Hard to believe people still think this way.
DEAN SAYS IRAQIS LIVED BETTER UNDER SADDAM
By VINCENT MORRIS and DEBORAH ORIN
January 26, 2004 -- Democrat Howard Dean has touched off a new flap heading into tomorrow's New Hampshire primary by claiming that the living standard for Iraqis is "a whole lot worse" since a U.S.-led force toppled Saddam.
The Dean campaign has also run into a problem with ABC News, which has asked it to stop handing out copies of Thursday's Diane Sawyer interview with Dean and his wife, Judy, The Post has learned.
Dean's bid to highlight his anti-war stance sparked a sharp reaction from rivals and experts, who said he's wrong on the facts - and makes it sound as if brutality and dictatorship don't affect quality of life.
"You can say that it's great that Saddam is gone and I'm sure that a lot of Iraqis feel it is great that Saddam is gone," Dean said yesterday in answer to a question in Manchester. "But a lot of them gave their lives. And their living standard is a whole lot worse now than it was before."
Rival Sen. John Kerry - who leads Dean in New Hampshire polls - countered: "There's no doubt Iraqis are living better lives with Saddam Hussein behind bars."
Kerry, who voted for the Iraq war, pointed to how Saddam built palaces while his people suffered. "This was a brutal dictator whose iron fist made life horrifically worse for the Iraqi people," he said.
Kerry also jabbed Dean, saying Dean's record on foreign policy and taxes "will just kill us" with voters.
A spokesman for candidate Sen. John Edwards (N.C.), who also voted for the war, said: "I don't think anyone can argue that living under a brutal regime is better than not living under a brutal regime."
Analyst Danielle Pletka of the American Enterprise Institute - who's been to Iraq under Saddam and after his fall - said, "What a disgraceful thing to say," adding, "you don't have to worry that if someone doesn't like your politics, you can't get food," she said.
Analyst Dan Goure said there is one group of Iraqis whose living standards have gone down Saddam's thugs. "That's a good thing," said Goure.
Meanwhile, the Dean campaign distributed tens of thousands of copies of the ABC News interview yesterday, which has drawn the ire of the network. "Our message is loud and clear that it's not within their rights to do this," said ABC spokesman Jeffrey Schneider, who added the network's rights and clearances division will take up the matter.
Polls all show Kerry leading the pack but conflict on how big his lead is - anywhere from 7 to 20 points - and whether Dean is bouncing back.
Most surveys suggest gaffe-prone Wesley Clark is slipping and Edwards is rising - and in up-coming South Carolina a brand new poll gives Edwards a four point lead over Kerry.
DEAN SAYS IRAQIS LIVED BETTER UNDER SADDAM
By VINCENT MORRIS and DEBORAH ORIN
January 26, 2004 -- Democrat Howard Dean has touched off a new flap heading into tomorrow's New Hampshire primary by claiming that the living standard for Iraqis is "a whole lot worse" since a U.S.-led force toppled Saddam.
The Dean campaign has also run into a problem with ABC News, which has asked it to stop handing out copies of Thursday's Diane Sawyer interview with Dean and his wife, Judy, The Post has learned.
Dean's bid to highlight his anti-war stance sparked a sharp reaction from rivals and experts, who said he's wrong on the facts - and makes it sound as if brutality and dictatorship don't affect quality of life.
"You can say that it's great that Saddam is gone and I'm sure that a lot of Iraqis feel it is great that Saddam is gone," Dean said yesterday in answer to a question in Manchester. "But a lot of them gave their lives. And their living standard is a whole lot worse now than it was before."
Rival Sen. John Kerry - who leads Dean in New Hampshire polls - countered: "There's no doubt Iraqis are living better lives with Saddam Hussein behind bars."
Kerry, who voted for the Iraq war, pointed to how Saddam built palaces while his people suffered. "This was a brutal dictator whose iron fist made life horrifically worse for the Iraqi people," he said.
Kerry also jabbed Dean, saying Dean's record on foreign policy and taxes "will just kill us" with voters.
A spokesman for candidate Sen. John Edwards (N.C.), who also voted for the war, said: "I don't think anyone can argue that living under a brutal regime is better than not living under a brutal regime."
Analyst Danielle Pletka of the American Enterprise Institute - who's been to Iraq under Saddam and after his fall - said, "What a disgraceful thing to say," adding, "you don't have to worry that if someone doesn't like your politics, you can't get food," she said.
Analyst Dan Goure said there is one group of Iraqis whose living standards have gone down Saddam's thugs. "That's a good thing," said Goure.
Meanwhile, the Dean campaign distributed tens of thousands of copies of the ABC News interview yesterday, which has drawn the ire of the network. "Our message is loud and clear that it's not within their rights to do this," said ABC spokesman Jeffrey Schneider, who added the network's rights and clearances division will take up the matter.
Polls all show Kerry leading the pack but conflict on how big his lead is - anywhere from 7 to 20 points - and whether Dean is bouncing back.
Most surveys suggest gaffe-prone Wesley Clark is slipping and Edwards is rising - and in up-coming South Carolina a brand new poll gives Edwards a four point lead over Kerry.
