Watching Clinton's speech at the Harkin Steak Fry a couple of months ago reminded me of the man's awesome political talent. At the time, I thought that none of our 2004 Presidential candidates measured up to him as a stump speaker.
I no longer feel that way. I just came home from a Dean fund-raiser in Chicago, and Dean's new stump speech is on a par with any speech I have seen Clinton make.
Dean laid out, as thoroughly as you can in a stump speech, the mistakes of the Bush Administration and what he would do differently as President. He began with foreign policy (perhaps with Clark in the back of his mind), moved on to economic and domestic policy and then his vision of uniting rather than dividing our country.
The crowd was boisterous and quite willing to shout out questions. To my surprise, Dean not only acknowledged these people but interrupted his speech on several occasions to answer these questions.
I seldom given to effusive praise , but I'm making an exception for this amazing experience. If Dean appears anywhere near where you live in the next couple of months, go -- don't miss this speech!