I think you guys may be missing the point...chairman of the DNC is NOT a high-profile position. The reason it's big news that Dean is taking the post is because it's HOWARD DEAN who is taking it...If he was doing something else (anything else) in the political realm, that would also have been news.
Quick check of the accuracy of that above statement--name one chairman of either the DNC or RNC from the 1990s. I can't (without Google). Maybe one of you can.
Another quick check--who's the RNC Chairman? Ed Mehlman (big name, huh?). He's the third one in as many years. Dean may or may not even be DNC chair in 2008.
I'll say it again--the Dems aren't putting Dean in this post with the goal of making him a national figure. He's a national figure who they are trying to neutralize for 2008, and this is a sensible way to do it. And the idea that the Republicans are going to raise lots of money because LOOK AT THE WACK JOB THE DEMOCRATS HAVE CHAIRING THEIR NATIONAL COMMITTEE is absurd--as if Joe Republican gives a crap about which chair various politicos are sitting in. They'll have much lower-hanging fruit.
TL, I agree with our right-wing friends. The Republicans aren't scared of Dean--they love him. They don't think he's electable. Just like Democrats love Pat Robertson (or love how he makes Republican leaders squirm).
EDIT: Well, "neutralize" is too strong...They want him to use his strengths (appeal to the Dem faithful, fundraising savvy) where they make the most impact, while minimizing his potential to be a lightning rod for derision.





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