And Dean chastised Bush as a divisive leader, taking him to task for exacerbating racial, socioeconomic, religious and sexual difference among the American people.

Dean cited the Bush tax cuts as a prime example of the Administration’s divisive rule. As he has before, Dean called for the repeal of the tax cuts, pledging to put the money toward homeland security and domestic policy initiatives like health care. He accused Bush of being fiscally irresponsible in running deficits.

“You can’t trust the Republicans with your money,” he said.

Dean also insisted that the state of health care in America must improve, noting that while scores of less prosperous nations can guarantee their citizens health insurance, the U.S. cannot.

And he took Bush to task for his record on national security, claiming that while Bush is “capitalizing on terrorism for political gain,” he has failed to adequately fund homeland security initiatives and has diverted much-needed money to tax cuts and the war.

“The President has made the country weaker, not stronger, because he doesn’t understand defense,” Dean said.

Dean assailed the President on the war in Iraq, excoriating him for taking the country to war on what Dean called false premises. He said that many of the most prominent reasons marshalled for going to war—a supposed Iraqi tie to al Qaeda, Iraq’s alleged attempt to purchase enriched uranium, and reports that Iraq possessed large quantities of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons of mass destruction—have since been discredited.

And he accused Bush more generally of promulgating a “foreign policy based on wrongheadedness and deception.” Referencing the decline of America’s popularity worldwide, Dean pledged to restore the U.S. to its former dignity, espousing a “high moral purpose and a set of ideals that the world aspires to.”

Dean campaign officials said they considered the rally a success in light of the substantial turnout in the face of overcast weather, according to Dean spokesperson Garrett M. Graff ’03, who is also a Crimson editor.

Undergraduates who attended the rally said they were impressed by Dean, although many came to the event already supporting him.

Gregory A. Elinson ’04, co-president of Harvard Students for Howard Dean (HSHD), said he thought Dean exhibited in his speech many of the reasons why people find him such an attractive candidate.

“He effectively capitalized on the anger that people feel in terms of Bush’s policies and then offers concrete solutions for how to fix things,” he said.

David V. Muehlke ’03-’04, who hasn’t chosen a candidate, said he was impressed by Dean’s arguments.

“What spoke to me most was the part where he spoke about Bush’s lies, because the facts are more likely to change someone’s opinion,” he said.

And Regina C. Schwartz ’06, another HSHD member, said she thought Dean displayed one of his most powerful weapons at the speech—his public persona.

“Dean is one of the most powerful speakers running,” she said. “The personality and the honesty that he brings to these speeches have the power to convert much of the nation to believe in him.”

Washington, who worked for Dean over the summer, said he thought the speech was “great,” even though it was largely his standard stump address.

“I have heard the speech approximately 100,000 times,” he said. But he added, “I really do think that this swayed some people.”

—Staff writer Stephen M. Marks can be reached at marks@fas.harvard.edu.