Dean warns Obama that he’ll lose in 2012 if he doesn’t reclaim the Democratic base

Should President Obama be courting Republicans? No, says ex-Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, who warns that Obama is risking his re-election and the future of the Democratic Party by taking progressive voters for granted.

Obama, Dean tells the Associated Press's Beth Fouhy, has "clearly upset members of his base" on issues like tax cuts and "Don't ask, don't tell." The former Democratic National Committee chairman calls Obama's efforts to work with Republicans a "waste of time" and says it risks alienating an already-angsty Democratic base.

"You take care of the people who sent you to office," Dean tells the AP. "There are hundreds of thousands of people under 30 who slept on floors for two year to make sure Barack got elected. You can't turn your back on those people because if you do, it's going to be hard to find any friends."

Dean has denied reports that he's interested in challenging Obama in the Democratic primary in 2012. But the ex-governor has had an openly tense relationship with Obama, who abruptly replaced him as chairman of the DNC in 2009.

Obama, Dean says, is making a mistake by focusing more on the GOP than his own base. "You can't deal with people like that — you're not going to placate the conservatives," Dean said. "They're out to get you and they've placed that as their highest interest."

(Photo of Obama and Dean in 2008 by Alex Brandon/AP)