Howard Dean challenges White House on public option

Already challenged by Republicans, Barack Obama is now getting heat on the left from Howard Dean, a physician and the former chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

Dean, the former Vermont governor who sought the Democratic presidential nomination in 2004, is arguing that any health-reform legislation has to have a government-run health care option that would compete with private insurance plans.

The Obama White House originally advocated this position, but recently administration officials have suggested that it might give ground on this point and accept health care co-operatives instead.

Howard Dean

The co-operatives would insure their members and be administered by the members.

Dean isn’t buying the co-op idea, and he’s been traveling the country preaching the merits of a government-run plan.

“The worst thing that could happen is to pass a bill without a public option,” Dean told a crowd in Maine recently, as reported in The Washington Post. “We all voted for change we can believe in. If we don’t get it, we’ll get some more change in 2010.”

In an interview with the Post, Dean said that he wasn’t challenging Obama on health care, rather he was advocating for the plan that Obama first wanted.

“We’ve got to get it done,” he said. “This is the time.”

However, an unnamed Democratic strategist said that Dean’s position is “principled but destructive” and that if health-care reform doesn’t make it because of the debate over a public option, it “will be the liberals that bring it down.”

In 1991, Dean was Vermont’s lieutenant governor when the governor, Richard A. Snelling, died. Dean became governor and was elected to five two-year terms before stepping down in 2003.

During his time in office, Dean led a successful effort to expand universal health care for children and pregnant women in the state.

Dean launched his long-shot candidacy for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2003, focusing on opposition to the war in Iraq.

For a while, the campaign went well, fueled by skillful use of the Internet.

But Dean finished third in the Iowa primary and his concession speech, in which he yelled to make himself heard over the crowd, provided fodder for late-night comics.

Dean later dropped out of the race, endorsing Sen. John Kerry, the eventual candidate.

Dean then formed the advocacy group, Democracy for America, which is now led by his brother, Jim Dean. An offshoot of that group, the website Stand With Dr. Dean, has been formed to rally support for a public insurance option.

In February 2005, Dean was elected chairman of the Democratic National Committee. During his term in office, he led an effort to organize Democrats in every state.

In November of last year, Dean chose not to seek a new term as chairman. Gov. Tim Kaine of Virginia, an early supporter of Barack Obama for president, now serves as chairman.

Dean was mentioned as a possible member of Obama’s cabinet, possibly serving as secretary of the Department of Health and Services. That post went to Kathleen Sebelius, the governor of Kansas.

“I think Howard Dean would’ve loved to have been in the room hashing out health-care reform, whatever the role,” Joe Trippi, the manager of Dean’s presidential campaign told the Post.

“I think he would’ve relished that. He’s passionate, he’s a doctor, he knows it. But, look, that wasn’t in the cards, and to his credit he didn’t walk away. He’s leading the charge on issues he cares about.”

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