CBS This Morning Brings On Howard Dean, Spurring Sanctimonious Lecture About Anti-Biden 'Gaffe' Bias

The sole political guest on Friday's CBS This Morning was Howard Dean, the ultraliberal failed presidential contender who was once the governor of Vermont.  Co-host Norah O'Donnell asked him to comment on the vice president's statement on Thursday insisting the Democrats absolutely want to raise a trillion dollars in taxes on the rich.

Biden had "some comments that people are calling a gaffe, where he said Obama and Biden want to raise taxes by a trillion dollars," she said. "Well guess what, yes we do. Is that the right kind of message?" O'Donnell ignored that the actual 'gaffe' was that Biden strangely insisted it wasn't a "tax raise."

In response, Dean blamed the majority of the media for its incessant criticism and constant "hand wringing" when the president fails to live up to expectations or when the vice president says something inane. It appears that someone is still a little bitter about his own public mishaps. [ MP3 video below the page break, audio available here ]

CBS

CBS This Morning

Oct. 5, 2012

7:07:52 a.m. EDT

CHARLIE ROSE: Former Vermont governor Howard Dean knows about debates. He ran for president in 2004, later became Chairman of the Democratic Party. Governor, good morning.

HOWARD DEAN: Good morning to you.

ROSE: Let's talk about the same thing Bill Plante and Norah O'Donnell were talking about. What happened? Who do you think is responsible, and what does the president have to do now?

DEAN: Well, first of all I don't think big mistakes -- this is a lot of hand wringing first of all. I think the president did fine. Mitt Romney was very aggressive and they should have been prepared for that. He was aggressive before on one of the Sunday talk shows and he's got his message down well. The president preferred to remain presidential and he did remain presidential. I actually think Mitt Romney did some damage. He did well in the debate from a debating point of view. But the truth is he's become, he has become totally untethered from everything he said before, and with this final apology for the 47 percent remark -- it really does look like a guy who will say absolutely anything to get to be president of the United States. People don't vote for that, they really don't.

ROSE: You really think the president scored better than Governor Romney in the debate?

DEAN: No, I thought it was a tie. I thought he had to look presidential, and he did do that. Would I have liked for him to be more aggressive, yes. Do I think the team didn't prepare him for an aggressive Romney I saw a few weeks ago in the Sunday shows, I think they didn't prepare him. The president has to look presidential. I do not think President Obama will call Mitt Romney a liar in the next debate, that's not presidential. I do think he'll be much more aggressive. I don't think Romney is necessarily a liar, I think he just manages to convince himself that any position is fine at the time. Ted Kennedy had it best, when Romney debated Ted Kennedy. Ted Kennedy said I'm the pro-choice candidate, my opponent is the multiple choice candidate. Mitt Romney says whatever he has to say and there's no core belief there. That's a problem for him in the general election, because I think people are into that. I think they get that politicians say anything and Obama doesn't do that. Obama pretty much tells like it is. Did he do a good job in the debate? No, he could've been more aggressive -- I think he's fine.

ROSE: Norah?

NORAH O'DONNELL: Governor I want to ask you about Vice President Biden yesterday on the stump, some comments that people are calling a gaffe by Biden where he said Obama and Biden want to raise taxes by a trillion dollars. Well guess what, yes we do. Is that the right kind of message?

DEAN: Wait a minute. Excuse me, but the rest of that you haven't in full context. Yes we'll raise taxes on the wealthy. They've been saying that for a year. Specifically he said we're not is going raise taxes on the middle class. That's what he said. This is not a gaffe. This is a media hand wringing again. When I was campaigning lots of people accused me of gaffes all the time. I realized that a gaffe is what people say in Washington when you tell the truth and they don't think you should have. Yeah, the Democrats are going raise taxes on wealthy people so we can help balance the budget, and avoid raising taxes on middle class people.  I think that's a pretty reasonable thing. It's what they've been saying for a year.

ROSE: Governor Dean, do you think this debate has consequences for this campaign?

DEAN: I think it's a good wake up call for the president. You're going to have to be more aggressive, more aggressive than you have been and you're going to have to call Governor Romney out on his multiple changes and multiple policies on every issue. Heck, he changes immigration policy, his economic policy, and his attitude toward the 47 percent all in a period of one week -- six weeks before the election. You know, I think he's got a problem.

ROSE: Many people are saying that what they was the Governor Romney they have known all along, and what's been the problem in the past is seeing that person -- and he finally emerged in the debate.

DEAN: So you mean he lied through his teeth in the Republican primaries when he said he was going to cut taxes for the wealthy people? And veto the Dream Act?

ROSE: No, I'm talking about how aggressive he was--

DEAN: Well, I think he's been aggressive before. Look, I think he's a good debater, he's well prepared, he's obviously smart, and he doesn't seem to stand for anything because he says whatever he thinks he has to say. He's moved all the way back to the middle from his extreme position in the primary. I don't believe in any of them, because this is a guy who will say whatever it takes to win the presidency.

ROSE: Howard Dean, thank you.

7:12:03 a.m. EDT [ 4 min 11 secs ]