Yesterday Howard Dean came to the new CBID office in Park Slope specifically to endorse Josh Skaller for City Council. He then proceeded to campaign with Josh to kick off petitioning. Howard Dean also announced that Democracy for America was endorsing Josh. Here's the video:

An odd thing happened, though. Working Families Party somehow is turning this visit to personally endorse Josh (where Howard Dean says outright that he thinks Josh can win) into an endorsement for their candidate, Brad Lander. In a letter from Brad Lander's campaign, Dan Cantor of WFP says:

This morning at a press conference in Park Slope, Brad picked up the backing of none other than former Governor, DNC Chair, and Democracy for America founder Howard Dean.

The press conference referred to is the same press conference you see in the video above where Howard Dean endorses Josh. Truth is, Howard Dean had nice things to say about Brad at that press conference. But watch the video. The reason Howard Dean was at that press conference was to endorse Josh Skaller. Dan Cantor doesn't mention that, does he? Nor does he mention that Howard Dean, right after the endorsement, did some campaigning with Josh. Dan Cantor and Brad are misleading people with this. It is true Howard Dean, because he basically didn't realize that Josh and Brad were running against each other, had previously promised Brad he wouldn't endorse in the race. And so there was, buried in the press conference, a backhanded endorsement of Brad to recognize that promise. But to turn a Josh Skaller endorsement press conference into one endorsing Brad Lander is misleading.

Here, in fact, are quotes from that press conference that Dan Cantor is referring to...you decide who was being endorsed:

"I lend my endorsement to Josh. We want him to do well. We think he can win. He is a person who does grassroots really, really well.

"We need people who will be independent-minded in the City Council. We need people who will take a fresh look at things. We need people who are on the streets all the time, listening to ordinary people.

"He'll be a great, fresh voice in the City Council."

So now Brad Lander's list of endorsements starts looking very odd. Dov Hikind, a man who supports racial profiling and racism, is NOT on Brad's list of supporters even though he is supporting Brad. Brad seems embarassed by that endorsement (and, in fact, that endorsement did become embarassing and Brad is distancing himself from Dov now...more on that later). Brad also doesn't list one of his top donors, Josh Wolf-Powers. Wolf-Powers gave extensively to both WFP and Brad. Yet isn't listed as a supporter. Is this because Josh Wolf-Powers is one of the three central figures in the Pensiongate scandal? At the moment it is unclear what Josh Wolf=Powers' role was in the Pensiongate scandal, whether he is being falsely accused by Steve Rattner or whether he was actually the guy who pressured Rattner to hire the now indicted Hank Morris. But what is clear is that Brad Lander has left him off his endorsement list. But he has put Howard Dean on his list based on comments made at a press conference where Howard Dean specifically came to endorse one of Brad's opponents and actually said that he thinks Brad's opponent (Josh Skaller) can win.

Watch the video again...THAT video is showing the event that Brad is using to claim Howard Dean endorsed him. Dan Cantor and Brad Lander are not being up front with voters.