Miscellaneous observations on Day 2

On Monday, I tried to get some writing done, but it was impossible -- between media interviews, saying "hello" to cool bloggers and citizen media mavens from all over the country, doing panels, greeting visiting dignitaries, and catching up with people from progressive groups, it was impossible to get much work done.

So I was a bit frustrated.

Today I was in a better frame of mind: there was no way I was going to write during the day, so why pretend? I did more of that stuff above, and actually enjoyed it this time. I decided it wasn't going to take away from my work, but it would be my work. And when everyone cut out to the parties, I would instead head back to the hotel and do the other part of my job -- writing.

Since I don't have a twitter account, I'll collect some random thoughts in this post:

• The tradmed crawling around the Big Tent are asking the same stupid questions they asked in 2004. You'd think they would learned a thing or two the last four years and updated their list of questions. It was depressing that some of the best questions I've gotten have come from foreign reporters.
• The tradmed may be obnoxious, but lots of cool people trotting around inexpensive video gear to put up on their vlogs. Cheap technology and YouTube are wonderful, wonderful things.
• Free all-you-can-drink New Belgium beer at the Big Tent rocks. On Monday, I was all over the Fat Tire. Today I went with the Sunshine Wheat. Damn I love wheat beers, a result of living in German three years. Yum.
• Atrios is right: for all the bitching news media do about the lack of news at conventions, they all still insist on showing up. Is it the parties? Probably. Because they're not really needed.
• If it wasn't for the news media at the convention, bloggers would have far less to write about.
• It has been surprising, on the other hand, seeing how many print journalists are now trotting out video cameras for their papers' websites. We truly are headed to a world were the distinction between "print" and "broadcast" will erase.
• I did a panel today organized by the Hispanic Institute and The Common Good. On the panel, moderated by MSNBC's Dan Abrams, was me, Gov. Bill Richardson, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Harold Ford, Rep. Carolyn Maloney (NY), Tucker Carlson, DeeDee Myers, Faye Wattleton, and Newsweek's Richard Wolffe.
• I was wearing jeans, t-shirt, and sports jacket. I wore a button-down shirt on Monday, but it's too freakin' hot for those. So Tuesday I went with the more casual look. When I arrived, the other panelists were dressed professionally, as is usually the case. I get a kick being the most comfortably dressed person at these kinds of events. It reminds me how lucky I am to do what I do for a living.

  Harold Ford shows up right before the start of the convention, and he's wearing jeans (though with a button down shirt). I'm surprised. He always dresses super smart, tailored suits and all. So I point to the jeans as Abrams opens up the panel and whisper, "what's with those, I'm usually the only one with jeans." He whispers back, "I learned this look from you." I laugh politely. He looks at me seriously, "No, I really got this look from you." I wish I was as persuasive with my politics...

• Bill Richardson answered the first question, then disappeared. I get that some of these VIPs are busy people, but that seemed a bit weird.
• Don't tell my wife, but I've got a crush on Amy Klobuchar. I suddenly want to move to Minnesota. She also stuck around the whole time.
• Tucker Carlson did the typical "concern troll" thing, claiming that Obama would win if only he made eliminating affirmative action a top item on his agenda and campaigned on it. We all laughed at him.

  When I was addressed by Abrams a few questions later, I prefaced the answer to that question with a quick aside: Never trust Republicans bearing advice to Democrats, because they don't have our best interests in mind. The crowd was appreciative and cheered. Carlson fumed: "how open minded", as if being "open minded" meant taking electoral advice from the guys trying to defeat us in an election. What a tool.

• Klobuchar followed up with a suggestion that the panel vote Tucker off the panel, just like he had been voted off Dancing with the Stars. Did I mention I have a crush on her?
• An audience member asked why the media was obsessed about the Hillary/Obama supposed conflict. Dan Abrams fielded the question and said it was legitimate issue, and that they stood by it, and that since McCain was running ads on it, they couldn't offer good political coverage and ignore it.

  I jumped in (paraphrasing), "McCain has three ads on the theme, you've featured them all, yet their campaign is only actually airing one of them. You are doing the campaign's dirty work, and doing it for free!" The crowd approved.

  Abrams, suddenly under siege, admitted that was a valid critique.

• The crowd also liked the pin I was wearing. Printed up on Monday by Netroots Nation's Nolan Treadway (with help from others?) it says: "Ask me how many houses I own". (Christy took a picture of it.)
• So someone then asked me how many houses I owned. I think I calculated it at three percent of a house. The bank owns the other 97 percent.
• After the event, I was interviewed by a couple of adorable high school students. They asked me what the top three issues for kids should be. I answered 1) cost of higher education, 2) lack of jobs for graduates, 3) McCain talking about a draft, and 4) national service for all high school grads. Yeah, that's four, and yeah, I know some people don't like the idea of mandatory national service.

  I also told them that kids today are better able to integrate their politics into their lives thanks to social networking tools. That makes them more socially aware, more engaged, more tolerant, and more progressive than perhaps any generation before them. I dig the millennials.

• Back at the Big Tent, got to say "hello" to Ned Lamont and Rep. John Hall. Sen. Salazar passed through, pleased as heck that the convention was happening in his home state. Clay Johnson Aikens (not the American Idol guy) of the Sunlight Foundation and I lobbied him on electronic filing for Senate fundraising reports (which presidential and House candidates must do, but the Senate is oddly exempt), and promised to sign on as a co-sponsor to the relevant legislation. I can't believe that legislation is even controversial, but Republican John Ensign has been trying to kill it with a poison pill amendment.
• I wouldn't say Warner did terrible, but it's not good for anyone to come before or after Brian Schweitzer. I'm quite pleased his national profile is rising. He's the face of the Democratic resurgence in the Mountain West.
• But rising to the occasion, Hillary Clinton was perfect. I'm quite convinced she would've been our nominee had she voted against Bush war in Iraq, and she would've been a great nominee. .
• A stole a glimpse at the Cubs-Pirates score. Cubs won! But uh oh, Zambrano got hammered again. Like a good Cubs fan, I'm starting to panic. See? There's little difference between Cubs fans and Democrats. Neither of us are used to winning. And one bad poll/bad outing by your star pitcher, and we start assuming the worst.
• Back to Clinton, did you notice that she wore a Daily Kos-orange outfit? A signal to the PUMAs that their gig was up? Well, she could beat them with a 2x4 and they still wouldn't get the message because it ceased being about Clinton a long time ago...

  I am jealous that women politicians get to be creative in their outfits and use color. I love color. I loved Pelosi's minty green outfit at Netroots Nation. Guys, on the other hand, don't have such flexibility. My own readers panned me when I wore an orange tie on Meet the Press (they didn't like the brown sports jacket either). I cried for days. Either that or I said "Fuck all of you!" I can't remember which it was.

• I hadn't had a chance until late last night to peruse the chatter in the comment threads, and I'm surprised at how many whiners there are about the convention. I think it's been great. Monday night was awesome. Tuesday night was also awesome. I can't predict if Wednesday and Thursday will be awesome, but I'll go out on a limb and predict that yes, they'll be awesome too. (Sadly, that last sentence is better than 98 percent of the political "analysis" offered on television.)
• I could be in better spirits because I don't have to hear the yakkity yaks blabbing away incessantly, talking over speeches like Brian Schweitzer. Damn they love the sound of their own voices. Could they please shut the fuck up and let people digest the proceedings on their own? Do they have so little regard for their audience that they think people need DC- and NYC-based blowhards to tell them what to think?

  And yes, the simple answer is "yes".  

• I listened in briefly to a cop and some convention goers having a nice chat as we tried to get a cab to the hotel. He was saying how uneventful the convention had been, how well-behaved protesters had been, and how everything appeared to be going nice and smooth. Knock on wood, I suppose. I don't know how the TV blowhards have been portraying that stuff, but from my vantage point, it's been quite civil and -- dare I say it? -- even tame.

Maybe I should get a Twitter account, huh?