Archives: Posts From August 2008
Political Speeches Cancelled for Convention's First Day
By Russell Berman | Sun, 31 Aug 2008 at 5:35 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: Convention organizers, at the behest of Senator McCain, have cancelled the political speeches scheduled for tomorrow as Republicans respond to the increasing likelihood that Hurricane Gustav will wreak havoc on the Gulf Coast.Mr. McCain spoke via ...
Away from St. Paul, Jindal Confronts A Challenge - and Opportunity
By Russell Berman | Sun, 31 Aug 2008 at 1:55 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: As a corollary to the previous post, the coming week will be an important one for Governor Jindal of Louisiana, whose words and actions during Hurricane Gustav will be watched closely. Indeed, he will likely get more television face time and more ...
A Story of No-Shows in the Twin Cities
By Russell Berman | Sun, 31 Aug 2008 at 1:39 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: On the eve of the Republican National Convention here in Minneapolis-St. Paul, it is a story of absences.In Denver, one of the major storylines was the confluence of luminaries from a half-century of Democratic politics: there was Ted Kennedy on the ...
Clinton Congratulates Palin, Says 'We Should All Be Proud'
By Russell Berman | Fri, 29 Aug 2008 at 4:31 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: Senator Clinton has just released a rather gracious statement on Senator McCain's selection of Governor Palin of Alaska as his running mate. "We should all be proud of Governor Sarah Palin's historic nomination, and I congratulate her and Senator ...
Alaska Governor's Website Not Working
By Russell Berman | Fri, 29 Aug 2008 at 1:55 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: The official Alaska governor's Web site is not working at the moment, a possible sign that the influx of people wondering just who Sarah Palin is may have caused the site to crash ...
The View From Inside Invesco
By SETH GITELL | Thu, 28 Aug 2008 at 11:45 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: It's a remarkable thing to watch one man address more than 70,000. Even from my vantage point right on the 50 yard line, Senator Obama's head was only a dot.On video monitors to the right and the left of the Greek columns that surrounded the dot, massive ...
Food Frustration at Invesco
By SETH GITELL | Thu, 28 Aug 2008 at 9:25 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: People power might be doing a great job energizing Barack Obama's campaign, but it's not doing so well at Invesco Field – at least as far as the concession stands are concerned.It's no surprise that the lines for food were long before Mr. Obama's speech ...
Crowds Seek Entry to Invesco Center
By SETH GITELL | Thu, 28 Aug 2008 at 8:30 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: I just made my way into the Invesco Center. Per the recommendation of Convention authorities, I took Denver's light rail and found a smooth way in.As passengers exited the train and made their way to the stadium, they were met with scores of supplicants ...
DNC Vignettes: $80 Parking, Former Chair at the Fence
By Josh Gerstein | Thu, 28 Aug 2008 at 7:24 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: Hordes of people are milling amid some chaos outside the Invesco Field as tens of thousands of delegates, press, community members, and VIPs try to make their way into the heavily secured site.There's no parking for the general public at the stadium ...
A Pricey Anti-Poverty Ad
By JOSH GERSTEIN | Thu, 28 Aug 2008 at 5:47 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: A bare-bones, anti-poverty television advertisement featuring the face of Matt Damon, along with the voices of Cindy McCain, Michelle Obama, and Mayor Bloomberg and others, cost nearly a quarter of a million dollars to produce, federal records show.A ...
McCain to Congratulate Obama in Ad Airing Tonight
By Russell Berman | Thu, 28 Aug 2008 at 4:53 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: Senator McCain's campaign just released a television ad to run tonight around the time that Senator Obama will accept the Democratic presidential nomination. The 30-second spot features Mr. McCain speaking directly to the camera and congratulating Mr ...
Michelle Obama Again Pays Tribute to Clinton
By Russell Berman | Thu, 28 Aug 2008 at 3:36 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: Michelle Obama paid tribute yet again to Senator Clinton as she addressed the convention's women's caucus here this morning. "Thanks to her, my husband is a better candidate," she said. "Thanks to her, his campaign is a better campaign. And thanks to ...
Maine, Guam in Bitter Solar Dispute
By Josh Gerstein | Wed, 27 Aug 2008 at 6:24 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: The Democratic Convention delegations from Maine and Guam may see eye to eye about Senator Obama, but they disagree about something as basic as where the sun comes up first in the morning.Guam's delegation, when offering their vote, repeated their slogan ...
Congresswoman Invokes Judaism, Israel While Nominating Obama
By Josh Gerstein | Wed, 27 Aug 2008 at 6:00 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: Departing from her pre-released text, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida just mentioned her Judaism and Senator Obama's views on Israel as she seconded Mr. Obama's nomination for president at the Democratic National Convention in Denver."As an ...
Obama Adviser: Next President's First Term May Be Last Chance for Mideast Peace
By Josh Gerstein | Wed, 27 Aug 2008 at 4:54 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: A senior foreign policy adviser to Senator Obama, Gregory Craig, is arguing that the next four years may offer a final opportunity to achieve peace in the Middle East."This is, maybe, a last chance this next term," Mr. Craig said at a foreign policy ...
Barney Frank A Hit at LGBT Event
By Russell Berman | Wed, 27 Aug 2008 at 12:05 AM | Permalink
Excerpt: Rep. Barney Frank of Massachusetts is known for a speaking style that matches his last name, and he didn't disappoint this afternoon as he addressed an LGBT caucus luncheon here.Mr. Frank, who is openly gay, lambasted Senator McCain with backhanded ...
Nafta? What's Nafta?
By Josh Gerstein | Tue, 26 Aug 2008 at 11:58 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: Is Senator Obama's campaign making a deliberate effort to tone down Democrats' public pillorying of free trade agreements like Nafta?It certainly seemed that way tonight at the Democratic National Convention here in Denver. Labor leaders, workers, and ...
Teleprompter Runs for Sightless Paterson
By Russell Berman | Tue, 26 Aug 2008 at 9:10 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: Governor Paterson may be legally blind, but that didn't stop Democratic convention officials from running the teleprompter during his speech this afternoon. Mr. Paterson can only read when holding written pages extremely close to his face, and he ...
Biden: After Iraq, Court Will Be Obama's Most Important Legacy
By Josh Gerstein | Tue, 26 Aug 2008 at 5:23 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: Senator Biden wants voters and Democratic activists to put more focus on the consequences for the Supreme Court that will flow from the outcome of this fall's presidential race."Other than ending the war in Iraq, the single most significant thing that ...
Biden Warns of GOP Attack on Spending
By Josh Gerstein | Tue, 26 Aug 2008 at 4:41 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: Senator Biden of Delaware sounded more like a sage political strategist than an attack dog when he appeared with Michelle Obama at a women-focused economic forum in Denver this morning.After hearing heart-rending stories from several women who faced ...
UPDATE: Hotel Says 'Green' Key Card Problems Fixed
By Russell Berman | Tue, 26 Aug 2008 at 2:54 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: We have an update regarding our post Sunday about problems that guests at the Sheraton in downtown Denver were having with sustainable wooden hotel key cards being used as part of the effort to make this year's convention the "greenest" ever. The hotel ...
Rangel on Convention Speech: 'I Had No Idea'
By Russell Berman | Tue, 26 Aug 2008 at 1:37 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: Rep. Charles Rangel of Harlem voiced (feigned?) surprise this morning when reporters asked him about his being added to the roster of convention speakers this afternoon. "I have? Really?" He said he had "no idea" what he was going to talk about."I didn't ...
Spike Lee Talks Tough About Clinton
By Seth Gitell | Tue, 26 Aug 2008 at 12:21 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: New York filmmaker and Barack Obama supporter Spike Lee is talking tough about Senator Clinton, who speaks tonight at the Democratic National Convention."I hope that Senator Clinton from the great state of New York, "the Empire State", gets her folks in ...
Added 'T' Amounts to DNC Snub for Paterson
By Russell Berman | Tue, 26 Aug 2008 at 10:21 AM | Permalink
Excerpt: Governor Paterson is new to the national stage, and it appears some Democratic officials have yet to learn how to spell his name. Mr. Paterson, who has now been on the job for five months, will address the party's national convention this afternoon ...
Rangel to Address Convention
By Russell Berman | Tue, 26 Aug 2008 at 10:13 AM | Permalink
Excerpt: The dean of the New York congressional delegation, Rep. Charles Rangel of Harlem, has been quietly added to the convention speakers roster, according to a schedule released by party officials.Mr. Rangel will address the convention this afternoon shortly ...
Casey: McCain Should Get His Money Back for TV Spots
By Seth Gitell | Mon, 25 Aug 2008 at 7:11 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: Senator Casey of Pennsylvania is suggesting that John McCain get a refund from his campaign consultant for his campaign ads.Asked about potential Republican attacks, Mr. Casey, who served as a surrogate for Mr. Obama in heavily Catholic and blue collar ...
At N.Y. Breakfast, 'Mixed Emotions'
By Russell Berman | Mon, 25 Aug 2008 at 3:21 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: As New York's 361-member convention delegation gathered to hear Senator Clinton address their breakfast meeting this morning, there was a palpable sense of what-might-have-been."Hillary for President" placards had been replaced by the more polite ...
Clinton Asks Hispanics to Get Behind Obama
By Josh Gerstein | Mon, 25 Aug 2008 at 2:40 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: The Hispanic activists who were among Senator Clinton's most loyal supporters gave her a rousing welcome this morning when she turned up at the Hispanic caucus meeting at the Democratic National Convention in Denver.As he introduced Mrs. Clinton, Senator ...
Convention Prompts Food Shortage in Mile High City
By Josh Gerstein | Mon, 25 Aug 2008 at 2:12 AM | Permalink
Excerpt: The crush of delegates, politicians, and journalists descending on Denver for the Democratic National Convention has proven too much for the "Taco Bell" branch on the 16th Street pedestrian mall."Sorry, we are out of chicken, beef, pizzas," reads a ...
In Denver, Jewish Dems Kvell Over Biden
By Josh Gerstein | Mon, 25 Aug 2008 at 1:18 AM | Permalink
Excerpt: Jewish Democrats in Denver for the Democratic National Convention are kvelling over Senator Obama's decision to choose Senator Biden of Delaware as his runningmate, judging by reaction at a reception hosted last night by the National Jewish Democratic ...
Ted Kennedy Will Speak
By Seth Gitell | Mon, 25 Aug 2008 at 12:18 AM | Permalink
Excerpt: I just left the delegation party for Massachusetts, where I heard John Kerry speak. Kerry spoke with effusive praise for his counterpart in the senate, Ted Kennedy.I've just gotten the word that Kennedy, who has been stricken with brain cancer, will ...
Praise for Clinton, Biden at N.Y. Delegation Events
By Russell Berman | Mon, 25 Aug 2008 at 12:03 AM | Permalink
Excerpt: New York supporters of Senator Clinton attending two state delegation receptions this evening were unaware of reports by the Associated Press and CNN that she plans to formally release her delegates to Senator Obama on Wednesday. But the dean of the ...
Convention 'Greening' Goes Awry (Updated)
By Russell Berman | Sun, 24 Aug 2008 at 5:14 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: The Democrats have embarked on a highly visible effort to make their convention the "greenest" ever, focusing on everything from expanded recycling to more creative programs like encouraging Denver restaurants to offer "lean 'n green" meals made with ...
Watching the Clinton Drama in Denver
By Russell Berman | Sun, 24 Aug 2008 at 4:12 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: The Sun's Josh Gerstein, Russell Berman, and Seth Gitell are here at the Democratic National Convention in sunny, mile-high Denver, and as delegates, party activists, reporters, and protesters converge on the city, one of the most closely-watched ...
Watching the New York Delegation React to Biden
By Seth Gitell | Sat, 23 Aug 2008 at 3:38 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: I am sitting in the lobby of the Sheraton Denver Hotel, where New York's delegation is staying. A flat screen television is showing Barack Obama's speech from Springfield. A large crowd has assembled and supporters are clapping along with the applause ...
Obama, Clinton Release Statement on Roll Call Vote at the DNC
By Staff Reporter of the Sun | Thu, 14 Aug 2008 at 1:00 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: Senator Clinton's supporters will receive an opportunity to cast a vote in her favor at the Democratic National Convention. The symbolic move, in the form of a roll call vote of the states, was announced by Senators Clinton and Obama released a joint ...
Eli Lake and Matthew Lee on bloggingheads.tv
By Eli Lake | Mon, 4 Aug 2008 at 4:36 PM | Permalink
Excerpt: Eli Lake and Matthew Lee discuss the international criminal court, international law and the international system ...
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