PI @ DNC

PI @ DNC: One Final Shot

Josh Kalven — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 10:36:54 -0700

The following video concludes Progress Illinois' coverage of the 2008 Democratic National Convention. Fittingly, it shows the view from the stands at Denver's Invesco Field last Thursday as Barack Obama wrapped up his acceptance speech, thus bringing the convention to a close.

Watch it:

PI @ DNC: Andy Stern Addresses The Illinois Delegation

Josh Kalven — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 12:08:38 -0700

On the last day of the Democratic National Convention, SEIU President Andy Stern addressed the Illinois delegation's final breakfast meeting. He began his brief speech by saying to the audience: "Thank you for Barack Obama." He went on to talk about the importance of sending the Illinois Democrat to the White House this November "to turn the page and bring back an America that works for our kids and our grandkids."

During the speech, Stern repeatedly agreed with earlier comments made by Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, who had introduced him as a "great labor leader." This was a bit surreal to watch, considering that Stern, at SEIU's own convention in June, had touted SEIU Illinois' challenge to Daley in the 2007 aldermanic election. "[W]e beat the vaunted political machine of Chicago Mayor Daley in Chicago and sent seven of his aldermen into early retirement," he said at the time. "Great work Chicago! We began to teach people about accountability." Meanwhile, Daley has repeatedly whined about SEIU's mobilization against his candidates, advancing the bogus suggestion that it represented the equivalent of political patronage.

But then again, such unlikely displays of unity and congeniality -- however short-lived -- were on display everywhere in Denver this week, clearly the result of Democrats' and progressives' laser-focus on the presidential election eight weeks from now.

PI @ DNC: Interview With Jack Darin

Josh Kalven — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 14:49:19 -0700

Yesterday, I interviewed Jack Darin, the director of the Sierra Club's Illinois chapter, on Larimer and 16th in downtown Denver. We discussed how green-friendly the DNC has been this year and touched on some Illinois environmental issues as well. Watch it:

PI @ DNC: Where We've Been Working

Josh Kalven — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 12:08:36 -0700

In an earlier email, I mentioned that Adam and I have been working off-and-on in something called the Big Tent. This two-story facility, set up temporarily for the four days of the DNC, housed about 400 bloggers over the course of the convention. Upstairs, various speakers and panels took to a stage to discuss and debate various issues. Meanwhile on the ground floor, bloggers crammed into the air-conditioned workspace you see above, where food and drink (not to mention massages) were available throughout the day.

Visiting the room were various political figures (Dick Durbin, Chuck Schumer, Andy Stern, Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer, our own Alexi Giannoulias, etc.) and celebrities (I saw Sarah Silverman and Darryl Hannah, but there were apparently many others). Also in the mix were reporters and news crews from the cable networks, print outlets, and even other countries (case in point: Adam was interviewed by German TV on the first day).

This was clearly not a distraction-free environment and we often had to escape to find some peace and quiet. Nonetheless, it was great to have a headquarters for the progressive blogosphere, who turned out in force as a result.

Here's one more pic. Fittingly, DailyKos founder Markos Moulitsas can be seen in the foreground:

PI @ DNC: Interview With Rep. Phil Hare

Josh Kalven — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 11:34:33 -0700

On Wednesday, I conducted a brief interview with Rep. Phil Hare following the Illinois delegation breakfast meeting. We discussed the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) and how he's known on Capitol Hill as "labor's guy."

(Due to some poor camera placement on my part, this interview features a few cameo appearances. Among those who walk through the shot: Chicago Ald. George Cardenas, Sun-Times columnist Carol Marin, and Crain's Greg Hinz.)

A day earlier, Hare addressed the delegation and had more to say about the EFCA. Watch it:

PI @ DNC: Durbin On The Jumbotron (UPDATED)

Josh Kalven — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 09:57:57 -0700

After hours of speeches and musical acts at Invesco field yesterday evening, Illinois' own Sen. Dick Durbin took to the stage to introduce his colleague and friend Barack Obama. About 36 hours earlier, I'd spoken briefly with Durbin at the Illinois delegation breakfast and noticed that (like many other attendees) he seemed to be losing his voice. Or maybe he was just saving it, because he didn't appear to have any problem addressing the stadium last night. Here's a brief video taken during Durbin's remarks:

Adam already gave his thoughts from the upper deck, so I'll give mine from a lower vantage point in the stadium.

I agree that Obama's condemnation of the GOP's "ownership society" conceit was a highlight of the speech. As was Barack's simple statement that his Republican opponent "just doesn't get it," which he put forth after noting Phil Gramm's "mental recession" comments and McCain's definition of middle class as those earning under $5 million.

Beyond capitalizing on the McCain campaign's missteps, Obama also took many of the attacks leveled at him over the past few months and deftly turned them on their head.

I too was rather stunned by the four or five ordinary Americans who, with grace and poise, addressed the enormous crowd in the hour before Obama's speech. After the event, a friend of mine asked: "What did they do to those people to get them to speak in front of 70,000 people?" They did seem remarkably comfortable in this monumental setting.

But then, so did everyone in attendance. The atmosphere in the stadium was really lovely and a marked contrast to the crazy, jostling nature of the Pepsi Center during the first three nights of the convention. As Ezra Klein writes, it felt like a "clean break":

Physically abandoning the recycled air and florescent lights of the Pepsi Center for the soft sun and incredible size of Invesco Field created the impression of a clean break with all that came before it. It was as if the first three days were the Democratic Party's convention, when the usual lineup of pols and dignitaries got rewarded for their service, and the final night was Obama's convention, where Obama, all on his lonesome, defined the contours of the campaign and laid out what he meant liberalism to look like on his watch.

Indeed.

But most moving of all was the trial that many attendees endured to simply get in the stadium. We showed up on the West side of Invesco around 3:30 pm -- five hours before Obama's speech -- only to watch one of the longest lines I've ever witnessed unfold before us. No water in sight, the sun sweltering overhead, the crowd nonetheless seemed relatively docile -- willing to wait as long as it took, determined to be part of history. And while some shuffled forward for three or four hours before getting in, I doubt any regret it today.

UPDATE: Here's a photo taken near the end of the line around 3 pm yesterday. This doesn't really do it justice, though you can get a sense of how far from the stadium these folks are at this point. When I took this photo, the line was coiling into itself in this parking lot. By the time I left, the lot had almost filled. I hear that after countless people called the DNC hotline, the cops eventually showed up and sorted things out.

Click for high-res version.

PI @ DNC: YoYo Economics At Invesco

Adam Doster — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 09:15:13 -0700

I agree with Digby that this was the key section of Barack Obama's acceptance speech last night.

For over two decades, he's subscribed to that old, discredited Republican philosophy - give more and more to those with the most and hope that prosperity trickles down to everyone else. In Washington, they call this the Ownership Society, but what it really means is - you're on your own. Out of work? Tough luck. No health care? The market will fix it. Born into poverty? Pull yourself up by your own bootstraps - even if you don't have boots. You're on your own.

Well it's time for them to own their failure.

Ripped right from Jared Bernstein, this new formulation strikes to the heart of why John McCain and the Republican Party are unequipped to deal with economic insecurity in this country. As Obama put it, McCain and his cohorts are abandoning the "American Promise," a smart turn of phrase for a candidate hoping to convince the nation of his judgment and pragmatism. It wasn't the biggest applause line of the night, but it proved Obama is ready to take the fight to the ideology that has failed this nation by every conceivable measure, and that's a fight he should win.

A few other stray thoughts from Invesco last night.

- It was an absolute madhouse trying to get into the stadium, but it was well worth the (three hour) wait. I still haven't seen what the optics looked like on TV, but from the upper deck, it was a truly breathtaking sight.

- Stevie Wonder could be the coolest cat on the face of the earth.

- John Kerry delivered a stinging speech Wednesday and last night it was Al Gore's turn. In some ways, it speaks to Obama's oratorical skills that he can deliver stunning address after stunning address while under the same pressures that stifled these two previous Democratic nominees' energies in 2000 and 2004.

- Whoever came up with the idea to feature a series of regular Joes and Janes testifying about their support of the Democratic nominee should get a massive raise. From the Detroit Teamster to the New Mexico educator, they offered moving anecdotes with poise and gravitas, which the the crowd ate up. And you just have to tip your cap to whoever wrote this line for Barney Smith, a laid-off factory worker from Marion, IN: "We need a president who puts Barney Smith before Smith Barney." Watch it:

Overall, a wonderful evening that I won't soon forget. Now we can turn our attention to Minnesota, where Republicans will undoubtedly talk about Obama -- and not their own ideas -- four four straight nights. Let the fun begin.

PI @ DNC: Off To Invesco ...

Josh Kalven — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 12:51:17 -0700

Adam and I are calling it a day and heading off to the mile-long line outside Mile High Stadium. We'll be back tomorrow morning with video, photos, and our impressions of Obama's speech before 70,000.

PI @ DNC: Luis Gutierrez On The Undocumented

Josh Kalven — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 12:19:10 -0700

On Tuesday, Rep. Luis Gutierrez spoke before the Illinois DNC delegation and ended his remarks by discussing his pride in Illinois' record on immigration rights.

Watch it:

PI @ DNC: Interview With Rep. Jan Schakowsky

Josh Kalven — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 10:31:04 -0700

Yesterday, I spoke to Rep. Jan Schakowsky about her impressions on the Democratic National Convention. I also asked her to address all those Illinois progressives who are torn between volunteering locally or heading to battleground states to help Barack Obama.

Watch it:

More coverage of Schakowsky at the DNC can be found here, here, and here.