I decided last night not to bring my computer to the Convention floor. Last time I did it, I sat hunched over my laptop in extremely cramped quarters and typed up a few hundred words of ineffective and unpoetic observations. This time, I thought I'd go without and experience what the delegation did.
Not a bad idea, actually.
And this is probably a good time to describe what it's like to be a delegate and be on the floor...
Before going into the Convention, I grabbed a single-malt Scotch whiskey in the Media Matters Lounge -- a great upscale, well air-conditioned suite of rooms with wireless and televisions, free booze and snacks and the friendliest staff on the planet. I had some great chats with Media Matters folks about using some tools to defang the right's misleading propaganda campaign in Montana...
So...I drank a whiskey, had some finger food, looked in vain for George Lakoff, and stashed my stuff behind a couch and took off for the Pepsi Center.
There was a long line of folks waiting to go through security. It didn't take long to go through -- maybe twenty minutes -- and I've yet to experience the hour-long wait some people experienced, tho' I expect that to change tonight.
Security is similar to airport security, so it's not too stressful. It was quicker, actually.
From security I wound my way past CNN's grill/cafe to the Pepsi Center. There's different levels of access for credentials; some don't allow people inside the building. I had "Floor" access, which not only allows me into the building, but lets me go inside and down on to the floor with all the delegates. So I flash my credential enter the atrium -- a stunning, beautiful room with 100-foot ceilings and metal/glass architecture.
By this point, the crowd is thick. I joined the crowd up the escalators to the halls, which were jammed with convention-goers and staff.
Flash my pass at the entrance to the Convention and in -- and suddenly the arena opens up, a huge open space with several tiers of seats dominated by the podium in the front of the space framed by the video screens stretching to the ceiling. You've seen it on television, but it's more more vivid and stunning in person. The crowd is buzzing now, someone's speaking, no one's listening, the press pushes down the aisle looking for stories.
I went down the stairs and pushed my way through the cameras and microphones and look for Montana's sign -- there it is, but there's a crush, and I have to push through and then, there they are, the aisle's cleared, Montana's delegates are sitting in their folding chairs, looking tired and slightly bored after a long day -- it was roll call day, and they had to arrive early.
There was some drama to the roll call -- you've probably seen it. The delegates were voting for their candidates, when Clinton stopped the roll call when it reached New York to ask the convention to nominate Obama. Montana had a role; apparently the roll call was going too quickly, and Montana's delegation was asked to stall a little. So Carol Williams and Dennis McDonald did a little speechifyin'...
Here's the video from the roll call:
Montana's turn is at about 40 minutes into the video.
(And check out the WaPo's Colbert King's observations about the roll call: he was thrilled to see the wide spectrum of peoples in the country's delegation, especially Montana's. And Montana's is definitely diverse, Anglos, Native Americans, and African Americans, and a proportionate mix of men and women. That's Montana though -- this state isn't made up of white guys...despite what the rest of the country thinks.)
I missed it; I had heard press wasn't allowed on the floor during roll call -- I've got press credentials.
Anyhow, I get there and I'm standing near the aisle with Scott Martin, chatting, saying hey to the Montana delegates, when Jaime Foxx comes down the aisle with his family in tow. Serious, not making eye contact with anyone...
Speechifyin' continues...Jay Rockefeller looks like a corpse propped up to speak...John Kerry looks and sounds like a zombie, and we all agreed we can't believe we nominated him in 2004. (Oddly, Steven Benen thought Kerry was dynamite. I guess that's the difference between watching speeches live and on television.)
Then it's Bill Clinton's turn.
And by the way, the event staffers periodically hand out signs and other stuff to wave...but we're told to keep them hidden or low until a certain time during certain speeches. If you wave it too high, a phone rings at our kiosk, and we're scolded by a voice...
...okay, time's running out. I'll have thoughts on Clinton and Biden later...
