Joe’s Da Man. And I don’t mean Lieberman! I’ve said before that Joe Trippi, Dean’s campaign manager, is running a brilliant campaign.

Today, the front page of the Post has a story about Dean’s shift into front-runner status. The article got a few things wrong, as usual. (The notion that his donor base is is mostly "Internet-generated liberals", for one. And, uh, how does the Internet generate liberals anyway? Doesn't the Post have editors? Grr..)

The most annoying thing about the article is that Kerry's campaign staff, the vile Chris Lehane and reprehensible Jim Jordan, are in attack-dog mode.

"He's yelled the loudest [and] pounded the podium the hardest, and there's a certain market for that style," said Jim Jordan, manager of Sen. John F. Kerry's presidential campaign. "He's going to have to convince [voters] that he has the strength, the experience, the preparation, the temperament and the judgment that's required. . . . Ultimately, that's where he's going to come up short."

Okaaaaay, Jim. And your guy going to do a publicity stunt in front of an aircraft carrier is a sign of good judgment? Gee, where have I heard of that idea before?

Anyway, what I like about Joe Trippi's approach is that he's focused on the goal of beating George Bush and of running a campaign that doesn't depend on personally trashing other Dem candidates (and by extension the party as a whole) to do it. Trashing policies is fine, but the Lehanes and Jordans of the world are so lost in power-mongering and cashing in that they've lost site of why we "do" politics to begin with. Joe hasn't. Early this morning (at 2:51 AM) on Blog For America he posted in a comments thread:

George Bush has $35 million cash on hand right now for the Primaries with no Primary opponent. Guess what Rove and the gang are going to do with that money? And then there is the most important quote in the Time Magazing cover story about Howard Dean: "Its kind of like the Mafia," says a strategist for another Democratic contender. "Everyone wants another family to hit him. You don't want to bring blood into your own house."

Read that quote one more time...that comes from a Democrat working for one of our Democratic opponents - - someone who had so much courage and conviction that they were not willing to put their name on record when they made that quote.

Its what's wrong with too many in our party.

We need all the help we can get in the next 39 days -- because I don't think the "Mafia" mentioned in the quote above gives one whit about the party, the people, or our democracy -- no they want to do a hit on us -- they just want to make sure when they do our blood is in some other family's house -- how principled of them.

The grassroots has to rise up and say enough. You are the only power left in this country that can stop this stuff and bring back a politics of meaning and purpose. The special interests don't care who's "blood" is spilled as long as they get their way. We need your help everyday.

If you care about democracy in America, go help Joe help Dean.