MANCHESTER -- As the presidential primary battle continues between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton nationwide, local Democrats stressed unity during their annual state convention Saturday.

They talked as if talking about unity would actually heal the wounds playing out at the grassroots. Call it the audacity of hope.

At one point former party chair Kathy Sullivan, a Cinton supporter, addressed the 800 pound donkey in the room by making all delegates stand, raise their right hands and pledge they'll support the Democratic presidential nominee, whoever that might be. Jim Demers, an Obama state co-chair, repeated the same call for unity. 

Democratic National Committee Chair Howard Dean tried to make a joke of the contest by saying that "when I began to map out a 50 state strategy I did not intend 50 state primaries."

Many in the audience felt betrayed by Dean in the time since he has been national party chair. They felt he went from pledging as a presidential candidate that New Hampshire's presidential primary should always be first to presiding over a party that openly discussed scrapping it.

After Dean arrived in the building and went into a private room, U.S. Rep. Paul Hodes (D-Concord) was asked if Dean would be a President Obama's pick as party chair. Hodes is a national co-chair for Obama.

"There are going to be many issues for Obama to look at and that will be one of them," Hodes tried to say diplomatically.

But any protest of the speech came from two Clinton supporters.

State Reps. Ricia McMahon (D- North Sutton) and Eleanor Kjellman (D-Hopkinton) held signs asking that Dean seat Florida and Michigan delegations at the national convention even though they violated party rules.

Dean didn't say anything on the issue nor did he pledge to keep New Hampshire first in the future as other party chairs have in the past. Immediately after he spoke he left out a back door, got in his rental convertible and left before taking questions from reporters. (It should be noted that Michigan Democrats believe Dean is too close to New Hampshire and Iowa.)