DEAN IN THE HEADLIGHTS:

Dean's Southern strategy (Charles Krauthammer, November 7, 2003, Townhall)

Then, the loveliest touch of them all. Constrained by the ruling Democratic dogma that everyone, even your rebel-yelling racist redneck, is a victim, Dean absolved these yahoos of responsibility by explaining that responsibility really lies with those nasty Republicans who taught them their racism: "I think there are (a) lot of poor people who fly that flag because the Republicans have been dividing us by race since 1968 with their Southern race strategy.''

And to show how ecumenical is his belief in outreach, he cited the fact that Jesse Jackson had just last week visited a trailer park full of white, um, folks: "We need to reach out to those people, too.''

Those people? All this proved a bit much for John Edwards, whose knowledge of the South is firsthand and not anthropological. Edwards, who grew up white, working class and Southern, made the devastatingly correct observation that Dean's problem is not racism but condescension.

Being the accidental governor of Vermont may not be the best preparation for national scrutiny.

Posted by Orrin Judd at November 7, 2003 3:01 PM