Tip to Howard Kurtz: If you’re going to link to an article, read the whole thing.
In his WashingtonPost.com column, Kurtz argues that Dean, not the recently-departed Joe Trippi, should take the blame for the campaign’s recent troubles. Kurtz complains: “Suddenly, Trippi went from the strategic genius profiled on the front page of The New York Times and the cover of The New Republic to chief scapegoat? The man who pioneered Dean’s Internet strategy is tossed out like the manager of a losing baseball team?”
“Was it Trippi” Kurtz asks sarcastically, “who suggested that Dean start yelling during his Iowa concession speech?”
As a matter of fact, the answer appears to be “yes.”
Six paragraphs later, Kurtz links to The New York Times story on Trippi’s firing, and quotes from it extensively. One line that Kurtz doesn’t quote, however, is this:
It was also Mr. Trippi who suggested that Dr. Dean give a rousing, fired-up speech after his crushing third-place finish in Iowa, a speech — and screech — that may have led to his undoing in New Hampshire.
Trippi may not have suggested outright yelling, but if The Times is to be believed, Dean was indeed following his advice when he gave the now-notorious speech.
–Zachary Roth
Zachary Roth is a contributing editor to The Washington Monthly. He also has written for The Los Angeles Times, The New Republic, Slate, Salon, The Daily Beast, and Talking Points Memo, among other outlets.