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Howard Dean campaign visit
Howard Dean made a campaign address at the Janesville UAW Hall. Dean, the DNC chair, spoke to about 250 people.
Howard Dean campaign visit
Howard Dean made a campaign address at the Janesville UAW Hall. Dean, the DNC chair, spoke to about 250 people.
JANESVILLE — Alivia Richter had never heard a political speech before Tuesday, when she got out of school to see one.
She and fellow Craig High School sophomore Gina Hackett sat with about 200 others to hear one of the Democratic Party's heavy hitters, Howard Dean.
"I just loved everything he said and got really pumped up," Richter said after Dean's speech.
She was so pumped that she and Gina decided they would go door-to-door for Barack Obama.
Which is exactly what Dean had in mind as he urged the party faithful to work hard to win Wisconsin.
Dean ticked off the topics that he said distinguish Obama from John McCain: Health care, the war in Iraq, the economy. He also told the crowd that Obama will have a hard time winning if he can't win Wisconsin.
Talk to neighbors and friends. That's the only way to transform the country and get away from the opponent-bashing that has characterized American politics for the past 30 years, Dean said.
The Internet and TV ads don't hold a candle to person-to-person contacts when it comes to winning elections, Dean told the crowd.
Dean knows politics. In addition to being chairman of the Democratic National Committee when the Democrats took back Congress in 2006, he also ran a strong campaign for president in 2004.
Dean is best remembered for an exuberant "yee-haw!" speech after the Iowa caucuses.
There was no over-the-top rant in his speech Tuesday at the United Auto Workers Local 95 Hall, but he did seem to inspire the crowd, which gave him a number of rousing rounds of applause.
GM worker Joel Sheldon was one of many in the crowd facing the loss of a job and of a career when the GM plant closes.
"We've worked all our lives, and now we're seeing our 401(k)s disappear," Sheldon said as he introduced Dean. "It's a shame what's going on in this country."
Dean predictably linked McCain to President Bush's policies, blaming them for sending jobs overseas and closing American factories, not to mention the failures of the country's financial markets.
"We can't afford four more years of George W. Bush's failed economic policies," Dean said to spirited applause.
Local community activist Rob Wilkinson said he'll have to find more hours in the day to work for Obama.
Wilkinson said he has talked to family and friends who already support Obama. He said Dean inspired him to also reach out to those who may not be pro-Obama.
"It's a challenge, but we've got to make a difference," Wilkinson said.
Wendy Tupper, a kitchen designer from Milton, said Dean impressed her with the hope he offered.
"I think there has been so much information coming out based on fear in this election," Tupper said, adding that Dean offered an alternative.
Dean said the war in Iraq was the top issue two years ago, but today it's the economy.
Dean suggested that the financial bailout package failed to pass a House vote Monday in part because it focused too much on Wall Street and not enough on Main Street.
Dean said Obama's requirements for a bailout are that CEOs not pocket millions in the deal and that home mortgage holders get help as well as banks.
"These things were in the package, but I think it will be stronger the second time around," Dean said.
COULD NEW PRESIDENT HELP JANESVILLE?
Call it a case of election-year promise making, but Howard Dean suggested Tuesday that the new president could do something to shore up the Janesville economy.
In a short news conference after his speech at the United Auto Workers Local 95 Hall, Dean said Barack Obama's plan to create jobs by investing in renewable energy could create a future for the Janesville General Motors plant.
Dean noted that Congress recently approved $25 billion in loans to help the Big Three automakers. If the government is putting up that kind of money, it should have some say in what happens to shuttered plants, Dean said.
"So, I don't want to speak for Sen. Obama because I don't know that he has a particular plan for Janesville, but it seems to me that these idle plants—or soon-to-be idled plants—could be retooled for a different industry, and we could keep those jobs in …Wisconsin."
The government is doing this big favor for the automobile industry, so the auto industry should be willing to do a big favor for the country, Dean added.
During his speech, Dean acknowledged the impending closing of the GM plant.
He talked about the need to free up the country's strangled credit markets so people can get loans to buy houses and start businesses.
"We're going to need an awful lot of businesses started right here in Janesville after that ...GM plant closes," Dean said.