Kucinich Comes Alive

The best speech you probably didn't see yesterday was delivered in the mid-afternoon with the convention floor barely half full. Only C-Span's camera's captured it at the time but it's been making the YouTube rounds this morning. The address, called "Wake Up America!", was delivered by Ohio congressman Dennis Kucinich.

Whatever your opinion of Kucinich -- the party outsider who's been charitably called an oddball, and much worse -- you have to admit this is the kind of speech Democrats in Denver are salivating for. He goes after Bush, McCain, oil companies, war contractors and health insurance firms... clearly laying out what he thinks are the stakes in this election. He does it succinctly and with passion. The delegates on the floor don't know what to make of Kucinich at first but by the end of the mercifully short address they're hooting and hollering. It's the kind of red meat the party faithful are clamoring for and it's a shame it wasn't delivered by a party headliner and seen in primetime.

Check it out for yourself and then let us know what you think.