.... Dean arrived wearing his name tag around his neck, a Renaissance trademark that puts everybody on the same footing. He impressed this audience of high achievers with his intellectual agility, his easy camaraderie ("You're like family") and his brashness as he debated whether to respond to a question about the Middle East using "regular language" or approved campaignspeak. This notion that he's always flirting with danger is immensely appealing to voters tired of robo-candidates but unsettling to campaign professionals. ....
What the Dean people saw in Charleston was not the angry, vein-popping politician they see on television, and many came away impressed. One longtime Renaissance-goer pronounced Dean "Clintonesque," the highest compliment that can be paid in this crowd. In response to a question testing his youth-culture awareness, Dean did a brief takeoff of a song by Outkast, the hot hip-hop group. "He knows the lyrics to Outkast songs and, man, can that dude dance," enthused a 16-year-old. ...