It's been a mix bag.  The Dems are in contention, but no where near the 15 seats of recapturing the house and no where near the 6 seats of recapturing the senate. We made gains in governorships, but that is eroding and we might only get 3 seats and no as many as we hoped. I hope we succeed in recapturing the House and taking the majority of governorships, but Howard Dean has misused the money and got to raise huge amounts of dollars between now and election day.  It's a question of if he doesn't do it he might lose his job.

"...but Howard Dean has misused the money and got to raise huge amounts of dollars between now and election day.  It's a question of if he doesn't do it he might lose his job."

This is bullshit.  Why are "Democrats" so willing to do the GOP's smear work for them?  Some pols in DC are upset because Dean isn't milking the states for money and bringing it back to them.  But, he is building the 50 state campaign just like he said he was going to - just like what has to happen.  This costs money.  He's raising money in the states and it is staying in the states.

I said if Howard Dean doesn't make a dent in the House and the Senate, I say he will lose his job.  He should, because we made the mistake by not firing Terry McCauliff after 2002 mishap and it cost us the 2004 election.  The GOP got rid of their chairman, the fmr governor of VA, after the 2001 Gubernatorial campaigns and they were rewarded in 02 and 04 by hiring workmen, and we should do the same.  

It is the Democratic National Committee, mleflo2, not a piggybank for the Democrats in Congress.

We need a strong national effort and Howard Dean is giving it to us.  He's doing exactly what he said he'd do if he became Chair.  

I'm glad he's doing it.  I'd hate to think that any of the money I donate would fall into the hands of Biden, Lieberman, Nelson and their ilk.  Why should they get our money when they haven't represented us?

Firing Howard Dean as Chair means going back to the way the Party used to be run, instead of rebuilding.  That didn't work for us in the past.  There's no reason we should expect it will work for us in the future.  It took the GOP 4 decades to build what they have now and reap the political benefits.  I think we will make significant gains in the coming elections.  But, to do 40 years of party building in one year would make Dean a Superman!  The most important thing he can do is lay the groundwork for change that will continue thru the years.

Don't forget that the reason why we didn't win in the areas we should of won wasn't entirely because we failed to capture the hearts of voters.  1/5 of the country identify themselves at liberal and 1/3rd identify themselves as conservatives.  The Dems running in 2002 and 2004 were primarily in red states so when the republicans won in those states it doomed John Kerry's chances of winning those states.  Lastly, Terry McCauliff raised just as much money as Howard Dean has done, and the GOP has outmatched us in fundraising at least at the Cong level at every election.  So, Daffy Duck can run the DNC.  The individual candidates win the elections, not chairman.  Tim Roemer, a DC outsider could have raised a tad more money than Howard Dean could.