Dean Would Take No. 2 on the Ticket

In another mark of the changing tenor of his campaign for president, Howard Dean said Friday in a radio interview that he would be willing to accept the Democratic vice presidential nomination if it would help oust President Bush.

Only a month ago, Dean stood atop polls in key states in the nominating process and pundits were beginning to speculate whom he might choose as a running mate.

But on a morning talk show in Milwaukee, Dean was asked if he would accept a vice presidential nomination. He replied: “I would ... do anything I could to get rid of President Bush. I’ll do whatever is best for the party.

“Obviously, I’m running for president,” Dean went on, “but whatever’s best is what I’ll do. Anything. We’ve just got to change presidents. We’re really hurting right now.”

Dean seldom has been discussed as a vice presidential prospect. Working against his chances for that post are questions that have arisen during the campaign about his temperament and his failure to come close to winning any of the nine primaries or caucuses already conducted.

Also, the current front-runner, Sen. John F. Kerry of Massachusetts, is a fellow New Englander. Presidential nominees traditionally have tried to enhance their national appeal by choosing running mates from other regions.

During the interview with WMCS-AM “Morning Magazine,” Dean reiterated a sentiment he first voiced in an e-mail to supporters overnight Wednesday: that his candidacy will no longer be viable if he does not win in Wisconsin on Feb. 17.

“We’ve got to win Wisconsin. That’s all. It’s a make-or-break state for us,” Dean said on the program, which has an audience that is predominantly African American, a group he is courting here.

The former Vermont governor also acknowledged the uphill struggle his campaign faces.

“I obviously still hope to win the nomination. It’s a longer shot than it was,” he said.