Howard Dean: Ken Cuccinelli 'Not A Guy Who Ought To Be In Public Office' (VIDEO)

Former Vermont governor and Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean joined HuffPost Live Wednesday to discuss his new project, Purple To Blue, which aims to flip state legislatures toward the Democratic column.

"If you really want to change the country, change does not happen from the top down, it happens from the bottom up," Dean told HuffPost Live host Abby Huntsman. "If you want to change American politics, you have to start at legislatures."

Dean's project, which is an outgrowth of his presidential campaigns and is now run by his brother Jim, will start in Virginia, where he says the right-wing legislature is "far out of touch" with the people.

Dean cited Virginia's Republican gubernatorial candidate Ken Cuccinelli in particular, saying he has "passed the most far-reaching anti-women legislation in the country."

"This is not a guy who ought to be in public office," Dean said of Cuccinelli.

Dean acknowledged that winning governor's races is not the main goal of his project, but says he is focused on getting "people from all over the country to help people in the legislature who are sane, thoughtful and moderate."

"This is just the beginning," he added.