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In Ben Smith's story on the lack of leaders in the Republican party, one operative criticizes Chairman Michael Steele thusly:
“He’s like Howard Dean, cubed,” griped one former party official. “People are kind of waiting to be led, and he’s just leading himself into green rooms.”The best word for Dean's term as DNC Chair is "success." Dean was notable for his low-profile dedication to rebuilding the party, and under his tenure the Democrats took back congress and the presidency. The credit for their success isn't all for Dean, of course, other Democratic leaders and events led to the party's victories. But Dean played his role well. Republicans would be lucky if Steele was Howard Dean halved. Basically, whoever gave Smith that quote is still living in a world where Dean is some kind of maniacal left-winger instead of a technocratic party leader: Republicans are stuck in 2003. The party has catch up to 2009 and figure out the lay of the land, much less where they're going next.
-- Tim Fernholz
