RNC "View from the Floor" - Day 1

From Mark Crowley...

The first day of convention activity was an abbreviated but eventful one. The day started out with a morning meeting of the Mass. delegation, where party leaders Ron Kaufman and Peter Torkildsen spoke. We also had a chance to hear from Jeff Beatty.

For certain, the talk of the room was the selection of Sarah Palin as VP. Opinions ran from "guardedly optimistic" to "very excited". Like myself, many folks were disappointed that Mitt Romney wasn't selected. The delegation was very pleased, however, to later hear that Romney would be the featured speaker at our Tuesday morning delegation meeting. This should be a great chance to meet with the Governor is a small gathering.

The Mass. delegation will be the center of attention with the convention of each day's convention events, owing to the naming of Jean Inman as the Secretary of the Convention. It was nice to see some recognition of our state.

After the morning session, the delegation was bussed to Xcel Center. What an incredible sight it is! Naturally, security was very tight and very visible. On the outside, it was funny to see the massive media presence as well - a small army unto itself. The "CNN Grill" was staring down the "Fox News Command Center" across the street from each other.

On the inside, I was surprised to find the convention space not as large as I would have thought. The RNC is a much smaller gathering it seems than the Democrats, and you can feel that. As you'll see on TV, the stage is pretty much at floor level, with just a large projection screen behind the podium. Even from the delegation sections further from the podium, it still seems like a very intimate space.

Also surprising was that the Mass. delegation got a fairly decent seating location. As the Bluest of the Blue states, we all assumed we'd be in the nosebleed seats or even have an obstructed view. We're to the right of the stage (Mass to the "right"?... go figure.) We're at the corner, at at a cross roads of some high traffic aisles, so we get to see lots of media scurrying around.

Speaking of media, they are everywhere. It's like the Oscars for them and seeing the media is like celebrity sighting. Every outlet has their elaborate sets, but it's fun to see all these talking heads when they are off-camera. Some seem very down to earth (Brit Hume), others the prima donnas you'd expect (Wolf Blitzer). One funny thing the cameras will probably not show you - the MSNBC booth is next to the Al-Jazeera booth. Insert your own joke here... ;-)

As expected, the media swarms the floor looking for delegates to interview. I spoke with the Utne Reader, Canadian Television, and Harvard. Talk about diversity. Also, wearing a funny hat is an automatic ticket to an interview.

Not surprisingly, the questions from every reporter were about Sarah Palin, both her selection as VP and her daughter's pregnancy. To the former, the reactions from the delegation at large were very similar to that from Massachusetts, i.e., most expected and wanted Mitt Romney. Regarding the Palin daughter pregnancy, the media was attacking hard on this. You can see that they were looking for those signs of discontent from delegates. From my "view from the floor", I didn't hear any grumbling. Most agreed it was a family issue, a point with even Obama made.

Romney was seen in the convention center, quickly moving between media outlets for interviews. I followed him to the Fox booth, and even confirmed with my wife that she could see me in the background. I'm famous now, as the guy over Mitt's shoulder! (well, famous in my family at least...)

Overall, the mood on the floor was muted, in light of Hurricane Gustav. The concern for our fellow citizens on the Gulf Coast was visible everywhere. A "Hurricane Response Center" was in place for delegates to check the Internet for updates, as well as make donations to the Red Cross. In fact, right at the opening of the formal proceedings, every delegate was able to make a donation to the Red Cross via their cell phones. By the end of the day, over $1 million was raised by the delegates. It was a very proud moment to see Americans helping other Americans.

The session lasted only 2 hours, with the highlight certainly being Laura Bush and Cindy McCain. Their appearance really energized the floor. Both women gave wonderful speeches, reinforcing the theme of helping those on the Gulf Coast.

Thankfully, it seems that Hurricane Gustav was not as damaging as it could have been. Still, we are mindful of those who have been displaced and face the difficult task of cleaning up.

Tuesday is shaping up to be a more full schedule with Fred Thompson and Joe Lieberman to speak.

Come back again for my next update!

...Mark