Speaker Pelosi fairly consider Hillary Clinton’s supporters, I will not support you or the DNC financially.

Susan in [omitted]

Former Legislative District Coordinator and Meetup Leader, Howard Dean Campaign
–
Author, No Quarter

http://noquarterusa.net/blog/