Editor's note: Join Roland S. Martin for his weekly sound-off segment on CNN.com Live at 11:10 a.m. ET Wednesday. If you're passionate about politics, he wants to hear from you. A nationally syndicated columnist, Martin has said he will vote for Barack Obama in November. He is the author of "Listening to the Spirit Within: 50 Perspectives on Faith" and "Speak, Brother! A Black Man's View of America." Visit his Web site for more information.
Roland S. Martin | Bio
AC360° Contributor
CNN Political Analyst
If Sen. Barack Obama is able to prevail over Sen. John McCain on Tuesday, all of those Democrats who ripped Howard Dean's 50-state strategy over the last four years should call the head of the Democratic National Committee and offer a heartfelt apology.
First in line should be New York Sen. Charles Schumer, Chicago, Illinois, Rep. Rahm Emanuel and my CNN colleague, political strategist James Carville.
When Democrats were in the final stages of winning back Congress in 2006, those three were at odds with Dean, saying he should forget about his pie-in-the-sky plan to have the Democratic Party competitive in all 50 states.
They reasoned that money spent on get-out-the vote efforts in non-congressional elections was futile, and all the effort should be on reclaiming Congress.
But Dean resisted their suggestions, weathering repeated calls for him to resign after that election.
Dean's insistence on having a Democratic Party that existed in the heartland, and not just California, New York and Massachusetts, was brilliant in that it made clear that the party recognized the rest of America.
| Mary V., Salt Lake City, UT |
October 29th, 2008 11:24 am ET Well, Roland, I will miss you. My family & friends will be watching MSNBC from now on. We have been watching CNN since they went on the air. We have been noticing the obvious bias against Sen. Obama. And CNN's refusal to allow Sen. Obama to air his ad, is confirmation that CNN is another far-right-mouthpiece no better than 'Faux News'! Thanks, Roland, for your thoughtful comments and your defense of our candidate, Sen. Barack Obama! |
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| Ryan Field |
October 29th, 2008 12:05 pm ET Maybe you're right, Roland, but everyone seems to be underestimating the one huge, important factor in this election, especially Howard Dean, and that's all the Democrats who will be voting Republican in this election. So any predictions about this election or how wonderful Howard Dean is, are simply hooded and presumptuous until we see the results next week. If Obama wins, then maybe the Democratic party does have a knack for choosing the right candidate, but if he doesn't I think it's time to send Howard Dean and a few others packing so we can win, for once, in 2012. I've already casted my mail-in Democratic vote for John McCain, here in South Eastern PA, and I voted against Patrick Murphy, too. And I know many other Democrats who are doing the same thing. |
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| Michael Aguirre, Lucerne, CA |
October 29th, 2008 12:12 pm ET I apologize with reservations to Howard Dean because I thought his handling of the Michigan/Florida debacle was not handled well. If he had a part in Obama's campaign strategy then he has more than made up for that mistake. However, Obama's ability to raise money has been the key more than anything else to that expansive campaign. If Howard Dean was key in that process, than all is forgiven and he is brilliant. If it was somebody else, than it's a break even proposition. |
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| penny |
October 29th, 2008 5:41 pm ET “Roland, please explain to mccain he should go get on his train wreck and ride the bridge to no where for the good of the human race. They say he is already being embalmed. He should giv e his money for education of the American population of biggots.. They need the education very badly. T hat would be his greatest contribution because he is too OLD to be a president. “ |
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