Howard Dean kept his cool last night during his hour in Chris Matthews’s hotseat even as he admitted during a furious round of questioning that he had hoped to receive a deferment from serving in Vietnam when he presented a draft board with evidence of a medical problem.

In the past week, opponents of Dean—the firebrand former governor of Vermont who is now widely regarded as the frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination—have criticized the candidate’s behavior towards the draft, pointing to the fact that he skied in Colorado after receiving a draft deferment.

“I was not looking forward to going to Vietnam,” Dean said.

National security is considered a key issue in the campaign, and two of Dean’s biggest competitors—Sen. John F. Kerry, D-Mass., and Gen. Wesley K. Clark—are running hard on their own military experiences.

Nevertheless, Dean holds his lead in New Hampshire and is facing a tie with Rep. Dick Gephardt in Iowa. Even in Massachusetts, Dean is polling well, running even with Kerry.

Dean kept up his sharp criticism of President Bush and took shots at the other Democratic candidates last night during the live broadcast of Matthews’s “Hardball” from the JFK Jr. Forum—but contrary to his reputation as short-fused, the former governor stayed calm.

At Harvard, Dean drew the strongest interest of the six candidates who have visited Harvard so far, with 1,819 people entering a lottery to watch the broadcast live at Forum.

Unlike other candidates to appear on the show, Dean did not attend a discussion with students in Kirkland House beforehand—leading some to doubt the sincerity of his outspoken commitment to young voters.

But about 40 students and community members eagerly welcomed Dean to campus, rallying in Harvard Square before his “Hardball” appearance with signs that read “Beantown is Deantown” and “Dean: A Yalie Harvard Loves.”

War and Peace

The most contentious part of last night’s interview came when Matthews repeatedly fired questions about what he described as the candidate’s “almost-experience” in the military.

Dean said that when he presented the draft board with information about his back problem, he was prepared to accept their decision.

“I felt if they took me, they took me, and if they didn’t, they didn’t,” he said. “It wasn’t like I was trying to dodge the draft. All I did was say here, look. Here’s my information. Do with me what you will.”

After Matthews’ repeated questioning, Dean acknowledged that was hoping to receive a deferment when he brought x-rays and a doctor’s letter with him to his physical exam.

Matthews and audience members also questioned Dean last night on his limited foreign policy experience, an issue that Kerry has raised in his campaign.