Dean calls for end to "Culture of Corruption".

[Demobrat]

I bet we're going to be hearing that phrase a lot. I like it.

http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/news/state/051023dean.shtml

LEWISTON — The Bush White House is the most corrupt administration in U.S. history since President Warren G. Harding's, said Howard Dean during his first visit to Maine as chairman of the Democratic National Committee. Dean's comments Saturday came as top White House advisers are being investigated for their roles in the outing of a CIA operative and Tom DeLay, the former second-ranking Republican in the House of Representatives, faces conspiracy and money-laundering charges.

"The first thing we're going to do is we're going to have ethics come back to Washington again," said Dean, the keynote speaker at Saturday night's annual fundraising dinner for the Maine Democratic Party at the Lewiston Armory.

To deal with the "culture of corruption," Dean said, there needs to be an ethics code in Congress and stronger campaign finance laws.

Dean, a former Vermont governor who was once a front-runner in the 2004 campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination, alluded to criticism that Democrats have been too timid and vague in their message and have not capitalized on Republicans' weaknesses.....

[Kagemusha]

1. Here's my question.

Is this issue one that can only be dealt with through a changing of the majority party in Congress and of the Presidency, or is there an actual point to attempting to uphold the laws of the Republic that are supposed to apply to those in power as well as those in not? (Example: Not using highly classified national security information as a political football for fighting inter-Executive Branch battles.)

[napi21]

2. Dean also said that on MTP this morning.

He expanded the broadness of corruption to the Pub Party in gov't, mentioning the WH, the House, the Senate, & Governorships.

He called it the Party of corruption!

[shance]

3. More National Defense? Is that more money for the Defense Contractors?

So we can promote more wars?

I think we've tried that through out the past few centuries.

How about promoting National Sustainment, environmentally protective and respectful commerce and business, education on population control and sensible living, instead of ramping up and raring up more Tonka toys and senseless murder of innocent people just trying to live their lives. That's the easy way to do things, and nothing is gained but much, if not everything is lost.

Essentially, that is simply what National Defense has come to mean.

[w13rd0]

9. Please understand...

...that Dean views, and has spoken of, national security in an inclusive sense. Energy independence is a national security matter. Health care and disaster response are national security matters. Diplomacy and not being hated by the people of the world is a national security matter. Understanding that we are connected, part of larger organism, leads one to recognize that both the many and the one are important and must be preserved. So you can call it by another name, but Dean is speaking to the people out there in the frame that they presently understand. It takes time, though not nearly so much as it may have in the past, to enact change in terms of dialogue.

[shance]

11. Thank you. You make good points.

n/t

[Dem Agog]

4. Culture of Corruption is the best Dem Meme in years...

Who started it? Nancy Pelosi?

It's a great meme for several reasons:

1. It's true
2. Alliteration
3. It obliterates their abuse of the phrase "culture of life".

[MoJoWorkin]

8. Dean started it quite a while ago, but it began to take hold once

Pelosi and others started to chime in---FINALLY!!!

[terrya]

5. Dean encapsulated it perfectly. Good phrase.

And I hope the Democrats latch on to it in 2006 and 2008. Dr. Dean has it exactly right. Running against the "culture of corruption" (and again, kudos to Dean for linking campaign finance reform there) is a winning strategy.

[EST]

6. We are even more weakened by the insistance by the

rapethuglican shills on running such ethically broken campasses as ol' "Cooking With Grease." When the leaders finally come to the point that they raise a howl of, "She doesn't speak for us!" and totally repudiate these lukewarm dribblers, then, perhaps, they can start to become effective.
We must take a stand, beginning with, "We are the stand we take!"

[longship]

7. Dean should lash out at "Criminalization of Politics" spin

He should angrily respond to that outrageous terminology.

[sarcasmo]

10. One way to end Corruption is to do away with ALL Lobby groups and

Lobbyists.

[bluedawg12]

12. I like it! Short, sweet, says it all. n/t