E-Mail This Article to a Friend Dean wants it both ways He campaigned in DC to get an early win, and told Iowa and New Hampshire he didn’t BY DAVID S. BERNSTEIN

FRIDAY, JANUARY 16, 2004 -- Contrary to his staff’s claims, Howard Dean’s national office ran an active campaign in Tuesday’s Washington, DC nonbinding primary. That effort included at least one print advertisement, as well as signs, mailings, and email from the national campaign asking DC residents to vote in the primary.

On MSNBC’s Hardball Monday, Dean media consultant and senior advisor Steve McMahon insisted that the campaign had not engaged in any campaign activities for the unofficial primary, which was not recognized by the Democratic National Committee.

"We’re not competing there. We haven’t run a single ad. We haven’t put a field program out there. We aren’t doing direct mail. We’re not doing anything," McMahon said on the program. "[Dean] didn’t campaign there, because it’s against DNC rules."

The ad, which ran in the January 9 Washington City Paper, urges readers to "Participate in the DC Democratic Primary -- January 13, 2004," and says at the bottom "paid for by Dean for America Inc."

The City Paper confirms that Dean for America, the candidate’s national office, paid $1864 for the full-page, black-and-white ad.

Dick Gephardt, John Edwards, John Kerry, Joe Lieberman, and Wesley Clark all removed their names from the DC ballot, in deference to the first-in-the-nation status of the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primary. The early DC primary was held as a protest to draw attention to the district’s lack of Congressional representation; delegates to the DNC convention will be selected by caucus on February 12.

Dean won the primary with 43 percent of the vote. Al Sharpton finished second with 35 percent.

Dean signs and other campaign materials that appeared throughout the district were provided by the national organization -- the local DC for Dean organization that coordinated local volunteer activity did not register as a political committee, and did not raise or spend money its own funds. In addition, a blast email sent from "info@deanforamerica.com" went to district residents on the 12th, urging them to "go to the polls tomorrow and vote!" A citywide direct-mail piece sent on January 9 was also paid for by the national campaign.

McMahon and other Dean spokespeople did not return calls for comment.