Dean Denies Top Campaign Aides Dropping Out

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean (news - web sites), the one-time front-runner in the bid to take on President Bush (news - web sites), denied on Sunday that top aides were planning to leave his campaign after critical voting in Wisconsin on Tuesday.

"Nobody's told me that," Dean told "Fox News Sunday." "So you know news is entertainment these days, and you can believe some of it but not all of it. And I have no knowledge if that's true."

Fox reported that several unnamed top aides had informed the campaign they were going to leave Vermont after Tuesday, going home because "there's no point in continuing."

The former Vermont governor did acknowledge that his campaign did not have an airplane chartered for the day after the Wisconsin primary, which he has portrayed as a "make-or-break" state for him. A recent poll of Wisconsin Democratic voters showed Dean far behind Sen. John Kerry (news - web sites) of Massachusetts.

"That is true," Dean said. "We're going to reassess -- we're going to keep going, no matter what, because I think there are a lot of people all over this country who want to rebuild the party and rebuild America in a different way."

Though he has 16 defeats in the Democratic race for the nomination so far without a victory, Dean pointed to states that still have not voted, including New York, Illinois and Florida, saying he would be home in Burlington, Vermont, to figure out how his campaign would proceed.

"We're going to keep going, one way or the other. The question is, what's our schedule going to look like? We need to take stock and figure out where we are."

Asked if he felt he had let down thousands of people, a lot of them young, who had backed his candidacy, he added: "The only way I'd feel that is if I'd quit. And I didn't. And I won't."

I will be sorry to see Dean go. The media has given him a bum rap from the start. Sorry Dean, but the media has already picked their guy and that guy is Kerry.

Someone needs to start a suicide watch thread at DU(h) for the Deanie babies.

2 posted on 02/15/2004 8:20:39 AM PST by TheGeezer (If only I had skin as thick as Ann Coulter, and but half her intelligence...)

Actually Dean made the democratic primaries interesting. Kerry is soooooo boring. UGH! Those Deanie barfers will divide into two groups - ones that refuse to endorse Kerry because of his War vote and patriot act vote. They are the ones that stick to their convictions. And the other group that will endorse the "Anyone but Bush" candidate.

3 posted on 02/15/2004 8:24:54 AM PST by areafiftyone (Democrats = the hamster is dead but the wheel is still spinning)

Hang on Howard! This Kerry story is going to help you- it will just take a little time.

Somewhere it was said that Gore endorsed Dean, to have the inside with the young Deaniacs, come 2008.

Presuming the dems lose 2004, in 2008 it will be Gore "mano a mano" with Hillary.

Gore is toast. He's a laughing stock most of the time. For him to run again would be pathetic and noone would vote for him. He knows it.

6 posted on 02/15/2004 11:05:24 AM PST by areafiftyone (Democrats = the hamster is dead but the wheel is still spinning)

"Somewhere it was said that Gore endorsed Dean, to have the inside with the young Deaniacs, come 2008"

that's a real stretch. besides in 08 there won't be any young Deaniacs.

7 posted on 02/15/2004 11:11:14 AM PST by proust (Cthulhu for president! Why vote for the lesser of two evils?)

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