Howard Dean has something to say about Paul Hackett

Dean: Here's How I'm Doin'

Howard Dean wants you (and donors) to know what he's done with all that money. In an "Annual Report" the DNC released this afternoon, Dean touts the success of "The Plan" -- showing up everywhere, strengthening state parties, focusing on core values, training leaders, cutting edge technology, etc.

As we've written, it's hard to conclude that Dean has not fulfilled his campaign promise. He was elected because state party chairs and activists who depend on state parties for their political (and professional) livelihoods believed that Dean would direct money and resources in their direction. The quo for the quid was supposed to be measurable progress in getting state party finances in order, registering new voters and starting aggressive and early coordinated campaigns.

Needless to say, these are not the metrics that Terry McAuliffe's donors were used to.

As an adviser to Dean has said, "Howard did not become DNC chair because he was beholden to fundraisers and he has not chaired the DNC as if were beholden to fundraisers."

But even Dean's admirers, including many who worked on his presidential campaign, cannot understand why the DNC spent so much money up front -- checks come in, checks go out. Why devote hundreds of thousands of dollars staffing up in Idaho when the money could be stored for a better coordinated campaign in, say, Michigan or Ohio. Or transfered to the DCCC for an IE? Or why did the DNC end the year with barely $5M in the bank -- a scary figure even to some DNC insiders?

The very question gets at the culture clash. Dean's close advisers say that if Dean didn't throw everything he had into his program in an off-year, the establishment would never permit him to spend that much money in an election year. The Democrats' future depends on it, they say."

http://hotlineblog.nationaljournal.com/archives/2006/02/dean_heres_how.html