November 22, 2004

DATED VILSACK, MARRIED DEAN?:

Vilsack Won't Seek Chairmanship of DNC (MIKE GLOVER, 11/22/04, Associated Press)

Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack said Monday that he will not seek the chairmanship of the Democratic Party.

Citing his responsibilities as governor, Vilsack said "these challenges and opportunities require more time than I felt I could share. As a result I will not be a candidate for DNC chairman." [...]

Vilsack has been mentioned as a potential presidential candidate in 2008. A possible factor in his decision to forgo the DNC race was the likelihood that the party chairmanship would preclude any run for the Democratic presidential nomination. [...]

Alexis Herman, who served as Labor secretary in the Clinton administration, also said Monday that she will not seek the chairmanship. Some Democrats had urged her to pursue the post.


He can't beat out Governor Dean for this job but thinks he can beat him in the NH Primary?

Posted by Orrin Judd at November 22, 2004 4:16 PM
Comments

It remains to be seen if Governor Dean will defeat Governor Dean. He did it once before, in the Presidential race.

Posted by: pj at November 22, 2004 5:29 PM

What if they have a party, and no one volunteers to serve?

Posted by: jd watson at November 22, 2004 5:55 PM

Ickes by default.

Wellington Webb is still in the running.

I am sure that things at the DNC are an absolute mess after 4+ years of McAuliffe.

Posted by: jim hamlen at November 22, 2004 7:25 PM

VILSACK/BAYH '08 "True Blue In A Sea Of Red"

Posted by: Dave at November 22, 2004 7:26 PM

After four years of "Terry McAwful," the Dems face a choice between primal screaming (Dean) and just plain "Icky."

You couldn't make this up if you tried.

Posted by: Mike Morley at November 23, 2004 6:45 AM

It's going to be a terrible job for the next 4 years. There are no levers of power for Democrats to pull. They have weak minorities in the House and Senate, and the GOP control the White House.

The largest governorship they control is Illinois, hardly a major prize.

In 2006, virtually all of the closely-contested seats are held by Dems, since 2000 was a strong year for Dems in the Senate campaign.

Posted by: Bart at November 23, 2004 10:29 AM

And his whole party hates the Governor of IL.

Posted by: oj at November 23, 2004 10:39 AM
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