Looking ahead to the general election....

I had a very long conversation yesterday with a couple of California Dean supporters. All of us alternate between great hope and despair. Hope because we believe Dean is the real deal, an actual problem-solver with his heart and his head in the right place. Despair, because we saw 2000 and we know the wackos will lie, cheat, and steal to maintain power (hello, voting machines!). I am convinced that if the votes are counted honestly and if the media plays fair, Dean wins.

While recognizing the danger of counting chickens, we did spend a little time spinning out scenarios. I offer a couple, just for fun.

Imagine that Dean gets the SEIU and AFSCME endorsements next week. Thats about 3 million people strong, right? Now imagine that just a quarter of those folks give to the $100 revolution -- hello, $75 million! Now, imagine that they ask everyone to make that donation in the same week or month, and suppose that the Internet Deaniacs step up to the plate again, as well. Hello $100 million in one month! Oh, that would be fun.

Another just suppose... Dean has already said that if elected he would appoint Bill Clinton as a special envoy to the Middle East. This and other statements suggest that Dean is not going to run away from Bill like Gore did. Suppose that Dean wins the nomination and appoints Bill Clinton head of the Dean southern strategy for the campaign? (Ticked off as I am at Bill for giving political cover to Dubya on the war, presumably he would stand up and campaign for the nominee of his party in a moment of national crisis -- which is what Dubya and his pals have created.) Wouldn't that be interesting?

Also, imagine Dick Gephardt as Secretary of Labor in a Dean administration. Hmmm.

But now, back to worrying about corrupted voting infrastructures and media lies...