Must Read: Dean And The DNC Are Standing With Us. Let's Stand With Them
March 1, 2006In an op-ed in yesterday's Washington Blade, President Clinton's former liaison to the LGBT community, Julian Potter, defended the Democratic National Committee's efforts to improve the Democratic Party's outreach to LGBT communities across America. The following is an excerpt from that op-ed:
A Tempest In Dems' Teapot:To read the entire article, click here: http://www.washblade.com/2006/2-24/view/columns/vp1.cfm.
Howard Dean Doesn't Deserve The Criticism Directed At Him Lately. He And The DNC Are Standing With Us. Let's Stand With Them.
By Julian Potter
Washington Blade
Friday, February 24, 2006
As the LGBT liaison for President Clinton, I have read with great concern recent articles about the Democratic National Committee's outreach to the LGBT community.
With more than 20 years of political experience at the local, state and national levels, I know what it takes to organize our communities. Howard Dean is doing the right thing by restructuring the way the Democratic Party reaches out to LGBT communities and other base communities in the American Majority Partnership.
We lost the White House in 2000 and 2004, largely because our opponents did a better job of reaching out to their base. I applaud Dean for recognizing this and responding.
The time has come to move beyond the old system, and beyond the traditional strategy of parachuting field organizers into swing states a few months before the election. If our communities are to achieve true political empowerment, we need a more comprehensive approach.
