Reiver 2,

a correction: Dean does not oppose gun control. His position is that the Federal rules as they stand are fine (but that they should be better enforced), and that the states should then have a right to institute whatever gun control they feel they need. His point is that in Vermont there is practically no gun crime, so ordinary Vermonters would feel that strict gun laws weren't useful to them. In New York or Illinois, many people would want stricter gun laws. The NRA has given him a very high rating for these positions, which could actually help him win.

Also, a confirmation. Dean is a centrist and calls himself one. It's the media and the right that has somehow decided to paint him as a liberal. This has much to do with his signing the civil union law, giving unmarried couples, including gay couples, the right to register as couples and obtain the same legal rights as married couples have. This has infuriated the right, even in Vermont.

I still like Dean better than Clark given what I've seen, and a Dean/Clark team could be great. But it's not necessary for them to decide which will be first on the ticket just yet. All they need to do is pledge not to attack one another, and that if one wins the nomination the other will have first crack at the VP spot. Then they can see what happens from there.