Howard Dean hits hard

Dear matt,

There's a lot being said about the primary process right now. I wanted to reach out to you and let you know how things look from where I stand.

First, I think we'll have a nominee before the convention. It's still early, and there are plenty of voters who still haven't weighed in.

I also think that we're fortunate to have two fantastic candidates that people are excited about -- we've consistently had record turnout across the country, and whoever wins will have the support of a healthy Party that's ready to fight. Hillary and Barack are meeting voters in places that don't typically get to see our candidates so closely, and that's good for both of them come November.

They're both campaigning hard, and it's great to see such excitement for two great candidates -- I'm excited about them, too.

But while our process continues to play out, we can't afford to sit around and wait. We must start right now -- we can't let John McCain get a head start.

While the pundits on TV talk about what it all means, we can get to work. We know who we're up against -- now we need the resources to compete. Make a contribution right now to help us fight back:

http://www.democrats.org/FightMcCain

Don't be fooled, John McCain isn't a "maverick" at all. He's loved by the media, but he'll be a disaster for our country.

He's been a vocal supporter of George Bush's strategy in Iraq, and he's said that he wants to be there for another hundred years. He's committed to appointing judges who will overturn Roe v. Wade and privatizing Social Security. And he's admitted that he doesn't understand the economy, which would leave millions of Americans struggling to make ends meet.

He's so bad that U.S. News and World Report recently revealed that the White House is thrilled to have John McCain picking up where they're leaving off...

What's behind President Bush's expansive praise for John McCain? The president has become convinced that McCain will be an effective and strong defender of the Bush legacy in the general election campaign this fall, White House advisers to U.S. News. [...] In an interview broadcast yesterday on FOX News Sunday, Bush went further than he ever has in analyzing the 2008 presidential race. He came close to endorsing McCain outright, praising him more than he did McCain's competitor in the race, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.

[...]

White House officials tell U.S. News that Bush is eager to help McCain as the party standard-bearer, mainly in three areas: helping to rally conservatives behind McCain, raising money for the Republican Party, and framing the political debate to portray the Democrats as tax-and-spend liberals who would prematurely remove U.S. troops from Iraq and endanger national security.

John McCain gives George Bush the third term he always wanted. Help us fight back by making a contribution today:

http://www.democrats.org/FightMcCain

Three years ago this week, I became chairman of the DNC. Since then, you've been with me every step of the way as we've rebuilt the Party from the ground up, in all 50 states. You contributed, knocked on doors, made phone calls, and you've done everything you could make our Party and our country better than it was when we started.

Today, we're seeing record turnout in primaries across the country, and we have two historic candidates that we couldn't be happier with. It's because of you -- and all that you've done since the darkest days after our loss in 2004 -- that made this possible. And it's because of you that we're going to beat John McCain in November.

Thanks for everything you've done,

Howard Dean