Democratic Money: Down toward the bottom of this piece on erstwhile Democratic candidates fundraising for Kerry, this paragraph shows up regarding the last important holdout:

Several officials familiar with the discussions say Dean is prepared to endorse Kerry soon, campaign for him and ask his own campaign contributors to donate to the Massachusetts senator. His actions depend on the course of the conversation between the two men, these sources added, saying it's unlikely Dean would be willing to turn over his donor list.

A couple of things are worth mentioning here. First, Howard Dean is proving (as he warned he would be) reluctant to share his long list of contributors. Why? An eye toward 2008, perhaps? Even someone as odd as Dean must realize that his shelf life isn't that long. A cabinet post? That could be a sticking point. Howie has gained a reputation for shooting his mouth off, not being a team player, and burning his bridges with the other candidates, to say nothing of his ability to burn through stacks of money with nothing to show for it -- not the first things you look for when picking, say, the next HHS secretary (although the last of which is what you usually end up with).

Second, assuming accomodation can be reached, what does this vaunted Dean's List have to offer John Kerry? Dean has put the touch on them so many times, he likely closed off quite a few general election prospects. Besides, these donors opened their wallets mainly because of Dean's outsider appeal. His campaign was premised on the notion that he was not an insider -- that he was not, to be precise, John Kerry. Remember that last year, Dean shot up in the polls mainly at the expense of the presumed favorite, Kerry. Why young, disaffected Democrats would now shell out yet more cash, and to the very man they rejected in favor of Dean, is a question that needs addressing. Lacking a convincing argument to the contrary, I think Dean's donor rolls are basically a white elephant this year.