Howard Dean lauds Hillary Clinton, mocks Mike Pence, re-enacts infamous campaign-ending yell

Howard Dean speaks at the Democratic National Convention

(Image credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images)

published 27 July 2016

Howard Dean, former Vermont governor and Democratic presidential candidate, closed out the portion of Tuesday's Democratic National Convention dedicated to Hillary Clinton and health care. He started with Clinton's pivotal role pushing through the federal State Children's Health Insurance Program, then "joining with Republican governors to get it done." Thanks to Clinton, Dean said, "eight million children who don't have to choose between paying rent and taking their kids to the doctor." ObamaCare expanded heath insurance to 20 million more Americans, and Donald Trump has vowed to rip the law up and "take us back" to the unpopular parts of the pre-ObamaCare medical system.

Trump's plan to replace ObamaCare is "'something so much better' — something huuuuge, no doubt," but "that's it, that's the whole plan." Then he took aim at Trump's running mate, saying Indiana Gov. Mike Pence voted against expanding SCHIP and mental health, and once said that when both parents work, their children suffered "stunted emotional growth." Well, Dean said, "I have a medical degree — let me tell you what really stunts children's growth." He listed some things Pence has opposed — including health care expansion and gun control — then threw in a dig at Pence's statements on cigarettes being safe.

Dean ended on a note of light-hearted self-deprecation, re-enacting the finale of a speech he gave after losing the 2004 Iowa caucuses, ending with a screech-yell widely credited with ending his bid for the Democratic presidential nomination:

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He did not actually scream out "yeeeeah!" but thanks to YouTube, you can always watch the original.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.