The first move in the chess match to win the Iowa Caucuses occurred yesterday:
Politics
Dean picks coordinator for Iowa campaign
Democrat Jeani Murray of Ames is hired to manage Vermont Gov. Howard Dean's caucus campaign.
By THOMAS BEAUMONT
Register Staff Writer
12/18/2002
Vermont Gov. Howard Dean became the first 2004 Democratic presidential candidate to hire an Iowa coordinator, naming former state Democratic Party executive director Jeani Murray to lead his caucus campaign.
Murray, of Ames, also is a former chief of staff for U.S. Rep. Leonard Boswell of Iowa and most recently managed Democrat John Norris' unsuccessful challenge of Rep. Tom Latham in Iowa's 4th U.S. House District.
Dean said Tuesday that Murray's experience as state party director, managing the party's day-to-day operations, made her a logical choice.
"We wanted to have someone who knows Iowa," Dean said. "So we feel we've hired the right person."
Murray, 33, became director of the Iowa Democratic Party in May of 2000 after serving as Boswell's chief of staff for four years. Her role as party chief during the 2000 presidential election gave her familiarity with the state party organization, she said.
"I've been involved in Iowa Democratic politics for a decade and, as the former executive director, I know a lot of party officials, which can only be helpful," Murray said. "This is going to be a grassroots organization, and that's how you win a caucus."
Iowa starts the presidential nominating process with the precinct caucuses in January 2004. Dean is one of four Democratic hopefuls who purchased from the state party a database of 2000 caucus-goers, which Murray helped develop during her time with the party, said Jean Hessburg, the current Democratic executive director.
"She's an excellent organizer," Hessburg said of Murray.
Rep. Dick Gephardt of Missouri, Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina, and Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts also have purchased the list. Only Dean and Kerry have formed presidential exploratory committees, which allow them to raise money for travel and expenses related to running for president.
Dean announced Murray's hiring in Des Moines during a meeting Tuesday with Des Moines Register reporters and editors.
Dean has been governor since 1991 and leaves office next month. He is the only governor in a field likely to be dominated by congressional Democrats.
Dean, who has criticized President Bush's rhetoric on possible war with Iraq, accused Bush on Tuesday of being unwilling to challenge Saudi Arabia on allegations that nation has given money to terrorists.
Dean also said the United States should not have released a ship bound for Yemen carrying North Korean missiles. He said the delivery appeared to violate Yemen's commitment not to purchase any more North Korean missiles.
http://www.dmregister.com/news/stories/c4789004/20019164.htmlThere's more:
Politics
Iowa Gore camp sees open Democratic race
Connecticut's Joe Lieberman isn't viewed as a shoo-in for the Democrats' '04 presidential nod.
By THOMAS BEAUMONT
Register Staff Writer
12/17/2002
Even though Sen. Joseph Lieberman was Al Gore's running mate two years ago, he shouldn't expect to inherit Gore's supporters in Iowa should he run for the White House himself in 2004.
Former Gore campaign strategists and backers in the state said Monday that the votes Gore drew might be scattered among a crowd of Democratic candidates in the 2004 precinct caucuses, now that the former vice president has declared he's not running. The Gore faithful also could hold out until the 2000 nominee endorses a candidate, which he said Monday at a news conference that he might do.
But Connecticut's Lieberman would not be the natural heir in Iowa, the strategists and supporters agreed.
"Lieberman was the one he chose at the time. It doesn't mean any of the others aren't qualified," said Steve Hildebrand, Gore's caucus campaign director in 2000. "I would suspect Iowa caucus attendees are pretty wide open and aren't going to decide until they know who all is in the field."
Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts and Vermont Gov. Howard Dean have taken the first steps toward running for president, though no Democrat has formally announced his or her candidacy.
Potential candidates also include Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota, Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina, House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt of Missouri, and the Rev. Al Sharpton, a civil rights advocate.
Lieberman said he wouldn't run for president if Gore sought the party's nomination in 2004. But Gore said Sunday that he would not enter the race.
Lieberman said Monday in Washington, D.C., that he would announce by early January whether he planned to run for president. "Remember, there's still a good long year between January of "03 and January of "04, when this all really starts," he said.
Democrats who supported and worked for Gore in 2000 agreed that it's too early to say which Democrat would get their support in the 2004 caucuses, which launch the nominating process in 13 months.
Terry Goodmann of Dubuque volunteered for Gore in 2000 and hosted him in her home. She said she wouldn't necessarily gravitate toward Lieberman now that Gore was out.
"We start anew, and the landscape changes and leadership evolves," she said. "Different skill sets match different times."
Goodmann remained neutral but said she expected to support a candidate with experience and credibility in international affairs and national defense issues. Those criteria don't rule out Lieberman, who serves on the Senate Armed Services Committee. Kerry, a decorated Vietnam veteran who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, also might fit the profile, she said.
Gore said Monday that he probably would endorse a candidate in 2004. "I have not ruled anyone in or ruled anyone out," he said in North Carolina at the news conference. "I probably will endorse someone. Don't know for sure, but I probably will."
Gore told the Des Moines Register in November that Lieberman would be a "formidable candidate" but that "there are many other good candidates as well."
Retired University of Wisconsin political scientist Charles Jones said the potential for an endorsement by Gore could have influence in Iowa.
"For the Iowa Gore folks, he's sent a signal, whether he really intended to or not, that 'I may endorse someone, so hold off," " Jones said. "Now, maybe he meant to do that."
Hildebrand, Gore's 2000 caucus director, said such an endorsement would be only as meaningful as the work Gore invested in it.
"Any candidate who gets that endorsement would be better than had he not," said Hildebrand, a former aide to Daschle who traveled with Daschle on a political trip to Bettendorf last weekend. "But it depends if the endorsement is only on paper or does it come with any weight behind it."
http://www.dmregister.com/news/stories/c4789004/20009358.html