Why did progressives support Howard Dean??

[LostInAnomie]

32. Howard Dean is a brilliant man, a fantastic governor, and a damn good politician.

He isn't a "pure" liberal by DU's standards, but you can't argue with his accomplishments. As governor he balanced the budget 11 times after facing a $60M deficit. He cut child abuse and teen pregnancy rates in half. He insured every child in the state. Signed the first civil union legislation into law (at a time when it was near political suicide).

At a time when criticizing Bush and the Iraq war was unthinkable for most politicians, he built a grass roots campaign against both. Because of this, he completely changed the landscape of the 2004 election.

As DNC Chair he implemented the 50 state strategy winning the Democrats the House and Senate for the first time in years.

He's a realpolitik kind of guy. I would vote for him for any office he runs for. Not because he is the most liberal, but because with him you are going to get results.