US: And then there were ten. Retired army general Wesley Clark yesterday joined nine other Democratic hopefuls for the United States presidency, making his declaration in the customary sea of flags and platitudes at a ceremony in his home town of Little Rock, Arkansas.
His main message is that as a former leader of NATO, he has proved himself as a tested leader. "Now we need leaders who will put the best interests of all the people first," he stated.
The retired four-star general is regarded as a wild card in a wide-open race for the nomination. He is far behind in money raising, with only $1.5 million committed compared to front-runner Mr Howard Dean who is in the process of raising well over $20 million this quarter alone.
But he has considerable backing from leading Democrats eager to have a candidate opposed to the war and with the military credentials to undercut President Bush's wartime popularity.
Many of the leading strategists from the Clinton-Gore campaign have joined his campaign which has the potential of sapping support from the most prominent candidates already in the field.
Former Vermont Governor Mr Dean is after yesterday no longer the most prominent anti-war candidate, Senator John Kerry is no longer the lone war veteran - Clark like Kerry was wounded in Vietnam - and Senators John Edwards of North Carolina and Bob Graham of Florida no longer have exclusive claim to the southern vote.
Gen Clark made his announcement at a teenagers' club as supporters waved American flags and passed out "Clark" chocolate bars. "My name is Wes Clark. I am from Little Rock, Arkansas. And I am here to announce that I intend to seek the presidency of the United States of America," he said.
He promised: "We're going to run a campaign that will move this country forward not back", pledging to "talk straight to the American people".
The general is more accustomed to making speeches in academic settings, and his style failed to ignite quite the same level of wild enthusiasm that professional politicians can produce on such occasions.
He showed himself to be quick on his feet however. When someone shouted "Give 'em hell, General," he replied, "We're going to give them the truth, and they'll think it's hell."
He added: "You took an inconceivable idea and you made it conceivable . . . We are going to hold this administration accountable for its policies, and its results, but remember: the results belong to us. They are the foundation upon which we must build anew."
The new candidate, in imitation of Mr Dean, plans to capitalise on the "Draft Clark" movement on the Internet to gain funds and nationwide momentum, and he will also use his good looks to push his campaign on television.
His main problem is catching up with the nine competitors in Iowa and New Hampshire where the first primaries take place in January.
Many analysts believe, despite his protestations, that Gen Clark is actually positioning himself for the vice-presidency and that whoever emerges in the lead from the primaries will be tempted to ask the general to join the ticket as insurance on national security issues.
Mr Dean has already had several discussions with Gen Clark about running together.
Gen Clark attacked President Bush on his tax-cutting economic policies yesterday, claiming that they "have cost us more jobs than our economy has had the energy to create." The former NATO commander also took issue with the administration's conduct of the war on terrorism.
"More than 100,000 American troops are fighting abroad and once again Americans are concerned about their civil liberties," he said.
Gen Clark, like President Clinton, was a Rhodes scholar at Oxford. He is 58 and married with one son. He has never held political office.