Dems claim unity, but dissension continues

Democratic leaders gathered Tuesday to try to dispel perceptions of a fractured party, but obvious examples of such divisions continued to be evident across the country.

In what was billed as a show of party unity, Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairman Howard Dean was joined by the congressional leadership and 12 other party leaders.

{mosads}Dean and the others said they were aware of lingering anger among some Democrats following the “hard-fought” nomination battle between presumptive nominee Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.) and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.). But they said they have every confidence the party will be united behind Obama by November.

“It’s understandable to be angry and upset when your candidate doesn’t win,” Dean said, adding that sexism in the media was partially responsible for the bruised feelings.

Despite the optimism espoused by those present at DNC headquarters, reports continued to come in of Democratic officials who were refusing to endorse Obama.

Rep. Dan Boren (D-Okla.) told The Associated Press, in a story circulated by the Republican National Committee (RNC), that he would not endorse Obama because of his liberal voting streak, calling Obama “the most liberal senator in the U.S. Senate.”

“We’re much more conservative,” Boren told the AP, referring to his district. “I’ve got to reflect my district. No one means more to me than the people who elected me. I have to listen them.”

Rep. Tim Mahoney (D-Fla.) also declined to endorse, telling a Florida newspaper he wanted to be able to continue to lobby presumptive Republican nominee Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) on behalf of his district.

Other anecdotal examples of disaffected Democrats who had supported Clinton continued to pop up in the blogosphere and in letters to the editor at various newspapers.

And Republicans were skeptical of Democratic claims of unity.

Alex Conant, an RNC spokesman, said that the Democratic leaders “are out-of-step with millions of rank-and-file Democrats who worry that Obama does not have the judgment or experience needed to be commander in chief.

“Obama is inheriting a Democratic Party that’s badly divided, disenfranchised millions of voters in Michigan and Florida, and been badly out-raised by the Republicans,” Conant said. “In contrast, John McCain is leading a united Republican Party that’s well-prepared for the general election.”

Despite the evidence of continued division, Democratic leaders said Clinton supporters would come to appreciate the contrast between Obama and McCain and vote Democratic.

“Women and blue-collar workers, no matter their race, have the most to gain by electing Barack Obama president of the United States,” Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said.

Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) predicted her state would vote for Obama, adding that female voters would vote for him over McCain because they will “look directly at the Supreme Court and who will be making that next appointment to the bench.”

The Democrats’ optimism was not limited to unity as Dean continued to tout the 50-state strategy he implemented upon taking over as party chairman, noting that strategy, combined with the national nominating battle, provided an infrastructure that Obama can use to build a national general-election campaign.

“Barack Obama can go anywhere in the country and help our ticket,” Dean said.

West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin, chairman of the Democratic Governors Association (DGA), said that the 28 Democratic governors have already talked of providing Obama with a blueprint for how he can win in their states.

Manchin told a few reporters after the press conference that a majority of the governors will meet with Obama sometime this month.

He said he expects 20 governors to be in attendance — those who don’t have special legislative sessions in their states — and there are tentative plans to meet “somewhere in the Midwest.”

Manchin said that the 28 states represented by Democratic governors equate to 294 electoral votes, and that eight of the 10 “so-called swing states” have Democratic governors.

Dean and other Democrats present declined to specify which states they’re viewing as swing states this year.

Part of the reasoning behind Dean’s enthusiasm and optimism heading into the general election is a direct result of the protracted Democratic nomination fight.

More than 35 million people voted in the contests, and Democrats added millions to their party as almost every state saw record turnout in a race that seemed to garner unprecedented national attention.

Dean said the intensity surrounding the battle between Clinton and Obama has resulted in a “transformational” election year for the Democratic Party.

The political atmosphere does continue to bode well for Democrats as President Bush’s approval numbers remain anemic and gas prices shatter previous records.

The Democratic leaders repeatedly referenced high gas prices and the ongoing Iraq war as a reason Obama would win and Democrats would expand their majorities in the House and Senate.

Reporters walking into DNC headquarters were greeted by a banner that said McCain offers a third Bush term, a concept that has been repeated endlessly by Obama and Democratic officials.

“Whether it’s national security or our economic security, we do not need four more years of George Bush,” Pelosi said.