James Moran's Long-Time Confidant Joe Trippi Out At The Dean Campaign

Trippi at that time was the campaign manager for Howard Dean and was widely credited with jump-starting Dean's campaign through innovative uses of the internet.

Moran bragged that he had known Trippi for a dozen years and urged Plotkin to speak to Trippi as well.

Yesterday Trippi resigned from the Dean campaign after being told that he would be sacked as campaign chief. In response Moran's former campaign manager and Democratic Super-Delegate Mame Reiley defected from the Dean campaign.

Channel 13 in Hampton Roads had the following story about Moran, Reilly and Trippi:

"Virginia News

Campaign staff shakeup costs Dean a Va. superdelegate

01/29/2004

By BOB LEWIS / Associated Press

Howard Dean's decision to sack key campaign staffers has cost him a Virginia Democratic delegate who had supported the former Vermont governor.

Democratic National Committee member Mame Reiley said she became an uncommitted "superdelegate" after Dean fired campaign manager Joe Trippi on Wednesday.

Reiley, who chairs the DNC Women's Caucus, is the first Dean superdelegate to publicly defect, according to delegate commitment records compiled by The Associated Press.

"Howard Dean has every right to rearrange his staff any way he sees fit, but I was extremely disappointed to see that he was willing to let the heart and soul of his campaign leave," said Reiley, a longtime colleague and party ally of Trippi's.

"I believe in Howard Dean's message, but quite frankly I didn't know the messenger quite as well as I thought," she said. "The way someone reacts when things aren't going your way tells you a great deal about the candidate as an individual."

She said she had not decided whom she would support, but would probably concur with Democratic Gov. Mark R. Warner's endorsement. Reiley is a longtime top Warner aide and confidant.

Warner has said he would endorse a candidate before Virginia's Feb. 10 primary, but in recent interviews Warner has said he might not meet the primary deadline.

Reiley is one of 12 Virginia superdelegates — elected officials and other Democratic leaders who will help nominate a candidate at this summer's convention.

According to the AP list, based on continuing nationwide interviews with superdelegates, four in Virginia support Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry. They are DNC members Jerrauld Jones, Daniel LeBlanc, Jennifer McClellan and Susan Swecker.

Two of them, U.S. Reps. Jim Moran and Robert C. Scott, support Dean.

The other six, Warner, U.S. Rep. Rick Boucher, state Democratic chairman Kerry Donley, DNC member Barbara Easterling, DNC chairman Terry McAuliffe and Reiley, were uncommitted.

Other convention delegates will be apportioned according to the outcome of the primary."

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