Politics: stranger things have happened... I guess

Howard Dean's former right-hand man (and liberal icon in his own right) Joe Trippi has endorsed Simon Rosenberg for DNC chair:

If our party is to win in the 21st century, we have to have a strategist who knows how to practice 21st century politics. That means expanding participation, embracing technology, and building an apparatus that can counter the Republican machine. Simon Rosenberg was among the first in politics to acknowledge the power of the movement we built with Dean for America and he wasn’t afraid to speak up about how we were fundamentally changing politics. He knows that in the age of the Internet, our politics must be interactive and participatory to engage citizens. He knows the Internet is not just an ATM for candidates and parties, but a tool for bringing in millions of Americans who want to be a part of the political process. For Simon, building a new progressive politics for our time is not just lip service, it is a passion backed up by his record. I’m backing Simon for chair because I know I can work with him to help build a modern, winning Democratic party.

This rivals Hulk Hogan's switch to Hollywood Hogan in terms of unexpected (and possibly lucrative) about-faces in recent times.

Given recent posts on No Retreat. No Surrender. (The Case Against Simon Rosenberg and Simon Says: Bring Back Democrats' High-Dollar Addiction), Rosenberg seems like anything but Trippi's man. But I guess Dean is out, Rosenberg is in.

Sounds like something akin to the potential death of progressive politics for the next election cycle. But hey, maybe true progressives should take one for the team, right? Doesn't exactly sound exciting, but neither does 3 consecutive terms of dismantling the New Deal. If there's anything left after this one.

As expected, New Dem Daniel over at The Kentucky Democrat is all over this!

The best news is that John McCain probably isn't happy about this.