Howard Dean To Announce Major New Campaign On Health Care Reform

Looks like Howard Dean is well on his way to finding a post-DNC niche, and he won’t be needing the Obama administration to find it for him.

On a conference call with supporters later today, Dean will make a surprise announcement, unveiling a major new health care campaign that will gear up his political operation to pressure the White House and Congress to preserve a public insurance option as part of health care reform, I’m told.

The campaign will be called “Stand With Dr. Dean,” and its immediate goal is to build up a membership of a quarter million in the next few months, relying on the million-strong email list of Democracy for America, Dean’s political operation. The eventual goal is to organize and door-knock to build support for the public insurance option in Congressional districts across the country, DFA executive director Arshad Hasan tells me.

Supporters of Dean — a former doctor who has been looking for a meaningful way of impacting the coming health care reform push — were furious with Obama aides for not giving Dean a health care-related spot in the administration. This new project to push Obama and Congress towards a public option is Dean’s post-DNC solution, and his political operation could have a real impact on the coming health care debate.

“We’re drawing a policy line in the sand,” Hasan says, adding that the goal is to get a quarter million signatures on a new petition insisting on the public option.

“We’re saying that if the public option is not included, it’s not real health care reform,” Hasan says. “DFA is the perfect vehicle for Governor Dean to do this.”

Today’s announcement is keyed to the fifth anniversary of Democracy for America, which debuted during Dean’s 2004 campaign. On the conference call with DFA supporters, Dean will thank everyone for their support, Hasan says, then launch into the surprise announcement about the new campaign.