Thursday, May 04, 2006

Will Denver’s bid have a union problem?

WE’VE MOVED! Democratic Convention Watch is now at http://www.DemocraticConventionWatch.com

I’ve written here and here how the lack of union hotels could hurt some of the bids for the 2008 Democratic Convention, especially for Denver and New Orleans. In fact, the DNC had to get special dispensation to book a non-union hotel for last month’s Spring meeting.

Well, it turns out that some Denver labor leaders are not happy about Denver’s bid for the convention. From a nice article by Julie Dunn in today’s Denver Post: Continue Reading...

Thursday, May 04, 2006

And then there were 7? Yes – Anaheim is out

WE’VE MOVED! Democratic Convention Watch is now at http://www.DemocraticConventionWatch.com

I find it amusing that sometimes the most interesting and important information (from my viewpoint) is buried at the bottom of a news article that focuses on something else. For example, the Orange County Register was the first news organization in the country to break the list of the original 11 cities who expressed interest in hosting the 2008 Democratic Convention, and they had the information at the bottom of an article on the GOP convention.

Well, buried in the middle, and then clearly listed at the end, of today’s Denver Post article on Denver’s union issues, is a new list of the cities bidding for the convention, and there are only 7: Denver, Dallas, Detroit, Las Vegas, Minneapolis, New Orleans and New York. In addition to the officially departed Orlando and San Antonio, Phoenix and Anaheim are not on this list. This is the first published report by a newspaper that Phoenix and Anaheim are out, but I would still like to see some confirmation from the city or the DNC. Continue Reading...

Tuesday, May 02, 2006

Who’s really in the running to host the convention – 5/2 update

WE’VE MOVED! Democratic Convention Watch is now at http://www.DemocraticConventionWatch.com

Looking at everything so far, I think the 2008 Democratic Convention is going to be held in one of 5 cities: Denver, Detroit, Minneapolis, New Orleans or New York, with Denver the clear front-runner.

The reasoning is pretty straightforward. Denver and Minneapolis are clearly actively pursuing the convention. Detroit and New York are also strong candidates, with strong histories of hosting or bidding for previous conventions, and little negative press attached to the bids. New Orleans remains a sentimental choice for many. Continue Reading...

Monday, May 01, 2006

Insider report from the DNC Spring meeting

WE’VE MOVED! Democratic Convention Watch is now at http://www.DemocraticConventionWatch.com

This was sent to me by a DNC member who attended the DNC spring meeting in New Orleans:

The general feeling from everyone is that Denver has the thing locked up. While Minneapolis provided a magnificent breakfast, nothing compares to the celebration that was organized by Denver. I saw more key DNC members wearing Denver buttons than I could imagine. Congressman Mike Honda [of California, and vice-chair of the DNC] hinted that a Denver convention would be nice. Other party leaders all seemed to think the 2008 convention is on its way out west. Continue Reading...