June 23rd — The Great American Restoration

So I’m sitting here in the Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco watching the preparations for John Kerry’s arrival. His advance team is setting up an area for the traveling press, and Secret Service bomb dogs are sweeping through the center.
Now, a year ago today, a year ago right about now actually, I was standing on Church Street in Burlington, Vermont watching Howard Dean announce that he was seeking the presidency of the United States. It was a beautiful day — warm and sunny, with a giant throng crowding Church Street, hooting and hollering. Dean’s speech, The Great American Restoration, was fantastic. I remember how proud I was and how excited I was about the possibility that we really could transform politics in the way that Dean wanted.
We came so close too. So close.