I can only think of three reasons Bradley did this... 1. He hopes Dean will lose so he can take on Hillary and Gore in 2008; 2. He's positioning himself to be the brokered-convention candidate; and, 3. He doesn't like the Clintons. It also hurts the Dean camp in that Bradley committed a faux pas by neglecting to inform Phil Jackson about the endorsement. __________________ Bill Bradley Joining Gore in Dean Camp By JODI WILGOREN ARGO, N.D., Jan. 5 — Former Senator Bill Bradley of New Jersey plans to endorse Howard Dean for president on Tuesday, adding to the lengthening list of marquee Democrats backing Dr. Dean, who once seemed to be an impossible long shot but has swept to the top of polls in vital primary states. Mr. Bradley joins his opponent in the 2000 presidential race, former Vice President Al Gore, bringing together two prominent Democrats who had once been bitter rivals. Dr. Dean upended his Iowa campaign schedule for an overnight visit to New Hampshire, where he will appear with Mr. Bradley in Manchester before the two men fly together to Des Moines for a repeat of the announcement at noon. "To some extent, endorsements are extremely transient, but it's a powerful one-day story at a time in the campaign where a day is a lot," said Carter Eskew, a former senior adviser to Mr. Gore. "What Dean has now is a pretty sweet spot. He's clearly a front-runner." The impending endorsement was first reported Monday morning on the Web site of The Boston Globe, and the Dean campaign confirmed it a few hours later. "If there's a candidate in the Democratic Party who can bring together the two candidates for president the last time that fought like crazy," Dr. Dean told more than 800 people who packed into a hotel ballroom here Monday night, "maybe we're not the weakest candidate, maybe we're the strongest candidate, and the only one that can unite all the Democrats around the country who get disappointed in the Democrats in Washington." It was his second visit to this sparsely populated state that sneaked into political significance by scheduling its caucus on Feb. 3. Representative Richard A. Gephardt of Missouri drew 100 people to a union hall here Sunday night. Though Dr. Dean has spent much of his campaign bashing Washington politicians, he now has the endorsements of 30 members of Congress, including several leaders of the Congressional Black Caucus. That is second only to Mr. Gephardt, his party's former House leader, who has 34. Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa, whose endorsement is perhaps the most coveted remaining, is expected to make an announcement this week. Yet even Dr. Dean himself said last weekend that "endorsements are great but they don't guarantee anything," a view echoed by several leading strategists. "There are not 10 people in the United States of America who can deliver more than their family with an endorsement," said one Democrat who is not involved this year. Mr. Gore's endorsement, which came with a call to coalesce around a candidate early, was criticized not only by rival campaigns but also by some independent Democrats for coming six weeks before the balloting begins. Mr. Bradley is far less of a surprise: His 2000 campaign manager, Gina Glantz, joined the Dean campaign as a senior adviser, and some Bradley alumni call Dr. Dean's Burlington, Vt., headquarters Bradley North because it has attracted so many of their people. Mr. Bradley, who now works at an investment bank in New York, brings a lucrative donor network and a reputation for thoughtful integrity. He did not respond to a telephone message on Monday. Dr. Dean's Democratic rivals tried to play down the endorsement. "I'd never tell you that I don't want everybody's endorsement, I do," Mr. Gephardt said at a campaign stop in Oklahoma, which also votes Feb. 3. "But as with the Gore endorsement, I really believe that the people in Iowa, the people in New Hampshire, the people in Oklahoma, are going to make this decision." Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts said of Mr. Bradley: "He doesn't vote in Iowa. And he doesn't vote in New Hampshire." Representative Rahm Emanuel of Illinois, who is backing Gen. Wesley K. Clark, pointed to his candidate's policy speech on Monday, saying: "If I could choose to have Senator Bradley's endorsement or a new idea on tax reform, I'd take tax reform. Endorsements can only get you so far. I'd rather be the candidate of ideas." Anita Dunn, Mr. Bradley's former communications director, said she thought his support would both enhance Dr. Dean's outsider status and, coupled with Mr. Gore's, provide a symbol of party unity. Perhaps most important, coming at one of the most intense times of the campaigns, the endorsement will help refocus attention from the attacks on Dr. Dean that have come to dominate the debate. "He's at a point now where he's got a dozen news cycles between now and Iowa," pointed out the independent Democrat who spoke on the condition of anonymity. "Every day that you can fill that news cycle with a positive story — or at least not a negative story — is a good day."
