US: Front-runner Mr Howard Dean took what could be a damaging hit when he was confronted on his record on race at a Democratic Party candidates' debate in the Iowa capital Des Moines on Sunday evening.
African American rival Mr Al Sharpton forced Mr Dean, in an angry confrontation, to acknowledge that he did not appoint any blacks or Hispanics to served in his cabinet during 12 years as governor of Vermont.
"It seems you discovered blacks and browns during this campaign," Mr Sharpton charged, giving Mr Dean the most uncomfortable moment of the debate.
"You ought to talk freely and openly about whether you went out of the box to try to do something about race in your home state and have experience with working with blacks and browns at peer level, not as just friends you might have had in college," Mr Sharpton said.
Mr Dean responded, "I will take a back seat to no one in my commitment to civil rights in the United States of America." He noted that he had the endorsements of more members of the Congressional Black Caucus and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus than any other candidates, a claim which Mr Sharpton ridiculed, saying, "I think you only need co-signers if your credit is bad." The front-runner found an unexpected ally in the only other black candidate, former Senator Carol Moseley Braun, who told Mr Sharpton off for instigating a "racial screaming match." Vermont is 96.8 per cent white with Native Americans forming 0.4 per cent, blacks 0.5 per cent Hispanics 0.9 per cent and Asian-Pacific born 0.9 per cent of the population.
Mr Dean did not mention this in his defence; rather he approached Mr Sharpton during an interval in the debate to concede that he had a point and that the issue must be properly addressed. Racial politics have not impinged in the presidential campaign in mostly-white Iowa, scene of the first Democratic caucus next Monday, but could become an issue when the contest moves to more diverse states like South Carolina on February 3rd.
Mr Dean has been criticised for saying the Democratic party should seek to win the votes of southerners in pick-up trucks with Confederate flags, and has had difficulty explaining that what he meant was that such people should see that Democratic rather than Republican policies would be to their economic benefit. Yesterday travelling round Iowa, Mr Dean attempted to return to the type of campaign that has made him so popular at grass roots, depicting his opponents as Washington insiders who supported the war in Iraq.
Mr Dean and Missouri Congressman Mr Dick Gephardt are leading the pack in Iowa, with Massachusetts Senator John Kerry and North Carolina Senator John Edwards trailing.
Outsider Mr Dennis Kucinich of Ohio also attacked Mr Dean for saying he could balance the budget without cutting Pentagon spending. The diminutive Mr Kucinich got the biggest laugh in the debate when he noted: "I've been wondering why the president would, while we are still in Iraq, talk about going to the Moon and going to Mars - maybe he's looking for the weapons of mass destruction still." Former general Mr Wesley Clark, who is running second nation-wide to Mr Dean, was also put on the defensive over a 2002 remark saying there was a connection between Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda - something he has since ridiculed.