Day 1, continued -- Monday, August 25

What an amazing first day. Inaugural days of conventions are, conventionally, boring: this one was anything but.

Michelle Obama's speech was a triumph. She was able to let us in to her own life --what she called her "improbable journey" -- and her husband's in a very personal way, but -- more important -- in a way that attached the trajectory of her life to the American dream we all dream. She shares a gift for the language of hope that has made Barack Obama a celebrated orator. Being that close must rub off in good ways.

Senator Ted Kennedy's address evoked amazing emotions -- the entire Massachusetts delegation welled up, nearly as one, when he took the stage. It didn't take me that long: when Caroline Kennedy introduced her uncle, the thought crossed my mind that she looks ever more like her father -- and I was saddened anew that she is the lone survivor of that gifted, beloved nuclear family. A delegate sitting next to me from the Cape was especially touched by the video's views of the Senator at sea on his sailboat -- in familiar waters, right off Hyannisport. There was a clear sense that Massachusetts has contributed more than its share of talent to the Democratic leadership of the nation over the years. And Caroline's introduction of her uncle as "everybody's Senator" was touching and generous.

Click here to see delegates' responses to Sen. Kennedy's speech -- including our own Mike Wheeler! (at minute 2:17 of the clip).

Bullet points from earlier in the day:

* In the morning, I attended a very interesting caucus of Democratic leadership on ethnic groups. Did you realize that 13% of the American electorate self-identify as a member of Euro-ethnic groups? That's more than the margin of victory in a close election. There is a strategy that will be applied, especially in battleground states, specifically to target and persuade voters who identify with these groups -- e.g., Polish Americans in rust-belt states -- and get out the vote among these groups for the November election.

* Jovial first- morning breakfast and credentialling: we were welcomed to his home state of Colorado by former Senator Gary Hart. We heard remarks from Senate President Therese Murray and Speaker of the House Sal DiMasi, and Governor Deval Patrick really got us going: his popularity among the state's Democratic leaders is palpable. Took pictures and got autographs -- I'm shamelessly enjoying the celebrity moments of this experience.

* Saw more than my share of media headliners today, too: at the MSNBC headquarters near the Pepsi Center, we saw anchorman David Gregory arrive for a taping session. In the convention hall, I came face to face with Andrea Mitchell and watched Sam Donaldson nearly fall out of a balcony while trying to get Mitchell's attention on the convention floor.

* Was part of the footage shot by a CNN cameraman who lurked near our rows of seats for more than an hour.

* Two of us, Arthur Powell and me, were interviewed about the evening's speeches by a journalist from Chicago Public Radio as we left the hall.

* Great party at a downtown jazz venue, Alto, boasted terrific music and delicious food and drink, and went on until the wee hours.

Look for pictures tomorrow on many of these events and more by returning to this page and clicking here.

Day 1 -- Monday, August 25

6:20 am The biggest news from last night's round of parties was that Senator Ted Kennedy will appear and speak to the convention tonight. Senator John Kerry announced the news during his remarks. This was news to most of us as he was expected to address the convention only "long distance," by satellite downlink.

Of last night's jovial round of parties, I just stuck close to home -- Senator Kerry's welcome reception for the Massachusetts delegation was held in the lobby bar of our hotel, the Renaissance Stapleton. Governor Deval Patrick welcomed us all to Denver, and then introduced Senator Kerry.

After we Massachusetts folk had schmoozed a-plenty in the hotel's lobby, we were invited to a lower level of the hotel for an ice cream excursion with the Maryland delegates, also at our hotel. Commonly overheard on the elevator: "You from Maryland too? Or Massachusetts?" Inevitably common links are quickly discovered. "I grew up in Duxbury." "You know people in Gaithersburg?"

By the way, there seems to be every attempt to keep delegates well-fed: the snacks last night were more than substantial. The state party keeps track of delegates by issuing us a plastic bracelet for each event. This keeps things simple when you go to the bar to have your wine refreshed.

There also seems to be "gifting" a-plenty: upon arrival delegates received a gift bag with all kinds of useful goodies (a hat from the Governor, a t-shirt from the Obama campaign, plus buttons, oversize Nalgene water bottle and other items galore). A double old-fashioned cocktail glass was Senator Kerry's gift to us at last night's party, which I found doubled nicely as an ice-cream dish!

Day 0: Travel to Denver -- Sunday, August 24

For more pictures of the day's events and political celebrities, please click here or go to www.nancysnewsnetwork.blogspot.com.

9:45 am: Boarded American Airlines flight 327 for Dallas en route to Denver. Wearing my tiny discreet "Women for Obama" button -- but it feels like everyone around me must be able to read my excitement at finally being on the road for the DNC.

Before checking my bags, a member of the ground-crew staff asks my destination. I blurt out, "Denver: I'm going to the convention!" (What she really needed to know was Dallas, my first destination.) She smiled and indulged me anyway.

5:45 pm After a largely uneventful couple of flights book-ending a long-ish layover in Dallas, I arrive in Denver. Whisked away efficiently by a SuperShuttle, I check into the Renaissance Denver Hotel in Stapleton, which is billeting the Massachusetts and Maryland delegations. The hotel is abuzz with people -- it must be a sellout week all over town. The first thing I see when I walk in the door is a big banner, "Massachusetts Democratic Party," where a tableful of staffers are checking people in and providing useful information. Before I have a chance to check things out, I hear my name called and state committee member Kathy Pasquina is embracing and welcoming me. (Kathy and 1st Essex-Middlesex publicity liaison Nancy Weinberg arrived on Friday.) Kathy re-introduces me to Joe Kaplan, another state committee member whom I had met the evening of our platform discussion in Boxford. (As a member of the national Platform Committee, Joe came to observe, listen and participate in our discussion.)

Tonight there will be welcome receptions by Senator Kerry for our state delegation, and afterward an Ice Cream Social sponsored by both Massachusetts and Maryland delegations. So far, the convention seems like one big party.

6:15 pm Just officially "checked in" with the state party at the lobby registration area. Advice, friendly faces, and a gift bag awaited. Still not sure how possible it will be to bring my laptop with me into the convention building itself; blogging will be a bit of an adventure. At least the hotel room is set up with free wi-fi, so filing a blog from there (as I am doing now) will be easy.

Met three friendly Maryland delegates on the way up the elevator, one who grew up in Duxbury! Massachusetts is never very far away, it seems.

For pictures of the day's events and political celebrities, please click here or go to www.nancysnewsnetwork.blogspot.com.

Biden's Obama's VP -- and how we learned about it

We are all waking up this morning to the news this morning that Senator Joe Biden is Barack Obama's choice for running mate. But I also woke up at 3:34 this morning to the sound of three little beeps on my phone, sending me this text message: "Barack has chosen Senator Joe Biden to be our VP nominee. Watch the first Obama-Biden rally live at 3 pm ET on www.BarackObama.com. Spread the word!"
Many like me, I imagine, signed up for the text-messaging promised by the campaign -- making literally millions of us among the personal "first" to learn of Obama's VP choice. It's an intriguing and powerful use of technology to keep supporters "in the know" on campaign news -- and no campaign has done it better or on as mammoth a scale as Barack Obama's.
It gives me more than just hope -- rather, a certain confidence -- that someone who campaigns so ably will be able to govern ably too.

Denver: What to Expect

In addition to giving voice to the usual parade of speakers and paeans to the presumptive nominee, the goal of the Denver convention is to have America get to know the Obama family better. Starting with Michele Obama's speech to the convention on Monday night, Barack Obama's personal story will unfold, placed squarely in the context of the great American dream. Maryland Congressman Elijah Cummings put it well to the New York Times when he described the broad strokes of Mrs. Obama's speech: "We are the American story. Americans say get an education, give every single thing you do your best — we’ve done that, and now we’re ready to be a part of fulfilling Martin Luther King's dream."

The hope is that this strategy will help voters concerned about Obama's "otherness" over the hurdle and into the ballot-box. Senator Obama acknowledges that he has an onerous task. In an interview last month, he noted, “My biography is not typical of a modern American president.” He underscored that getting voters to suspect their disbelief in his difference is "asking a lot of the American people." Many of us who have supported Obama for many months now went past this point a long time ago, but as we switch into general-election mode it is incisive of his campaign staff (and typical of its discipline) to remain focused on this as the most significant challenge facing Senator Obama in November.

The other, more obvious theme we'll see played out in Denver is "change." With an overwhelming majority of Americans claiming that our country is headed in the wrong direction, change is clearly a priority for many of us. The great enthusiasm that registered this spring and the record numbers of ballots cast during the Democratic primaries underscore this thirst for change in no uncertain terms. It will now be up to the Obama campaign and the Democratic party to utilize the party's platform to make specific to American voters what change will look like.

Gov. Deval Patrick to address DNC

(Photo courtesy of Sharon Heller)

This just in: Governor Deval Patrick has got his own 15 minutes of fame at the DNC in Denver -- on Tuesday night. Look for the governor's prime-time remarks on C-SPAN (but probably not on major-network TV).

Keynote speaker announced: it's Mark Warner

Former Gov. Mark Warner of Virginia will deliver the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday, August 26.

Mark Warner is running for the U.S. Senate from Virginia for the seat that will be vacated now that Senator John Warner (R) is retiring. This Senate race and the prominence both of the retiring Senator and the Democratic hopeful have cast more than a little public light on Virginia, a battleground state in the national election.

It was the convention's keynote address in 2004 that made Senator Barack Obama's name a household word -- in Democratic households, at least.

There's also been speculation in the press that naming former Governor Warner to give the keynote speech in Denver is a signal from the Obama campaign that current Virginia Governor Tim Kaine will not be picked as Senator Obama's vice-presidential running mate.

Governor Warner has made regular stops in the Bay State a part of his campaign road show. He attended the Roosevelt Day dinner in Boston in June, and last Thursday he was the featured guest at the Obama campaign's New England Steering Committee's weekly meeting.