Flip the coin over. The Democrats in Charlotte are planning what they consider a kind of antithesis of what the Republicans just did in Tampa, and, they believe, it's as much about population and platform as it is about publicizing policy.
“I think it's a little different than the Republicans,” offered Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaragosa, with little subtlety, Monday morning. The convention’s chairman said the party wanted the convention to "crystallize what's at stake in this election - a choice between a candidate who wants to build the economy from the middle out, versus one who wants to build the economy from the top down."
He said the quadrennial DNC celebration will be the most “diverse, in every respect.” And then he proceeded to list the cultures, classes and ethnicities that will be represented in the hall. “You’ll see people from every walk of life,” he told a roomful of reporters, “The rich, the poor, black, white, Latino, Asian, Muslims and Jews, Christians, all celebrating.”
"The face of our party will reflect the values of our party," Villaraigosa said, adding that the party's platform also "reflects our values."
"Every single delegate will have a copy of our platform on their chairs, when they walk into the convention hall, tomorrow - nothing secret, nothing behind the back," emphasized DNC Secretary Alice Germond, who is attending her tenth Democratic Convention. She called this year's event "the most diverse, the most open, the most transparent."
So look for a lot more references, this week, to the monochromatic Mitt Romney and the pale Paul Ryan, in reference to not only the prevailing pallor of the Republican Party, but also its Pleasantvillian, binary approach to economic and social policy that is not built to suit the majority of Americans in the 21st century.
-PBG.