Things are getting interesting on the left side of the aisle.
Tale of the tape on Howard Dean
NBC: Old TV shows answer some questions
WASHINGTON - Aired in Canada and PBS stations in the United States, “The Editors” is a public affairs TV show that most Americans probably haven’t seen. It features a roundtable panel of politicians, journalists, and policy wonks who discuss American and Canadian politics, foreign affairs, and social issues.
But old episodes of the “The Editors” might soon become must-see TV for followers of the 2004 presidential race. While governor of Vermont, Howard Dean was a regular guest on the show, and the NBC News Investigative Unit has now obtained the videotapes of 90 of his appearances from 1996 to 2002.
Oops!
--Regarding Al Gore, the very man who endorsed him in December, Dean said back in a January 1998 show: “He has a lot of attributes, but … there are some things that I am concerned about. One of them is being quick on your feet. He is not.”
--In another January 1998 episode, he also speculated that there “will probably be good and bad” if Hamas takes control over the Palestinian leadership. Yasser Arafat, he said, “is going to leave the scene. ... When that happens, I think Hamas will probably take over. There will probably be good and bad out of that. The bad, of course, is that Hamas is a terrorist organization. However, if they have to run a quasi-state they may actually have to be more responsible and start negotiations. So who knows what will happen.”
--But then he said this in February 1999 appearance: “The next great tragedy is going to be Arafat’s passing, believe it or not. I’m not a fan of terrorism or Arafat. But the truth is that what’s happening here is [former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu has thrown away the chance of a lifetime to negotiate with people he could negotiate with. Next comes Hamas, comes far more radical government in Jordan ... which may ally itself with Iraq. I think it’s a frightening proposition.”
--Dean made this comment about his former fellow governor, George W. Bush. “George Bush, I believe, is in his soul a moderate.”
To be fair, many of the interviews reinforce Dean's stated positions, but he does have continuity problems.
Posted by feste at January 8, 2004 08:19 PM | TrackBack