Sobering article about why being a DNC chair is not such a great gig

[zulchzulu]

http://slate.msn.com/id/2110985/

RealAudio: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4225331

Snip:

"If establishment Democrats still fear Howard Dean, they ought to elect him chairman of the Democratic National Committee. Not because becoming DNC chair would make Dean, as a member of the establishment, moderate his criticisms of Washington Democrats—though that's certainly true—but because Dean would exert far less influence over the future of the Democratic Party as its titular head than he would as a 2008 presidential candidate."

Personally, I think Dean would serve his goals and interests better by going full speed on his efforts with the DFA than to be in the situation he'd be in as DNC chair.

Ed Rendell's glowing appraisal of being in that position had him say this about it:

""I basically take orders from 27-year-old guys in Nashville who have virtually no real-life experience. All they've done is been political consultants living in an artificial world, and basically their opinion counts more than mine."

Here are the DNC chair leaders since 1848. As you can see, some real memorable names come to mind... :boring:

* Benjamin F. Hallett (1848-1852)
* Robert M. McLane (1852-1856)
* David A. Smalley (1856-1860)
* August Belmont (1860-1872)
* Augustus Schell (1872-1876)
* Abram Stevens Hewitt (1876-1877)
* William H. Barnum (1877-1889)
* Calvin Steward Brice (1889-1892)
* William F. Harrity (1892-1896)
* James K. Jones (1896-1904)
* Thomas Taggart (1904-1908)
* Norman E. Mack (1908-1912)
* William F. McCombs (1912-1914)
* Homer S. Cummings (1914-1916)
* Vance C. McCormick (1916-1919)
* George White (1920-1921)
* Cordell Hull (1921-1924)
* Clem L. Shaver (1924-1928)
* John J. Raskob (1928-1932)
* James A. Farley (1932-1940)
* Edward J. Flynn (1940-1943)
* Frank C. Walker (1943-1944)
* Robert E. Hannegan (1944-1947)
* J. Howard McGrath (1947-1949)
* William H. Boyle, Jr. (1949-1951)
* Frank E. McKinney (1951-1952)
* Stephen A. Mitchell (1952-1955)
* Paul M. Butler (1955-1960)
* Henry M. Jackson (1960-1961)
* John M. Bailey (1961-1968)
* Lawrence F. O'Brien (1968-1969)
* Fred R. Harris (1969-1970)
* Lawrence F. O'Brien (1970-1972)
* Jean M. Westwood (1972)
* Robert S. Strauss (1972-1977)
* Kenneth M. Curtis (1977-1978)
* John C. White (1978-1981)
* Charles T. Manatt (1981-1985)
* Paul G. Kirk, Jr. (1985-1989)
* Ron Brown (1989-1993)
* David Wilhelm (1993-1994)
* Debra DeLee (1994-1995)
* Donald L. Fowler (National Chairman) and Christopher J. Dodd (General Chairman) (1995-1997)
* Steven Grossman (National Chairman) and Roy Romer (General Chairman) (1997-1999)
* Joe Andrew (National Chairman) and Roy Romer (General Chairman) (1999)
* Joe Andrew (National Chairman) and Ed Rendell (General Chairman) (1999-2001)
* Terry McAuliffe (2001- )

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_National_Committee