Howard Dean

While there may be fair criticisms to be made, its a sham that Justin knowingly ignored a number of relevant facts because they didn’t fit the premise of the story he wanted to write. Criticism of one’s positions or activities is one thing, lazy journalism is quite another.

On the issue of biologics, one that he’s known and had an opinion on long before he was DNC Chairman. For example, Justin did not mention Gov. Dean spent most of his time during the healthcare debate working with DFA and other grassroots organizations advocating for the public option as one of the most outspoken advocates. During that debate he was very transparent about his position on and support for biologics legislation sponsored by Reps. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.), Jay Inslee (D-Wash.) and Joe Barton (R-Texas) in the House (H.R. 1548) and in The Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act introduced by Sens. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) and Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.).

Here’s the rest of what he said at the time about a commonsense and fair approach:

“A commonsense and fair approach, similar to the process and timeline currently in place for generic versions of chemical-based medicines, would allow the original developer of the biologic to protect the proprietary data used to develop the medicine for at least 12 years. A shorter exclusivity period would prematurely rob biotech innovators of their intellectual property and destroy incentives to develop new cures. Most firms would be unable to recoup their investments in new medicines, which ordinarily top $1 billion and involve 15 years of research and development. If we discourage investment, we jeopardize the development of the next generation of breakthrough medicines and cures.”

On the issue of the MEK, he is not a paid advocate. He was paid for a handful of speeches, but has not been paid for his advocacy. His focus has been on the human rights issues. In an op-ed on Huffington Post he outlined some of the facts he felt had been ignored in recent articles, but his key point is that there are 3400 unarmed men, women and children currently in Camp Ashraf who should not be left for slaughter after having been promised they would be protected. Here’s an excerpt:

“There are key facts, which have been obscured, omitted or ignored in recent articles written about these 3,400 unarmed people. First, a lot has changed since the MEK was classified as a terrorist organization in 1997. In recent testimony to Congress by Martin Indyk, former U.S. Ambassador to Israel and Assistant Secretary of State for Near East Affairs under Clinton, it was revealed that the motivation behind the ’97 classification was to help open a dialogue with the ruling party of Iran.

Second, in July 2010, the U.S. Appeals Court in Washington DC ruled that the group was actually not given due process in 1997 and ordered the State Dept. to reevaluate the terrorist designation. Notably the governments of France, Britain and the EU have already ruled that the MEK is not a terrorist organization. Currently the only two nations that remain in agreement on what is now a discredited classification are America and Iran.

Third, in 2003 the U.S. military peacefully disarmed the inhabitants of Camp Ashraf. American FBI agents visited Ashraf and questioned all of the 3,400 residents. None were found to be associated with terrorists or terrorism. The US military made a promise in writing that each resident would be protected against outside threats.

Fourth, in 2009, and again in 2011, American troops were ordered to leave the vicinity of Ashraf by the Iraqi Government — then led by Prime Minister Maliki. Iraqi troops went into Ashraf and killed 47 unarmed civilians in cold blood. Most of the hundreds who were wounded were denied medical care as American troops stood idly by just a few miles away.

Fifth, while the residents of Ashraf are currently asking to be re-located to other countries, the plan currently being pushed by Lawrence Butler from the US State would instead relocate them to another area in Iraq and “guarantee” their safety. Yet neither the American or Iraqi governments have thus far kept their word to the residents of Ashraf.

“America gave its word to the MEK that we would protect them. We believe that allowing 3,400 people to be murdered in cold blood and breaking that promise is wrong. We believe that in the end this debate is about America, not the people in Ashraf. America is a country that values freedom and the rule of law. We must keep our word and help the people of Ashraf get out of Iraq. We must support those who peacefully and through democratic means fight for their freedom. If we fail and again stand by as 3,400 unarmed men, women and children, in Ashraf are murdered by the Iranian Government or its Iraqi proxies, we diminish ourselves as a great nation. Its time for America to keep its word to the people in Ashraf.”

My response:

On the issue of biologics, Finney contends Dean has “known and had an opinion on long before he was DNC Chairman.” Finney said as much on background to me, but in my reporting I found no evidence that Dean had weighed in on biologics before 2009, when he joined the D.C. lobby shop McKenna Long and Aldridge. McKenna works for the biotech industry’s trade group. 

Finney did not allude to the facts she presents here when I originally emailed with her. If she had, I would have reported them. Since it’s always possible that I missed something, yesterday I invited Finney to provide a citation for Dean’s involvement on the issue before he was a paid advocate for the industry. She declined to do so.

Remember, the issue here was how long a certain class of drugs — biologics or biopharmaceuticals — would be protected from cheaper generic competitors. Consumer groups wanted a shorter period (five years) while Dean and the industry wanted 12 years of protection. So it’s worth noting that back in 2002, Dean was active in a similar debate — but back then he was arguing in favor of generic competition against brand-name drugs.

“It’s unconscionable how they’re exploiting patent-extension loopholes,” Dean told Forbes, speaking of Big Pharma. He actually founded a coalition to lobby Congress to make it easier for generics to enter the market sooner, thereby lowering prices for consumers.

It is true that the biologics industry is different from the traditional pharmaceutical industry but the fundamental issue is the same. By taking money from the industry, Dean has created the appearance of a conflict of interest.

When it comes to the MEK, Finney argues that “he is not a paid advocate. He was paid for a handful of speeches, but has not been paid for his advocacy.” That seems like a distinction without a difference.

Dean has publicly acknowledged he had never even heard of the MEK until his agent was contacted with a paid speaking opportunity for the group in Paris. (And, remember, the group is known for paying astronomical speaking fees.)

Finney also quotes Dean’s HuffPost column on the MEK and Camp Ashraf. A couple of notes here: First, Dean has misrepresented Martin Indyk’s comments on the MEK, as Indyk himself pointed out in a comment on HuffPost.

The full passage from Indyk’s book on the MEK is both a succinct argument for why the group should be classified as a terrorist group and a refutation of the idea that it was added to the terrorism list purely as (in Dean’s characterization) a way to “open a dialogue with the ruling party of Iran”:

[The MEK] in its early actions had killed Americans. After its expulsion from Iran, Saddam had provided it training bases in Iraq and logistic support for terrorist attacks in major Iranian cities. The MEK returned the favor by helping Saddam crush the Shiite revolt in southern Iraq after the Gulf War. The MEK clearly deserved to be on the terrorism list, but as an anti-Irani­an organizati­on it had managed to gain support from some influentia­l congressme­n through the sophistica­ted political operations of its front organizati­on, the National Council of Resistance of Iran … He­re was one instance when Clinton could show that he applied the same standards to groups that used terrorism against our foes as well as our friends. We hoped it would be perceived in Tehran as a goodwill gesture.

I won’t quibble here with the broad strokes of Dean’s explanation of the situation at Camp Ashraf, where several thousand MEK members are holed up in Iraq. Finney asserts that Dean’s “focus has been on the human rights issues.”

In fact, his advocacy for the MEK has gone well beyond the question of human rights of the residents of Ashraf. Dean has at least twice argued publicly that Maryam Rajavi, one of the longtime leaders of the MEK, should be recognized as the president of the nation of Iran. That’s a remarkable position that is rarely heard even among MEK’s strongest supporters.

Finally, there are two areas in which Dean could be more transparent. As I noted in the story, he sits on the board of advisors of a venture capital fund, Vatera Health Partners, that invests in biopharmaceuticals. But neither Finney nor Vatera responded to my inquiries about when he took the position.

Why does it matter? Because Dean was doing public advocacy for the industry during the healthcare fight in 2009, and, if he was on Vatera’s board back then, that means he had a personal financial stake in the industry, a time when he was seeking to shape his future. I’m not saying he did. I’m saying he should disclose whether he did.

More important, Dean has declined to reveal whom he has worked for in his capacity as a senior strategic advisor at McKenna Long and Aldridge. It is possible that my story, which covered only advocacy work that has occurred in the public domain, understates Dean’s paid advocacy positions.

As senior strategic advisor at McKenna Long & Aldridge, a heavyweight Washington lobbying firm, Dean played a prominent role representing the biotech industry during the healthcare bill debate, staking out a position on biopharmaceutical drugs that was decried by consumer groups.

“Gov. Dean was very helpful to us,” biotech CEO Jim Greenwood told a trade publication “As a physician clearly focused on healthcare, a Democrat leader and clearly to left of center, his efforts were impactful.” Greenwood is the head of the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO), a trade group that lobbies for the industry in Washington.

Dean is also currently one of the most prominent paid voices in a public-relations campaign on behalf of the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK), an obscure and controversial Iranian militant group that is aggressively lobbying the Obama administration to remove it from the official list of terrorist organizations.

Dean arrived in the comfortable K Street offices of McKenna Long & Aldridge shortly after his term as DNC chair ended in January 2009. He had been passed over by President Obama for the secretary of health and human services Cabinet post, and he needed a paying job.

In announcing his appointment, the firm said Dean would “provide guidance to clients, particularly in the areas of healthcare and alternative energy resources.”

Dean has been careful not to register as a lobbyist, a designation that would prompt legal disclosure requirements. Both McKenna and the governor’s spokeswoman declined to reveal which clients he has worked for.

Dean took on a very public role during the 2009 healthcare reform battle, specifically going to bat for the biotech industry — whose trade association is a client of McKenna.  

At stake was how the government would regulate a growing class of drugs called biologics or biopharmaceuticals and their generic competitors. The industry argued for a longer period — at least 12 years — in which expensive brand-name biologics would face no competition from less costly generics. Consumer groups argued that, to keep costs down, the period of exclusivity should be just five years.

Dean jumped into the fight on the side of the industry, writing an Op-Ed in the Hill in 2009 arguing that a “commonsense and fair approach” would be to bar generics for “at least 12 years.”

“If we discourage investment, we jeopardize the development of the next generation of breakthrough medicines and cures,” he wrote, echoing a key industry talking point.

Liberal admirers were disappointed.

“It was devastating to have him involved because of his reputation,” says James Love, director of Knowledge Ecology International, a public interest group that fought for a shorter period of exclusivity. “He’s considered to be independent of industry and on the left, so it was really shocking to us when we first saw this. But there it was.”

Greenwood, the trade group CEO, said at the time that Dean’s work had involved talking to members of Congress about the issue. Dean never registered as a lobbyist, a legal category that involves spending at least 20 percent of one’s time for a client lobbying lawmakers or government officials.

One common dodge on K Street is for former elected officials to work for lobbying firms without actually registering as lobbyists. At McKenna, for example, former Sen. Zell Miller, the conservative Democrat from Georgia, and former Colorado Rep. David Skaggs hold the same title as Dean: “senior strategic advisor and independent consultant.”

Dean is not exclusive in his services. He currently serves on the board of advisors at Vatera Health Partners, a New York-based venture capital fund whose mission is “to support and grow emerging biopharmaceutical companies.”

It’s not clear from the public record how long he has served in the position. But his presence on the Vatera board indicates that he has a personal financial stake in the biopharmaceutical industry.

At the time of the biologics fight on Capitol Hill — which the industry won — Dean told Time that “I wouldn’t do this if I didn’t believe it.”

Dean has invoked the same argument when it comes to his work in support of the MEK, the Iranian militant group. Dean and other luminaries from across the political spectrum have been paid vast sums of money by the group — as much as $20,000 for a 10-minute speech — to appear at events pushing the Obama administration to remove the MEK from the official list of terrorist organizations. 

Dean himself has acknowledged being paid but has not disclosed specific sums.

Critics of the MEK, including the State Department, say the group displays cult-like qualities; it has been led by the same husband-and-wife couple, Masoud and Maryam Rajavi, for decades. They also point to the fact that it killed Americans in Iran in the 1970s and the lack of support for the group among the people of Iran. Among the most enthusiastic supporters of delisting MEK have been neoconservative strategists who believe the group can help destabilize the Iranian regime.

Dean, for his part, has been distinguished by his particularly aggressive advocacy for the MEK. Not only has he argued for delisting MEK in print and in speaking appearances, he has also said that Maryam Rajavi should be recognized as the president of Iran. The Christian Science Monitor reported on a recent trip by Dean to Berlin:

“Madame Rajavi does not sound like a terrorist to me; she sounds like a president,” Mr. Dean said, gesturing toward the MEK leader from the dais. “And her organization should not be listed as a terrorist organization. We should be recognizing her as the president of Iran.”

While Dean has passionately argued he is on the right side of the MEK issue, he acknowledged to the Washington Times that he got involved through his agent.

“I got asked by my agent to go over to Paris to speak to a group I knew nothing about. I spent a lot of time on the Internet learning about them, and then I met them,” he told the paper.

Dean spokeswoman Karen Finney said that, besides paid advocacy work, the former governor spends his time on a range of other activities, including appearing as a paid contributor to CNBC; traveling as a board member for the National Democratic Institute, which promotes democracy around the world; giving paid speeches; teaching a class at Hofstra University; and serving on the board of Extendicare, a Canadian long-term care company. Finney said he also continues to do some work for Democracy for America, a political action committee Dean founded that is run by his brother, Jim.

Whom else does Dean work for as a paid advocate?

In January, he waded into another high-stakes healthcare fight, this one being waged in New York state between foreign medical schools and their American competitors. The issue was whether foreign-trained doctors would have access to hospitals in New York for their residencies. Dean wrote an Op-Ed in the Albany Times-Union, “N.Y. needs its foreign-trained doctors,” that repeated talking points of foreign medical schools, which, Dean’s bio blurb noted, are clients of McKenna Long & Aldridge.

While the firm won’t say whom Dean has worked for, his bio page on McKenna’s website offers some clues.

“Respected for his fiscally moderate policies as Governor, he understands first-hand the severe budget constraints that are challenging state and municipal governments,” it reads. “With an extensive set of contacts nationally, Governor Dean is uniquely positioned to develop partnerships between industry stakeholders and local governments.”

Dean is indeed uniquely positioned: Between his former followers and his current clients, between his idealist liberal past and the cynical culture of K Street, between independence and cooptation.

UPDATE: Read Howard Dean’s response to Salon here.