Democratic National Convention

The DNC announced today that they will be having an event at Charlotte Motor Speedway:

In lieu of the convention opening on Monday, Sept. 3 -- Labor Day -- organizers plan to hold an event at the speedway to showcase not only the Charlotte region but the South.

I think it is great they plan on showcasing the South. As someone who has lived in the South just about all my life (96% of it) I love my region, my family has lived here since the 1600's mostly living in the Virginia Mtns. This convention will allow us to show that we are a very diverse region despite all the "reality" shows that seem to have sprung up in the last few years. But I will admit that I discovered through research on my family that I am my own 8th cousin. I like to say I have a family wreath instead of a family tree.

Hello all - Here are some of my pics from '08 to show people the fun we are going to have next year:

http://greeninnc.smugmug.com/Other/Photos-from-Denver-for-non/5854460_uj...
http://greeninnc.smugmug.com/Other/DNC-rest-of-the-week/5823974_MBNUf/
http://greeninnc.smugmug.com/Other/dnc-Monday-1/5799717_AkRAj/
http://greeninnc.smugmug.com/Other/DNC-Sunday/5793055_FA4aZ/
http://greeninnc.smugmug.com/Other/DNC-Saturday/5777399_DAJXX/

In search of the unconventional convention:

Next year's Democratic convention in Charlotte will have to be financed without corporate money.

The Democratic Party has issued guidelines saying the $37 million to be raised by the host committee can not come from corporations, from lobbyists or from individuals in amounts of more than $100,000.

I wonder what Mayor Foxx thinks of this?

Breaking News
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The Democratic National Committee has picked Charlotte, North Carolina, as the host city of the 2012 Democratic convention, POLITICO has learned.

For more information see http://www.politico.com

This morning to a packed house at the Grove Park Inn in Asheville, North Carolina, Donna Brazile stated something to this degree "I'm not supposed to be partial but I am hoping that we host the Democratic Convention in this state next year." Which won her a roaring applause from the crowd assembled to honor the life of Martin Luther King Jr.

Donna Brazile is currently one of the VIce Chairs of the Democratic National Committee.

Great news! Charlotte has been name as one of the final four in contention for the Democratic National Convention for 2012. We could certainly use all the help we can get from the national party to stay blue in that next big election, and this would certainly bring the national party's eye here.

In addition to bragging rights, the economic impact could tremendous. Denver reported earning $266 million when it hosted the 2008 Democratic convention. That's a lot of money and a lot of jobs created at a time when we're working to get our economy back on track.

You can aid in our efforts to getting the convention to the Queen City by signing this petition or you can upload a video or personal story here stating why you think the Democratic National Convention should come to North Carolina.

-from a NCDP e-mail

Call to action/petition link:
http://action.ncdp.org/page/s/Charlottein2010

When Barack Obama finished his historic speech, I stood looking up, staring at the fireworks, and crying as thousands of people stood around me cheering. I had spent the last four hours cheering, singing, dancing and yelling. I was surprised to learn that hope could lead to tears, that joy could be so quiet, that a week of activity could leave me so still.

I came to the 2008 Democratic National Convention not knowing what to expect out of the final night’s big event. I was unsure whether Sen. Obama could meet the high standards of the occasion. I thought that his speech would have to harness fire and send fireworks. While Obama certainly showed his fire, the speech was more measured than I expected. In some ways, it was more presidential. When I could finally speak after its conclusion, I turned to Orange County Democratic Party Chairman Jack Sanders and said, “We have to go home and do this.”

More below the fold...

This is my final mutual interview from the convention. It's kind of a human interest story.

Joan Tao was a law student at the University of Chicago in the mid-90's (I was at the social work school there about the same time), and she took a constitutional law seminar with Barack Obama. Now she's a lawyer in Greensboro, and one of the Obama campaign's top fundraisers in the state.

Watch these clips to hear us talk about Barack Obama the professor, our experiences with fundraising, Joan's hopes for an Obama Presidency, and my connection between practicing social work and supporting Barack Obama.

Here's part 1:

Not all of my conversations at the convention were about issues. On Wednesday night, I sat with George Chunn from Raleigh. We ended up having a great conversation about integrity in politics. Specifically, we talked about what it means to see Barack Obama as a husband and father. Just as my conversation with Jan Roller reminded me of how important it is for white people to talk about race, this conversation reminded me of why men need to talk with each other about fidelity. We tried to recapture some of that here.

You'll also get to hear George talk about what's happening to organize Raleigh. He asked me about what I've been doing in Chapel Hill (hint: we have great parties for Obama!). And he got personal, so I had to tell him some about why my kids like Barack Obama and what I think about a political future for myself. That's a little bit more than I expected to share about myself in these vlogs, but anything is possible in a mutual interview!

Here's part 1:

On Wednesday night at the Convention, there was some time to kill after the Roll Call Vote and before Bill Clinton’s big speech. I wandered over to the Ohio delegation and found an old family friend.

Jan Roller is delegate from Cleveland and one of Ohio’s leading Democratic Women. She seemed like perfect person for an interview about what’s happening in Ohio. As we all know, they’re a battleground state. Ohio also has some striking similarities to North Carolina. Ohio has three major metropolitan areas and lots of rural land. For the most part statewide democratic victories rely on strong turnout from a relatively small number of the state’s 88 counties, especially those with a heavy African-American population. Sound familiar?

Jan told me about what’s happening in Ohio to organize a democratic victory, how Democratic women are organizing, how work is being done across urban-suburban-rural divides , and why she hopes an Obama presidency will positively impact American race relations.

Jan asked me about the role that race is playing in the election in North Carolina, what I enjoyed about the convention, and how tough the race is going to be in North Carolina.

Here’s part 1: