Friday, July 11, 2008

DNC Convention Media Walkthrough At Pepsi Center - Video



This is the video -- 35 minutes long -- of my trip to the DNC Convention Media Walkthrough in Denver, Colorado. It started with my flight to Denver on United that Monday night, which was delayed for about two hours. My intent was to get in during the day but because of the flight backup, I ended up getting in at 11 PM.

The other problem is that I'd not been to Denver since the age of 14. In other words, before I knew how to drive. So my first thought upon landing was "Where the hell am I." My second view was who do I call if I'm lost?

Yikes!

At any rate, the people at National Rental Car in Denver, were great. They gave me a Toyota Prius for rent at a cheap rate. I was inimidated just because it's a vastly different car, but after a short training session, and a drive, I was a big fan of the car.

Especially since it had a GPS device. That was a life-saver for me. Wow.

I finally got to my hotel room at the StayBridge Suite in Englewood, Co. Nice big place of a room, with a kitchen where I burned popcorn in a microwave oven. I am glad it was one night, because I couldn't even make a good pot of coffee -- it came out watery.

The next morning I got up to a bright, sunny ...and hot day. My wakeup call was 6 AM and I got going after 30 min more of slumber. Hey. I need my sleep.

After a rush-hour drive, I got to the Pepsi Center, got my credential, and made a video of interviews with Rich Grant and Chris Lopez, the communications directors for the Denver Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Denver DNC Host Committee, respectively. Grant said that he expected an economic impact of $164 million and Lopez cleared up the funding news regarding the DNC Convention, saying that of almost $40 million needed, about 70 percent, or $28 million, was raised, and that about $11 million was remaining.

Then I headed to the Media breakfast and meet and greet, where I met a number of people that I interviewed in the video and will expound more on later.

...Developing.

McCain Elderly Protester Removed - Brandon Keating Sr Starts With A Bang

YouTuber Brandon Keating Sr. started off his appearance on Zennie's Zeitgeist with a bang, presenting his take on a video of an elderly John McCain protester's unnecessary and questionable treatment by law enforcement. Welcome Brandon and keep them coming!

See it with a click here > BRANDON!

Netroots Blog Caltics Attacking Senator Diane Feinstein



I happened to visit the Calitcs Blog, when I saw an article calling for nothing less than the censure of Senator Diane Feinstein. Why? Because of her support for the FISA bill that just past, and her alledged role as swing vote confirming, as Caltics put it, the appointments of Michael Mukasey, President Bush's torture-condoning nominee for Attorney General, and Leslie Southwick, a racist and homophobic judge.

Yikes!

It seems that no action has stopped Feinstein, according to Caltics.:

We've tried everything to get Sen. Feinstein's attention. Phone calls. Emails. Faxes. Petitions. Protests. Smoke signals. We even launched an online petition supporting a proposed California Democratic Party censure resolution of Sen. Feinstein last November that spread like wildfire across the grassroots, with 35,039 Californians signing on in support.

The censure movement also catalyzed national media attention, fueled by endorsements from MoveOn.org, Progressive Democrats of America, the California Democratic Party Women's Caucus and Progressive Caucus, as well as 38 chartered Democratic Clubs across California.

A number of people have asked if the Courage Campaign would support holding Senator Feinstein accountable for caving on warrantless wiretapping by re-launching the censure resolution inside the California Democratic Party. It's an important question but, frankly, a censure resolution is merely a piece of paper unless there's a people-powered movement behind it.

That's why we're putting this decision in your hands today. If grassroots and netroots activists across California support a new censure resolution of Senator Feinstein, we will launch a censure campaign leading up to the California Democratic Party's next Executive Board meeting.


Yikes!

The problem is when is that meeting? The site of the California State Democratic Party presents the standing committees, but no meeting date for an "Executive Board."

I should have asked Cal Dem Party head Art Torres when I saw him at the Karen Bass event.

FISA is for "Foreign"

The last time I checked, the title of the FISA bill was Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, not "American" or AISA. What's the deal? Are we growing a nation of people who can't read? I have no problem with the FISA bill vote. But the other Feinstein matters deserve the once over. I'd stop short of calling for a censure, however. I think a fair reading of Feinstein's accomplishments is in order. Stay tuned.


FISA

DNC Convention - DNCC Releases List of Credentialed Blogs

Which blogs are the "credentialed blogs" for the DNC Convention? Here's a list below. This blog also has a blog roll of them if you look to the right and scroll down. But here's the list:

2008 Democratic Convention Watch http://demconwatch.blogspot.com

43rdStateBlues.com http://43rdstateblues.com

AFL-CIO NOW Blog http://blog.aflcio.org

African American Political Pundit http://aapoliticalpundit.blogspot.com

AMERICAblog.com http://americablog.com

Asian American Action Fund Blog http://aaa-fund.com

Badlands Blue http://badlandsblue.com

Bagnews Notes http://bagnewsnotes.com

Beliefnet http://beliefnet.com

Bitch Ph.D. http://bitchphd.blogspot.com

Blogger News Network http://bloggernews.net

Blogging For Michigan http://bloggingformichigan.com

BlogHer http://blogher.com

Blue Hampshire http://bluehampshire.com

Blue Indiana http://blueindiana.net

Blue Jersey http://bluejersey.com

Blue Mass. Group http://bluemassgroup.com

BlueGrassRoots http://bluegrassroots.org

BlueNC.com http://bluenc.com

BlueOregon http://blueoregon.com

Buckeye State Blog http://buckeyestateblog.com

Burnt Orange Report http://BurntOrangeReport.com

Calitics http://Calitics.com

Campus Progress http://campusprogress.org

Celtic Diva's Blue Oasis http://divasblueoasis.blogspot.com

Change to Win http://changetowin.org

Colorado Confidential http://coloradoconfidential.com

Cotton Mouth Blog http://cottonmouthblog.blogspot.com

CracktheBell.com http://crackthebell.com

Crooks and Liars http://crooksandliars.com

culturekitchen http://culturekitchen.com

Daily Kingfish http://dailykingfish.com

Daily Kos http://dailykos.com

Dallas South Blog http://dallassouthblog.com

DCist.com http://dcist.com

Democracy Arsenal http://democracyarsenal.org

Democracy for New Mexico http://DemocracyForNewMexico.com

Democratic Party of the U.S. Virgin Islands http://groups.yahoo.com/...

Democratic Underground http://democraticunderground.com

Democrats Abroad Argentina http://yanquimike.com.ar

DemoOkie http://DemoOkie.com

Digby's Hullabaloo http://digbysblog.blogspot.com

Disaboom.com http://disaboom.com

Doc's Political Parlor http://politicalparlor.net

DoubleSpeak http://doublespeakshow.com

Eschaton http://atrios.blogspot.com

EverydayCitizen.com http://everydaycitizen.com

Fired Up! http://firedupmissouri.com

Firedoglake http://firedoglake.com

Florida Progressive Coalition http://flaprogressives.org

Future Majority http://futuremajority.com

Georgia Politics Unfiltered http://georgiaunfiltered.blogspot.com

Green Mountain Daily http://greenmountaindaily.com

Grist Magazine http://grist.org/

Group News Blog http://groupnewsblog.net

HispanicTips.com http://hispanictips.com

HorsesAss.org http://horsesass.org

HummingbirdMinds Blog http://hummingbirdminds.blogspot.com

iLind.net http://ilind.net

Indianz.com http://indianz.com

Jack and Jill Politics http://jackandjillpolitics.com

Jusiper http://jusiper.blogspot.com

Keystone Politics http://keystonepolitics.com

KnoxViews http://knoxviews.com

Las Vegas Gleaner http://lasvegasgleaner.com

Left In Alabama http://leftinalabama.com

Left in the West http://leftinthewest.com

Michigan Liberal http://michiganliberal.com

Minnesota Monitor http://minnesotamonitor.com

MOMocrats http://momocrats.typepad.com

My Left Nutmeg http://myleftnutmeg.com

MyDD http://mydd.com

New Nebraska Network http://NewNebraska.net

NewsOne.com http://newsone.com

No Rest for the Awake http://minagahet.blogspot.com

NorthDecoder.com http://northdecoder.com

Obsidian Wings http://obsidianwings.blogs.com

Ohio Daily Blog http://ohiodailyblog.com

OliverWillis.com http://oliverwillis.com

Open Left http://openleft.com

Pam's House Blend http://pamshouseblend.com

Political Base http://politicalbase.com

Political Wire http://politicalwire.com

PoliticalLunch.com http://PoliticalLunch.com

PolitickerNJ.com http://politickernj.com

PoliticsOnline http://politicsonline.com

Pop and Politics http://popandpolitics.com

Prairie State Blue http://PrairieStateBlue.com

RaceWire http://racewire.org

Raising Kaine http://raisingkaine.com

Raw Story http://rawstory.com

Rhode Island's Future http://rifuture.org

Room 8 http://r8ny.com

Rum, Romanism and Rebellion http://rumromanismrebellion.net

RuralVotes http://ruralvotes.com/...

Scholars & Rogues http://scholarsandrogues.com

Seeing the Forest http://seeingtheforest.com

Sepia Mutiny http://sepiamutiny.com

SquareState.net http://squarestate.net

Talking Points Memo http://talkingpointsmemo.com

TalkLeft http://talkleft.com

Taylor Marsh http://taylormarsh.com

The Albany Project http://thealbanyproject.com

The Center for Emerging Media http://centerforemergingmedia.com

The Iowa Independent http://iowaindependent.com

The Natchez Blog http://natchezms.blogspot.com

The Seminal http://theseminal.com

The UpTake http://theuptake.org

The Utah Amicus http://utahamicus.com

The Washington Independent http://washingtonindependent.com

Think Youth http://thinkyouth.org

Thought Theater http://thoughttheater.com

TommyWonk http://tommywonk.blogspot.com/

Tondee's Tavern http://tondeestavern.com

Towleroad http://towleroad.com

Turn Maine Blue http://turnmaineblue.com

Under The Dome.com http://underthedome.com

Uppity Wisconsin http://uppitywis.org

USAmerica Vota '08 http://usamericavota08.blogspot.com

VivirLatino.com http://vivirlatino.com

West Virginia Blue http://wvablue.com

What About Our Daughters? Blog http://whataboutourdaughters.com

Working Life http://workinglife.org

Zennie's Zeitgeist http://zennie2005.blogspot.com

Faith, Hope, and the Courtship of South Carolina

South Carolina hasn't voted for a Democrat for president since Jimmy Carter. According to Linda Hansen, the voters in the "Palmetto State" have been no use to "liberal" candidates after primary season:
"Truth to tell, we South Carolinians have been jilted before we got to the altar so many times we don't bother with trousseau shoppin' any more. We've lost faith. Abandoned hope. The Dems gave up on us long ago and the GOP knows we can be had, cheap."

Come senators, congressmen
Please heed the call
Don't stand in the doorway
Don't block up the hall...

Senators Obama and McCain

The times?

They are a-changing: In the summer of 2007 Senator Barack Obama promised the people of South Carolina he'd work for them if they'd have him. Obama's keeping his promise, which reflects his fifty state strategy.

Ms. Hansen compares the state of the McCain & Obama campaigns, and while the polls suggest that McCain has the traditional lead, the mood on the ground is - evidently - not indicative of a Republican lock on the electoral votes come November.


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