New DNC chief signals a change

With Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine (D) set to take the reins of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) later this month, some Democrats are calling his selection a symbol of President-elect Obama’s commitment to broadening the party’s tent.

Like Kaine, outgoing DNC Chairman Howard Dean became head of the party without bowing to Democratic orthodoxy. Despite his liberal reputation during his 2004 presidential campaign, Dean served on the board of the National Rifle Association, an organization that rarely backs Democrats. Kaine, a former missionary to Honduras, personally opposes abortion and supports parental consent laws and a partial-birth abortion ban.

{mosads}Despite minor disagreements with many Democrats, some strategists say the move signals a new path ahead for the party. “Asking Tim Kaine to head our party is an extremely important emblem that we are a different party than we were in 1992,” said Lanny Davis, a Democratic strategist who worked in the Clinton White House.

That year, Pennsylvania Gov. Bob Casey (D) was barred from speaking at the DNC because of his anti-abortion rights stance.

“Tim Kaine is the emblem, the symbol, of a new Democratic Party that no longer differentiates on what people believe on singular issues as opposed to the shared values of what Democrats think are important,” Davis said. “He happens to not fit the mold on the issue of choice, but that doesn’t mean he’s not a progressive Democrat.”

Kaine is not the only Democratic leader who does not fit the mold on abortion issues; Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) opposes abortion rights.

Other Democrats differed with Davis, who contributes to The Hill’s Pundits Blog.

“To get into Kaine’s ideological battles would be distracting to the bigger challenges he will face: to serve as Obama’s chief political spokesperson and to help engineer the 2010 battles to come,” said longtime DNC member Donna Brazile.

Still, others said they were disappointed. “We’ve had Howard Dean as the head of the DNC, who’s very pro-choice and pro-women’s rights. Tim Kaine, not so much,” said Kim Gandy, president of the National Organization for Women. “I think that will be a disappointment to some pro-choice groups, including my organization.”

Gandy said tapping Kaine came as a surprise, given the Virginia governor’s statements in November when he seemed to indicate he wasn’t interested in the spot. “We thought he had taken himself out of contention,” Gandy said.

Gandy, though, said power within the Democratic Party organization seems to have shifted from the DNC to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, making her think Kaine will have less direct influence over which candidates get funding.

Other abortion-rights groups like EMILY’s List and NARAL Pro-Choice America refused to return multiple phone calls seeking comment.

Still, some wonder whether choosing a sitting governor as chairman of the national party is a good idea. Kaine faces a difficult legislative session in 2009, and his attention could be distracted as he prepares to leave office in 2010. Most recently, Republicans found themselves in a tough spot when they appointed Sen. Mel Martinez (R-Fla.) to serve as their party’s general chairman; Martinez resigned less than a year later, citing his Senate workload.

Kaine’s office did not comment for this article.

But hiring a party chief who isn’t completely in line with party orthodoxy may not always be a bad thing.

Those who found themselves on the opposite side of Dean on issues of gun control said the ideological difference did not inhibit the chairman from reaching out when appropriate.

Paul Helmke, president of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, said Dean called him following a high-profile school shooting to seek input on what to say.

On his way out the door after four years atop the party, Dean won plaudits for his so-called 50-state strategy, which many credit with helping the party win congressional seats in states like Alabama and Indiana and in other previously deep-red territory.

“Dean will have a place in Democratic Party history as the [chairman] who engineered the 50-state strategy,” Brazile said.

Dean had his share of critics, however. Democratic leaders in Congress were disappointed in Dean’s fundraising efforts and will be closely monitoring whether Kaine will be able to go head to head with the Republican National Committee in 2010.

Davis said Dean’s legacy will include both the 50-state strategy and an ongoing tone of partisanship in Washington. “Howard Dean did a great job in infrastructure, but I don’t think he did a great job in raising the level of politics to the message of Barack Obama,” Davis said. “He was in a different place and a different time, so no criticism intended.”