Dean Steps Down as D.N.C. Chair
Howard Dean will not seek a second term as chairman of the Democratic National Committee, ending a tenure marked by an aggressive attempt to reshape the mission of the committee – and to court support by the so-called Netroots - but also marked by frequent quarrels with Democratic leaders over his abilities and the direction he was taking the party.
Mr. Dean’s decision not to seek a second-term was expected after the victory of a Democrat, Barack Obama, in the presidential election last week. New presidents typically install their own leaders of their political party.
Beyond that, Mr. Dean’s advisers said he had little interest in being party chairman with a Democratic president in the White House, if only because, historically, the power and visibility of a party chairman is substantially diminished in such circumstances, when much of the political power goes to the White House political director.
Mr. Dean’s name is circulating in Washington circles as a possible member of Mr. Obama’s cabinet, potentially as secretary of Health and Human Services. He is, by profession, a medical doctor, and as governor of Vermont, his tenure was marked an aggressive effort to expand the state’s health care coverage.
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http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/11/10/dean-steps-down-as-dnc-chair/