Howard Dean hopes Hillary Clinton becomes the next president

Hillary Clinton will probably get a challenge from the left if she runs for president again — it just won't come from Howard Dean. The former Vermont governor, who once said he might enter the 2016 race to pull other candidates left, tells CNN he is a "huge Hillary Clinton fan."

"If she is president, which I hope she is, I think she is going to be a terrific president," Dean says.

It's not exactly an endorsement, but the remark, coming from a former progressive favorite, undercuts the consensus narrative that Hillary is doomed to fail against another revolt from the left in 2016. Earlier this year, Dean also predicted Clinton would "satisfy" enough liberals to win, adding that he would definitely not join the race if Clinton was in the running.

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