Dean Rocks The Vote

From today's CNN/Rock the Vote Dem debate in Boston:

A heated exchange between the candidates erupted when Cooper asked former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean to clarify his recent remark that he wanted to be the candidate for "guys with Confederate flags on their pickup trucks."

"Martin Luther King said that it was his dream that the sons of slaveholders and the sons of slaves sit down around a table and make common good," Dean said.

The Rev. Al Sharpton said, "First of all, Martin Luther King said, 'Come to the table of brotherhood.' You can't bring a Confederate flag to the table of brotherhood."

Sharpton went on to address Dean: "You are not a bigot, but you appear to be too arrogant to say, 'I'm wrong,' and go on."

Dean did not back down: "We're not going to win this country, and even worse, Democrats, if we don't have a big tent."

Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina later said, "Unless I missed something, Governor Dean still has not said he was wrong. Were you wrong, Howard?"

"No, I wasn't, John Edwards, because people who vote who fly the Confederate flag, I think they are wrong because I think the Confederate flag is a racist symbol," Dean said.

"But I think there are lot of poor people who fly that flag because the Republicans have been dividing us by race since 1968 with their Southern race strategy."

Stick to your guns (heh) Howie. Well met, and now I consider the matter closed.

ntodd

[Update: WaPo has the full transcript.]  ¶ 8:23 PM