Howard The Donkey Explains It All

We talked the other day about a planned appearance by Howard Dean on Meet the Press. The DNC Chairman went on the program yesterday and was basically eviscerated by Tim Russert. One of the readers of The Corner send in Dr. Dean's Greatest Hits from yesterday's show:

Dean's "Greatest Hits"
DEAN'S KNOWLEDGE OF FACTS

DEAN: When the Republicans were in power, they kept a
much larger percentage of President Clinton's nominees
to the bench. They didn't do it with the filibuster,
they did it by bottling them up in committee and not
allowing them to move forward.

MR. RUSSERT: The numbers are pretty similar actually.

DR. DEAN: OK. They're similar.

.....

DR. DEAN: Right now the Social Security tax is only
on the first, I think, about $85,000 worth of wages.
I saw an economic analysis the other day that said if
you remove that cap entirely that Social Security will
be solvent. [You think somebody discussing Social
Security reform would know it's $90,000.]


DEAN, NOT VOTERS, SHOULD CHOOSE CONGRESSMEN:

MR. RUSSERT: Here's the Democratic National Committee
Web site this morning. It is, in effect, a mug shot
of Tom DeLay. You can see his height in the back with
inches there, a serial number, 18821. Is that
appropriate, a mug shot?

DR. DEAN: I don't think it's appropriate for Tom
DeLay to be in Congress, Tim. I really don't.


DEAN THINKS THERE WERE WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION

DEAN: Some of the things that the president said on
our way into Iraq, they just weren't true, and I don't
think that's right. So...

MR. RUSSERT: Such as?

DR. DEAN: Such as the weapons of mass destruction,
which we have all known about, but the...

MR. RUSSERT: Well, you said there were weapons of
mass destruction.

DR. DEAN: I said I wasn't sure, but I said I thought
there probably were.


DEAN THINKS BUSH IS MORE NUANCED THAN KERRY

MR. RUSSERT: When did the president ever suggest that
Saddam Hussein was responsible for September 11?

DR. DEAN: He didn't. His nuance--his people
suggested that. He suggested that in a nuanced way in
many of his speeches.


DEAN THINKS WE SHOULD LAY OFF DELAY:

DEAN: We ought not to lecture each other about our
ethical shortcomings.


DEAN THINKS ROE SHOULD BE OVERTURNED, AND ABORTION
SHOULD BE A STATE MATTER:

DEAN: You know what I'd prefer to see, frankly? I'd
prefer to see medical practice boards around the
country, state by state--because people do believe
different things about this in different states. I'd
prefer to see medical practice boards around the
country set ethical guidelines for abortion.


DEAN SEES NO DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SOCIALISTS AND LIBERAL
DEMOCRATS:

DR. DEAN: Well, first of all, [Bernie Sanders is] not
a socialist, really.

MR. RUSSERT: He...

DR. DEAN: He hasn't said that for a while.

MR. RUSSERT: Oh, he has a--he wrote in his book:
"Outside or in the House, I am a Democratic
socialist."

DR. DEAN: Well, a Democratic socialist--all right,
we're talking about words here. And Bernie can call
himself anything he wants. He is basically a liberal
Democrat, and he is a Democrat that--he runs as an
Independent because he doesn't like the structure and
the money that gets involved. . . . The bottom line is
that Bernie Sanders votes with the Democrats 98
percent of the time.

If you're a Republican, you've just got to love the guy.