Iowa's Harkin Endorses Dean

Jan. 9 -- Continuing his sweep of marquee Democratic names, Howard Dean has won the backing of Iowa's popular Democratic senator, Tom Harkin, whose well-oiled political operation and personal appeal make his endorsement the envy of the former Vermont governor's Iowa caucus rivals.

"One candidate rose to the top as our best shot to beat George W. Bush and to give Americans the opportunity to take our country back," Harkin said today before a loud and large crowd at Dean's Iowa headquarters. "That person is Gov. Howard Dean of Vermont."

The endorsement came at the end of what was arguably the toughest week the Dean campaign has yet faced. Rival campaigns unleashed attacks on his tax policies and television networks ran stories featuring past Dean comments calling the Iowa caucuses "dominated by the special interests."

Couldn’t Have Come at a Better Time

A Dean aide acknowledge Harkin's endorsement could not have come at a better time for the campaign,but more than one aide insisted the endorsement was not a done deal late Thursday. They said they had been ledto believe that Harkin would tell them, one way or the other, next week.

Harkin had publicly praised Dean for weeks, and had strongly hinted to top Dean aides that he wanted to endorsethe former Vermont governor. There are ties that bind the two camps. Dean communication director Tricia Enright held thesame job for Harkin. And Terry Lierman, Dean's national finance co-chairman and Washington adviser, is closeto the Iowa senator.

Harkin met Thursday with top officials from the Iowa AFL-CIO, where, sources said, he was reassuredby many Iowa labor leaders in private conversations that they would not object to a Dean endorsement. Buthe did not tell them what they decided.

Two sources close to the campaign say that a prominent Dean supporter who knows Harkin well called the senatorlast night to discuss the politics of a Dean endorsement.

"As of early this morning, I got the sense that the thing was still unsettled," said a Dean aide in Burlington, Vt.