It's Howie the Duck!
Pro Kool-Aid drinker Sheryl McCarthy waxes lyrical in Newsday - The Candidacy of Howard Dean Takes 'Wing':

George W. Bush may be raking in campaign money hand over fist, but among the Democratic presidential hopefuls Howard Dean isn't doing too shabbily. He's raised more than any other Democrat during the second quarter of the year, and while this doesn't exactly make him the front-runner he's the one everyone's talking about.

I've followed the Democratic candidates with about as much enthusiasm as I'd muster for a high-stakes lacrosse game. But even I can see that Dean is catching on. Which makes me wonder: Does Howard Dean's growing popularity stem from the fact that people think he's Josiah Bartlet, the fictional president of NBC's "The West Wing?"

Sheryl explores this theory in depth, proving once again that "The West Wing" is the leftazoid epiphany. Gosh, I hope her panties aren't all wet!

But she's wrong. Howie's appeal is his resemblance to another fictional character:



UPDATE: Over at the Gaggle, Ith reports a Dean supporter's email to a "West Wing" mailing list urging "Help Bartlet's Candidate win back FL and the U.S." Is this some form of popular delusion? Also via the Gaggle, a link to Mark Steyn's takedown of Howie.