Democratic presidential candidate and former Vermont governor Howard Dean draws frequent comparisons with two popular figures: Josiah Bartlet, played by Martin Sheen on NBC’s The West Wing, and Arizona senator John McCain. Sheen, of course, plays a doctor from New England who also happens to be president; Dean is a doctor from New England who would like to be president. Last February, Sheen endorsed Dean — after having met him more than a year before.

As for McCain, he ran a spirited underdog campaign in 2000 that won surprisingly hefty support from pundits and voters alike. Dean is doing the exact same thing with similar results — though voters, of course, have yet to weigh in. It shouldn’t be a surprise that Dean encourages people to compare him with McCain: " What people liked about John McCain, they will like about me, " he told the Associated Press last month while campaigning in Concord, New Hampshire. " With me, what you see is what you get. And you’re not going to like every bit of it, but you’re always going to know where I stand and why I stand there. "

So will he get an endorsement from McCain? Don’t count on it. The two men didn’t meet until last week, when both were waiting in the green room before their appearances on CNBC’s Capital Report, in Washington, DC. " From what I’ve seen of him, I think he’s a very dynamic, hard-working guy, " McCain told the Phoenix. " I don’t agree with him. But the fact is he’s adding to the political campaign every day. "

Let’s see what the New Hampshire voters think in next February’s presidential primary.