(no subject)

[rivka]

Here's the text of a recent Howard Dean stump speech in Iowa, including an informal question and answer period. If you haven't checked Dean out yet, you might want to take a look. It's a good basic introduction to his positions on many issues - and to his style, which is a big part of what attracts me to him.

I admire a guy who will stand up and say,

I told you when I started out that there were going to be some things that you agreed with me on and there were going to be some things you didn't agree with me on, and I think we've found a few. But one thing you're going to know is what my position is on every single issue. I'm not going to say one thing to one group of people and something to somebody else.

I know what the feeling is in this part of Iowa about gay rights. Don't you think I knew that before I ran for president?

This is why I think he can win. He's not going to try to pretend that his opinions match the opinions of the center all the way down the line - he's going to position himself as someone we can trust even when we disagree. He doesn't go in front of conservative Democratic audiences and say, "Well, the Vermont Supreme Court made me do something for gays, and I thought civil unions would be better than gay marriage." Which he could do. But he also doesn't write those voters off. He challenges them to believe that he can be a good president and someone who disagrees with them about gay rights.

As the Baltimore Sun says, it's all about authenticity.