Donnie Fowler told associates he was leaving over widespread concerns that supporters who used the Internet to draft Clark into the race are not being taken seriously by top campaign advisers. Fowler also complained that the campaign's message and methods are focused too much on Washington, not key states and the burgeoning power of the Internet, said two associates who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Spokesmen for the campaign declined comment.
Fowler has been at odds with communications adviser Mark Fabiani of California and policy adviser Ron Klain of Washington. All three are veterans of Al Gore's 2000 presidential campaign, part of a large group of Clinton-Gore activists hired by Clark as he entered the race Sept. 17.
From the start, there has been tension between the campaign's political professionals and the draft-Clark supporters.
Fowler has complained that while the Internet-based draft-Clark supporters have been integrated into the campaign, their views are not taken seriously by Fabiani, Klain and other top advisers, many of them based in Washington. He has warned Clark's team that the campaign is threatening to be overly focused on Washington, a charge leveled against Gore's campaign in 2000.
Fowler, son of former Democratic Party chairman Don Fowler, was quietly installed as chairman of the campaign in the first days of the bid.
Clark is smart to get rid of this guy. Donnie thinks the "internet" support is real? Sheesh. The Clark campaign was designed in Little Rock, with Clintons and Soros in the background.