In the summer of 1971, insurgent Democratic hopeful George McGovern ran a distant sixth in Democratic presidential preference polls; four years later, Jimmy Carter was doing even worse, tied with such luminaries as Milton Shapp among the also-rans; in 1983, Gary Hart trailed not only the front-runners but even Alan Cranston, and four summers ago, John McCain lagged behind not just George W. Bush but Elizabeth Dole, Dan Quayle and Steve Forbes.
They were typical insurgents: back in the pack, living off the land, building grassroots support and a message, peaking six months later when the voting started. Howard Dean, however, is unique at this stage of presidential politics; an early upper-tier insurgent. In the initial Iowa and New Hampshire tests, the physician-turned-politician is running first or second in surveys and is, with Sen. John Kerry and Rep. Dick Gephardt, one of the front-runners.
For both the former Vermont governor and the Democratic party, this unusual situation -- a surging insurgent before there's an establishment favorite -- affords opportunities and pitfalls.
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Dr. Dean, however, is demonstrably energizing more voters and expanding the Democrats' potential. Stories abound of sizeable crowds greeting him -- from Austin, Texas to Seattle, Washington -- that go well beyond political junkies on the web.
The Wall Street Journalhttp://blog.deanforamerica.com/archives/000707.html