Democratic National Convention Thread

[MrsSpringsteen]

Thought it was better to have a separate thread

Condoms a hit at convention
By Rachelle Cohen / DNC Notebook | Monday, August 25, 2008 | http://www.bostonherald.com | 2008 Campaign News

DENVER – Forget the T-shirts and the Obama buttons, the convention souvenir to score (dreadful pun intended) come courtesy of Angus McQuillken, vice president for public affairs of the Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts.

It’s a condom wrapped in a bright magenta matchbook cover that says, “PROTECT YOURSELF FROM JOHN MCCAIN (in this election).”

Actually there’s a series of 10 -- because there are “10 things everyone should know about John McCain” says Planned Parenthood. So delegates may want to collect them like playing cards -- you know, trade them with your friends, etc. Number 8 happens to want that McCain “wants to nominate Supreme Court justices who are ‘clones’ of conservative justices Alito and Roberts.”

McQuilken confessed he was a little skittish about taking his calling cards, so to speak, into the Pepsi Center. But security screeners seem more concerned about laptops and camera equipment than condom collections.

 

[MrsSpringsteen]

Kennedy hopes to give speech at convention

By Susan Milligan, Globe Staff | August 25, 2008

DENVER - In a moment that is sure to bring down the house, US Senator Edward M. Kennedy is expected to attend the Democratic National Convention, most likely to deliver a speech tonight.

Kennedy has been battling brain cancer since May, and his doctors are said to be worried that his treatment has compromised his immune system and that attending the convention could put him at further risk. Still, the senator has recently told people that he has a speech written for the convention and that he badly wants to come, pending a final medical consultation.

Buzz has built among Massachusetts politicos that Kennedy would come, and yesterday a Bay State Democrat close to the family confirmed that Kennedy has decided to travel to Denver, probably for an opening-night address. Convention organizers already had planned to show a documentary tonight by filmmakers Ken Burns and Mark Herzog that is a video tribute to Kennedy's nearly 46 years of service in the Senate.

"He is definitely planning to be here," said the Kennedy family confidant. "The whole Kennedy family will be in a special section. It should be quite a moment."

Among Kennedy family members expected to convene in Denver are sister Jean Kennedy Smith, sister-in-law Ethel Kennedy, nephews Joseph P. Kennedy II and Stephen Smith, and nieces Kathleen Kennedy Townsend and Caroline Kennedy, who will also address the convention.

A Kennedy speech is usually a convention highlight, and the senator revels in giving addresses that excite the crowd. This year's speech should be especially poignant in light of his illness. Kennedy prompted an emotional display among colleagues of both parties in the US Senate when he returned to the chamber briefly on July 9 to cast a decisive vote on a healthcare measure, even though he was undergoing intensive treatment at the time.

 

[DaveC]

DNC

It's a shame I won't get to watch any of it though - I don't have cable TV, and all I get is CBC, CTV, and Global so the only updates I'll get will be whatever's on the evening news.

 

[LarryMullen's POPAngel]

There seems to be no happy medium - here we'll get ad nauseum coverage, everywhere else will get next to nothing. Grr, America.

 

[U2democrat]

I'm looking forward to Warner's Keynote address


Heck, I'm excited about the whole thing.

 

[deep]

I'm looking forward to Warner's Keynote address
.

Let's just hope Biden does not get his hands on it and give it first.

 

[MrsSpringsteen]

Rocky Mountain News

The Boss, Bon Jovi headed for Obama's acceptance speech at Invesco Field

The Jersey boys are coming, and we ain't talking about Frankie Valli. The Boss and Bon Jovi are ready to perform.

Multiple sources confirmed to the Rocky that Jon Bon Jovi will fly in to perform two acoustic songs before Sen. Barack Obama gives his acceptance speech at Invesco Field on Thursday. After the speech, Bruce Springsteen will close out the night, presumably solo acoustic (E Street Band member Nils Lofgren told the Rocky last week that the band wouldn't be with Springsteen in Denver).

Springsteen's people have not returned multiple requests for comment.

That better be true

 

[Jeannieco]

Rocky Mountain News

The Boss, Bon Jovi headed for Obama's acceptance speech at Invesco Field

The Jersey boys are coming, and we ain't talking about Frankie Valli. The Boss and Bon Jovi are ready to perform.

Multiple sources confirmed to the Rocky that Jon Bon Jovi will fly in to perform two acoustic songs before Sen. Barack Obama gives his acceptance speech at Invesco Field on Thursday. After the speech, Bruce Springsteen will close out the night, presumably solo acoustic (E Street Band member Nils Lofgren told the Rocky last week that the band wouldn't be with Springsteen in Denver).

Springsteen's people have not returned multiple requests for comment.

That better be true

I am so excited to be able to go to this historic event!! I can't believe I got tickets!!
Bon Jovi and Springsteen and maybe Dave Matthews, Stevie Wonder, Sheryl Crow... in one night ! Incredible.

 

[MrsSpringsteen]

I am so excited to be able to go to this historic event!! I can't believe I got tickets!!

Lucky you, have a great time



Clinton preaches unity at first convention gig, says McCain won't divide Democrats
DEVLIN BARRETT Associated Press Writer
MSNBC.com
Updated: 5:08 PM ET Aug 24, 2008

Hillary Rodham Clinton preached unity Monday in her first appearance at the Democratic National Convention, insisting she is doing everything possible to prove her full support for Barack Obama.

Her first stop in Denver was a breakfast meeting for New York Democrats, where supporters waved signs declaring "Hillary Made History."

The New York senator was quick to put Republican John McCain in her sights, saying the de facto GOP nominee was running ads using her words to try to divide the Democrats.

Clinton's response: "I'm Hillary Clinton, and I do not approve that message."

Clinton tried to acknowledge the hard feelings of the primary season while encouraging everyone to move past them.

"We were not all on the same side as Democrats, but we are now," she said. "We are united and we are together and we are determined."

After the celebratory appearance before her home state supporters, she told reporters she will do everything she can to help Obama — and not detract from a party convention designed to highlight the nominee above all else.

"There is no doubt in anyone's mind that this is Barack Obama's convention," she said, adding that it is only natural for there to be some lingering issues to resolve after a tough primary.

"It would have been the same way if I had won and Barack was here supporting the unity of the party. This was a hard fought campaign and there was a lot of intensity and passion associated with it, in part because of the historic nature of our two candidacies."

Asked why some of her supporters are still adamant they will not vote for Obama no matter how much she encourages them to do so, Clinton said: "I don't know, I'm doing everything I can possibly do, and I think we have made a strong case."

Clinton gives a prime time convention speech Tuesday night, and the following day will gather her delegates together and publicly release them and urge them to support Obama.

Many of those delegates, she said, will likely vote for him, but "others feel an obligation to the people who sent them here that they were elected to represent."

Part of her job at the convention will be letting those delegates know "that however they decide to vote, we will all be united behind Senator Obama," she said.

The senator's role at the convention has been carefully negotiated over weeks and months with Obama advisers, but Clinton denied those talks have been difficult.

"We have a very good working relationship and it is through that relationship that we have worked out a lot of the issues," she said. "I have done more in the last two months than people in my position historically have done and I am going to keep doing it."

 

[MrsSpringsteen]

Here's the schedule

Schedule for the Democratic National Convention:

------

MONDAY

Theme: "One Nation."

Headline prime-time speaker: Michelle Obama.

Others: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi; former President Carter; Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill; Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar; Maya Soetoro-Ng, Barack Obama's half-sister; Craig Robinson, Michelle Obama's older brother; Jerry Kellman, Barack Obama mentor and friend; Illinois Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr.; former Indiana Rep. Lee Hamilton; former Rep. Jim Leach, R-Iowa; Tom Balanoff, president of the Service Employees International Union Illinois State Council; Nancy Keenan, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America; Reg Weaver, president of the National Education Association; Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers; Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan; Illinois State Comptroller Dan Hynes; Illinois State Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias; Chicago City Clerk Miguel del Valle; Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper; and Miami Mayor Manny Diaz. Monday also features a tribute to Massachusetts Sen. Edward M. Kennedy.

------

TUESDAY

Theme: "Renewing America's Promise."

Headline prime-time speaker: New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Keynote address: former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner.

Others: Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy; Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey Jr.; House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer; House Democratic Caucus Chairman Rahm Emanuel; California Reps. Xavier Becerra, Linda Sanchez and Mike Honda; New York Rep. Nydia Velazquez; Wisconsin Rep. Tammy Baldwin; District of Columbia Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton; Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius; West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin; Iowa Gov. Chet Culver; Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle; Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer; Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick; Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano; Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell; Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland; New York Gov. David Paterson; Federico Pena, former secretary of energy and transportation and former Denver mayor; California State Controller John Chiang; Anna Burger, chairwoman of Change to Win; AFL-CIO President John Sweeney; Planned Parenthood Federation of America President Cecile Richards; Chris Van Hollen, Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chairman; Lilly Ledbetter, who took a pay-equity case to the Supreme Court; Sen. Barbara Mikulski of Maryland; Sen. Barbara Boxer of California; Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington, Sen. Mary Landrieu of Louisiana; Sen. Blanche Lambert Lincoln of Arkansas, Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, Sen. Claire McCaskill of Missouri; and Sen. Debbie Stabenow of Michigan.

------

WEDNESDAY

Theme: "Securing America's Future."

Headline prime-time speaker: Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware, Obama's selection as running mate.

Featured speakers include Former President Clinton; former Sen. Majority Leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota; New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson; Sens. Evan Bayh of Indiana, John Kerry of Massachusetts and Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia.

Others include Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada; Rhode Island Sen. Jack Reed; Colorado Sen. Ken Salazar; House Majority Whip James Clyburn of South Carolina; Florida Rep. Robert Wexler; and Chicago Mayor Richard Daley. Pennsylvania Rep. Patrick Murphy and Iraq war veteran Tammy Duckworth will lead a tribute to active-duty military personnel and their families.

------

THURSDAY

Theme: "Change You Can Believe In"

Barack Obama accepts the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination.

 

[Irvine511]

omg, this is so awesome. it's like a parody, only better.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDGhs_LN7Fk

my favorite part is when they start yelling "FUCK FOX NEWS" and the reporter is all, "wha? don't you believe in freedom?"

 

[Jeannieco]

Lucky you, have a great time

Hey, thank you for that! I plan on it!

 

[Diemen]

omg, this is so awesome. it's like a parody, only better.

my favorite part is when they start yelling "FUCK FOX NEWS" and the reporter is all, "wha? don't you believe in freedom?"

That's hilarious.

 

[INDY500]

Which night will they have the traditional booing of the Boy Scouts?

 

[A_Wanderer]

Do you endorse discrimination against atheists and gays with your tax dollars?

 

[Lila64]

I was listening to the news while doing some work. Heard Caroline Kennedy speak, and then went to watch. Caught the tribute video and Teddy's speech.

 

[melon]

Do you endorse discrimination against atheists and gays with your tax dollars?

As long as white Christian heterosexual males aren't discriminated against, why would one care? After all, they are the only True Americans™.

 

[deep]

they are the only True Americans™.

So true

it was White Christian males that founded this great country on Judeo-Christian values.

and it was them that fought and freed the slaves, too.

 

[Boston01]

I have a really hard time being from Massachusetts and watching everyone applaud Mr. Kennedy. I am sure many of them have never heard of Chappaquiddick. I can almost understand the respect he commands from those who have never heard of that event or those who do not know the facts surrounding it. For those who do the facts, I find it completely sickening that this man would be considered a leader in any respect.

 

[Lila64]

how about a hand for Michelle Obama!

 

[2861U2]

CNN Political Ticker: All politics, all the time Blog Archive - Carville: Dems wasting first night ? - Blogs from CNN.com

Carville: Dems wasting first night
Posted: 11:45 PM ET

(CNN) — Have the Democrats wasted the first night of the convention?

Yes, says Democratic Strategist and CNN contributor James Carville.

Speaking on CNN, Carville said the party was too soft in its attacks on John McCain Monday night — the same mistake, Carville says, Democrats made at the 2004 convention.

"The way they planned it tonight was supposed to be sort of the personal — Michelle Obama will talk about Barack Obama personally, Ted Kennedy was a very personal, emotional speech," Carville said. "But I guarantee on the first night of the Republican Convention, you're going to hear talk about Barack Obama, commander-in-chief, tax cuts, et cetera, et cetera."

"You haven't heard about Iraq or John McCain or George W. Bush — I haven't heard any of this. We are a country that is in a borderline recession, we are an 80 percent wrong-track country. Health care, energy — I haven't heard anything about gas prices," Carville also says. "Maybe we are going to look better Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. But right now, we're playing hide the message."

Carville also said the party needs to do a better job of communicating its message to the American people.

“If this party has a message it's done a hell of a job hiding it tonight, I promise you that," he said.

 

[BVS]

I've never quite understood James Carville, one moment I'll watch him say something and think he's brilliant and then the next time I see him I'll think he's just an ass...

His platform may be democratic, but I often feel like he thinks too much like a Republican.

 

[AEON]

I bet they are all happy the surge failed so miserably. Otherwise, they would look pretty foolish.

 

[deep]

James Carville may be democratic, but I often feel like he thinks too much like a Republican.

You could be right
he knows how to win elections.

 

[U2DMfan]

Carville is probably right though for the reasons Deep stated (knows how to win).

The Dems would rather win an argument than an election.

I don't think they need to get nasty but to remind people of how shitty Bush has been and to try and further the Bush3rd term narrative...

Then again, who's watching besides those who have already made up their mind? Undecideds? Maybe but I wouldn't imagine too many.

While Carville may be right, I still think he suffers from Beltway disease like much the rest. People aren't going to care until Biden gets on stage and then later, primarily Obama.

 

[MrsSpringsteen]

I don't think they have to get nasty either, but if the Republicans do and they just sit there and take it-well four more years. They need to be positive about what Democrats stand for and what Obama/Biden can do, but they also need to hammer home the sad state of affairs under Bush and how McCain is more of the same. As great as Michelle Obama's speech was, that just isn't going to do that.
Carville and all the others on CNN who were disappointed also want tabloid trash that they can get all excited and worked up about about, they're no different than FOX (or any other network) in that respect. That's why they're playing up the whole Clinton issue, trying to create dirt. That's why I like CSpan-plus you get it all unedited.

 

[Irvine511]

michelle obama was perfect. by far, the best speech i've ever seen by a political spouse. i can't imagine why anyone has any problems with her, unless they just have a problem when tall black women go to Princeton and Harvard and make successes out of their lives.

anyway, for Democrats, the table has been set. they better start serving up the red meat.

 

[melon]

i can't imagine why anyone has any problems with her, unless they just have a problem when tall black women go to Princeton and Harvard and make successes out of their lives.

Women are supposed to stay at home and raise children, duh. That's what the Princeton and Harvard educated Republican women tell us as to why God will no longer favor America someday.

 

[LarryMullen's POPAngel]

michelle obama was perfect. by far, the best speech i've ever seen by a political spouse. i can't imagine why anyone has any problems with her, unless they just have a problem when tall black women go to Princeton and Harvard and make successes out of their lives.

anyway, for Democrats, the table has been set. they better start serving up the red meat.

Is the speech available anywhere online?

 

[U2democrat]

Probably, but this part was my favorite

YouTube - Michelle Obama & Kids Talk To Barack In St. Louis