Howard Dean’s Movement Now Has the PowerPaul Hogarthbyline‚ Aug. 03‚ 2007“Bloggers have come out of the basement,” exclaimed one delegate on the first day of the Yearly Kos Convention. The attendees here in Chicago do not all fit the stereotype – they are not just a group of 23-year-old white males who blog from their mother’s basement. While there are very few people of color, the age and gender balance is pretty diverse – as the liberal blogosphere has grown to include any progressive who has Internet access and wants to help change the Democratic Party. At this Convention, I have so far attended a mock Iowa Caucus, a presentation from most of the Democratic Presidential candidates’ campaigns on how they’re working with the netroots, a panel of 3 bloggers who broke through the media cycle to defeat Republicans, and an informative – though frustrating – panel about holding our newly elected Democrats accountable. And with Howard Dean’s Welcome Address last night in front of 1,500 “netroots” activists who celebrated a new Democratic Congress, a presidential campaign that had come crashing down three years ago in the Iowa cornfields has matured into a powerful political force. |