Continuing with my weekend catch up visits to outlying areas, I was down in the Southwest in late April. On Saturday, the 26th, I met with about fifteen good Democrats in Cortez. In addition to the officers, like chair Toni Gurnea, Hazel Perkins, chair of the Dolores County Democrats, drove over with husband, Delano. We had a great morning talking about the statewide turnout for caucuses and all the work going forward for the campaigns in 2008.

Montezuma County Democrats are growing again and excited about rebuilding their local party after some rough times. They sent a table full of people over to Durango for the evening dinner.

In Durango, the La Plata County Democrats filled the room with tables and enough excitement to raise the roof. Jean Walters, Chair of the local Democrats, led off an evening of speeches. Wally White has launched his campaign for re-election as County Commissioner. And Peter Tregillus is also running for another commissioner seat. I know that Joelle Riddle, who won in 2006, is eager to keep Wally and have another Democrat on the county commission.

State Sen. Jim Isgar had a chance to talk about the accomplishments of the current legislative session. U.S. Rep. John Salazar also gave an update from the U.S. Congress. But the highlight of the evening was former Texas Agriculture Commissioner, author, and radio show celebrity, Jim Hightower. He gave his usual humorous assessment of the issues, even though he is quite serious about the need for us to “agitate.”

I got to say my words and then ran in to Jim Hightower the next morning. We talked about the changes going on across the country.

On my way to Otero I stopped off at the CD6 Assembly and Convention. The turnout was great but put huge demands on the credentialing system. We learned a lot and elected our first delegates to the national convention.

CD6 also nominated Hank Eng as the Democratic nominee for Congress. Steve Clark and Ivan Botvin were candidates as well, and we thank them for stepping up. Hank received an overwhelming 88% of the vote, which is a tribute to his hard work over the past few months. Hank has a great background, including some similarities to mine - former Peace Corps Volunteer and former USAID employee. He will work hard to earn the support of voters in the district.

This past weekend I attended the annual Tri-County JFK dinner in La Junta, along with 160 other guests. Otero County Democrats presented a check for $500 to me for the state convention. Hooray for Otero County Dems!!! They also gave checks to State Rep. Wes McKinley and the local commissioner candidates.

Rep. McKinley was the evening emcee. Speaker Andrew Romanoff talked about the state legislative session. He did his usual great job.

Betsy Markey talked about her Congressional race in CD4. We are so lucky to have Betsy as our candidate. She will be officially nominated on May 16, but she already is working really hard across the district.

I followed Betsy and talked about the process, the upcoming state and national conventions. It was a message that Democrats in this part of the state were eager to hear. Then Sal Pace addressed the group about his House District race. Finally we heard from Ronnie Carleton on behalf of U.S. Rep. John Salalzar.

Thanks to Ed Morris for his fine work organizing the dinner. It was great to see Otero Chair Diane Ritkoff. I also had a chance to talk to Crowley Democratic Chair, Tom Flores, about the fires around Ordway. And I sat between Mayor Lawrence Sena, former Bent County Chair, and Alex Netherton, current Bent County Chair. It is the best part of being CDP Chair, being able to spend time with hard-working Democrats throughout the state.

(Cross posted from Colorado Confidential.  Used with permission.)

http://www.coloradoconfidential.org/showDiary.do?diaryId=3693

by: Leslie Robinson
Sat Apr 19, 2008 at 12:41 PM MDT

Denver is home to the movement, spearheaded in 1983 by Americans Disabled for Accessible Public Transit, that pushed for wheelchair lifts on buses and other improvements so that public transportation would be available for people with disabilities. In 1990, lifts were required as part of the Americans with Disabilities Act. In recognition to the ADAPT movement, transportation plans are in the works to make the Democratic National Convention in Denver the most handicapped-accessible convention ever held.

David Kennedy, disability rights coordinator for the Denver 2008 Convention Host Committee, said he is finalizing his plans to transport delegates with disabilities to and from hotels and activities during the Democratic convention, Aug. 25-28. “Denver is the home of the movement championing the rights of the disabled, so we are setting high standards.”

Kennedy, who is also disabled, has been a long-time disability activist with more than 20 years of experience in project management for exhibitions, events, and building design projects, such as directing the ADA compliances for the new extension of The Denver Art Museum.

“First, we will find out in advance what special needs, such as mobility problems or hearing impairments, must be met,” Kennedy explained. “Then, we will design extensive day-to-day transportation plans to get those delegates with disabilities from the airport to hotels and to downtown for specific events, and then to the convention at the Pepsi Center.”

Joe Beaver, chair of the initiative Dems with Disabilities, a political arm of the Colorado Democratic Party, said he welcomed the efforts to accommodate delegates with disabilities.

“At the 2004 Democratic Convention in Boston, our Colorado delegates in wheelchairs were often the last people placed on buses to the Fleet Convention Center and sometimes they had to wait a long time because there was no room for them on the first departing buses,” Beaver said.

“That will be totally unacceptable in Denver,” Kennedy said, reacting to Beaver’s story. “Boston couldn’t handle a sufficient flow of vehicles to their convention center, but that won’t happen in Denver,” Kennedy insisted.

Handicapped accessible vans will supplement bus routes to avoid bottlenecks and some taxis will be modified to transport wheelchairs, Kennedy noted. Special-needs designed three-wheel bicycles will be brought in, too “I’m working with a medical supplier now to have wheelchairs available with the free bicycles so delegates can freely move about downtown to events,” Kennedy added.

Beaver said his group is also going to work with the DNC, the Denver Host Committee and other organizations to help delegates with disabilities navigate Denver during the convention. “We want to sponsor a downtown information booth and a website that disabled delegates can refer to,” Beaver said. “Plus, we will put together a special transportation-access guide that will last long after the convention and could be a useful tourist tool to attract future visitors with disabilities to Denver.”

“Because of the ADAPT movement, it’s only fitting that Denver hosts the most handicapped-accessible convention ever,” Kennedy said, “And I hope we surpass expectations.”

(Cross-Posted to DemNotes at www.DemNotes.com)

I haven’t posted to DemNotes since the end of the county assemblies and conventions. That’s been a few weeks now, so I’m sorry that I’ve not gotten any more posts out since then. In the interim, I have been busy on a number of things, including preparations for the State Convention and Assembly in Colorado Springs, working on delegate selection, the national convention, and a few other things.

I’ve also taken some time to get some work done at my “real” job that had been piling up.

The one thing I did that I really do want to write about was emceeing the announcement for Lt. Col. Hal Bidlack, who is our candidate for Congress in the 5th CD. There was a great turnout at the Penrose Library in Colorado Springs a couple of weeks ago — well over 100 people showed up in the middle of a weekday to witness a great American announce his candidacy for Congress. Hal is a wonderful candidate — smart, funny, personable — and he will really make a run at this seat, building on the foundation set by the great run of Jay Fawcett in 2006.

State Chair Pat Waak was there, as was Mark Udall’s niece, Taryn Udall (who announced Congressman Udall’s endorsement of Hal). There’s even already a “Veterans for Bidlack” group out there working to build up support for Hal throughout this military-minded district. Many Republicans are realizing their mistake in electing Doug Lamborn to Congress, and they’re coming over — most for the first times in their lives — to support Hal Bidlack in his bid for this seat.

Hal could use some help all across this state. Take a second to go over to his website, and if you can afford to, drop him a donation or two:
http://www.bidlack2008.com/

——————————-

On a completely other note, the Denver 2008 Host Committee announced tonight where the fun spots will be for the Sunday night immediately prior to the National Convention. The Host Committee is responsible for the delegation welcoming parties for each delegation. I’ll post the full list below, but here are some highlights:

– In one of the worst-kept secrets around, it was confirmed that Colorado’s delegation party will, appropriately, be at the Governor’s Mansion.
– If you’re interested in rubbing elbows with those closest to the nominee, you will need to find a spot near the Denver Art Museum (Illinois) or the Pinnacle Club (New York).
– Or how about a party at Red Rocks? If you’re in the delegations from North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, or West Virginia, you’ll get it!
– Gov. Dean is likely going to be at the Phipps Mansion, where the Vermont and New Hampshire delegation parties will be.
– Want a world-wise atmosphere? Check out the Blair Caldwell Library, where the Democrats Abroad (as well as the Virgin Islands) will be hanging out.
– The District of Columbia has a pretty large delegation due to all of the At-Large (and influential) superdelegates they have (think Donna Brazile); they’ll be at the Museo de las Americas.
– Only twelve states have their own welcoming party: The aforementioned Colorado, District of Columbia, Illinois, and New York, as well as South Carolina, Georgia, Kansas, Iowa, California, Minnesota, New Jersey, and Texas. The rest of the delegations share parties with other delegations.

Now here’s the full list from the Host Committee:

List of State Delegation Party Venues:
Belmar Center - Alaska, Indiana, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, Tennessee
Blair Caldwell Library - Democrats Abroad, Virgin Islands
Botanic Gardens - South Carolina
Center for the Visual Arts - Georgia
Colorado History Museum - Arkansas, Kentucky, Wisconsin
Denver Art Museum - Illinois
Denver Chophouse - Kansas
Denver Public Library - Iowa
Denver Zoo - Alabama, North Dakota, South Dakota
Downtown Aquarium - Connecticut, Delaware, Missouri
Exdo Event Center - California
Grant Humphries - Minnesota
Governor’s Mansion - Colorado
Hudson’s Gardens - New Jersey
The Lab at Belmar - American Samoa, Guam, Idaho, Hawaii
Museo de las Americas - District of Columbia
Museum of Nature & Science - Maine, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah
Palazzo Verdi - Nebraska, Oklahoma
Phipps Mansion - New Hampshire, Vermont
Phipps Pavilion - Mississippi, Montana, Wyoming
Pinnacle Club - New York
Red Rocks - North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia
Wildlife Experience - Texas
Wings Over the Rockies - Arizona, Louisiana, Maryland, Oregon, Washington

Let me make one thing clear, though. While I joke about where “you” want to be that night, these will be open only to the delegations listed, and guests of those delegations. You can’t just walk up, say, to the Denver Art Museum and get in.

Anyway, I’ll try to write a little more frequently; see you all around!

In the middle of this past week, Dan Slater and I had the opportunity to address the Democratic Women of Boulder on Wednesday. There were 200 people in attendance, who patiently listened to us talk about the process of being an unpledged delegate. There were lots of questions about the different campaigns, and a great opportunity to educate folks about what we expect to happen in the 2008 nomination process and in the upcoming fall elections.

After this great event, I went to the University of Colorado to meet with the Journalism Board. It was a fun hour talking to students. I was on a panel with Adam Schrager from 9News and Elizabeth Shue, who teaches journalism and politics. The students in attendance had great questions about how to cover politics. And both Adam and Elizabeth, who have written the news, shared their personal experiences.

The next morning I had an opportunity to speak to the Board of the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce. I talked about the election results in Colorado and the huge participation of voters in the caucuses. With the assistance of the Host Committee, I was able to give some statistics on the economic boon that having the Democratic National Convention brings to Denver and at least the seven surrounding counties. Also having 15,000 journalists covering the Convention spotlights our state for the nation and the world. Finally, I talked about what it is like being a “Superdelegate” and all the attention it brings.

On Saturday I visited Boulder County’s Assembly. Over 1,000 people attended the meeting in Longmont. Deb Gardner, the County Chair, was doing a great job overseeing the assembly. I heard that similar results occurred from in the convention that afternoon. As in every county I have been to, most of the people were there for the first time.

Then it was off to the Colorado School of Mines in Golden. Over 3,000 people were in the gymnasium, and their enthusiasm was infectious. Most again were there for the first time. Dick Barkey, chair of the Jefferson County Democratic Party, was relishing in the turnout. He began this journey with me in 2005 when we began the work to open up the Colorado Democratic Party.

Today, the Platform Committee had it first meeting in Denver. This meeting laid out the process for beginning our consideration of what we as Democrats believe we stand for.

(Cross-Posted to DemNotes at www.DemNotes.com)

Wednesday was quite a day for driving.

I began the day with a drive up to Boulder for the monthly luncheon of the Boulder Democratic Women’s Club. State Chair Pat Waak and I were speakers. It was a robust crowd — over 200 present, including Joan Fitz-Gerald and Jared Polis, who are running for Congress in the 2nd Congressional District. A number of local candidates and elected officials were also present.

Pat and I both spoke about a number of issues, and then we took several questions from the audience after our talks. Most of the questions surrounded the Presidential race, and our roles as Superdelegates. Pat reiterated her long-standing view that her role as the chair of the host state party for the National Convention is to stay neutral for as long as possible. We faced questions about the tenor of the campaign, about Michigan and Florida, and about our two remaining candidates. It was a very refreshing and stimulating discussion, and a nice change of pace from all of the different county assemblies and conventions we’ve been attending lately.

—————–

After Boulder, I headed back to Canon City — literally just long enough to stop at my law office and check the mail — before getting back on the road to head south to Walsenburg. There, I attended the Huerfano County Democratic Assembly and Convention.

Walsenburg hosted another good crowd of Democrats. I kicked off the meeting with a short speech, and then they moved into the convention portion of the program. Several people spoke about their choices for President before taking the preference poll — most were very respectful of the other candidates, although there was one who tried to quote from a supermarket tabloid in opposition to one of the candidates. In the end, the vote was 30 to 20 in favor of Sen. Obama, giving him 7 of the county’s votes to 4 for Sen. Clinton.

County Chair Cindy Campbell, who was leaving the post due to health reasons, did an outstanding job getting through the county convention, and there seemed to be a truly positive atmosphere there when I left.

—————-

But I wasn’t done yet. After leaving Walsenburg, I raced up to Pueblo, where I was the guest on the CSU-Pueblo student radio station’s political talk show. “Rev 89,” as the station is called, is not your average college radio station. I don’t know the current ratings, but when I first moved back to Southern Colorado a few years ago, it was the top-rated station in the Pueblo market, beating out all of the commercial radio stations.

The show was very interesting — the three co-hosts are pretty equally divided: one is an Obama supporter, one is a Clinton supporter, and one is a McCain supporter. Over the hour that I was on the show, we talked about a number of issues, and I used every opportunity to point out the differences between Sen. McCain and our two candidates. We talked about the state of the Presidential race, and my role as a Superdelegate and DNC Member. The co-hosts were unbelievably well-prepared, with notes on a number of very divergent issues on which they wanted to talk. I was impressed, and the hour went quickly, and was very entertaining.

By then, it was late, and I had to head home to Canon City — bone tired. Tonight, as I’ve mentioned before, I’m off to Southeast Colorado for a pair of assemblies / conventions. Maybe I’ll see you there!

(Cross-Posted to DemNotes at www.DemNotes.com)

Last night, I went to Colorado Springs to attend a couple of events for the planning of the upcoming State Convention and Assembly there on May 16-17. What is happening is pretty incredible.

I first attended an informational meeting held by a group of local businesspeople who are looking to really showcase Colorado Springs and the Pikes Peak region as Democrats arrive in May. They have all sorts of events planned. In particular, they are working on three tours (so far) — a tour of “progressive Colorado Springs,” including open space areas and areas of interest to progressives (sending the message that not all of El Paso County is a monolithic “Focus on the Family” group); a tour of the many El Paso County military installations, led by former 5th CD candidate Jay Fawcett; and a tour of the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. They are also working on arranging for a “Progressive Night for Progressives,” featuring a street party with a “progressive dinner” — food from several different restaurants downtown. There is an incredibly intense interest in showing Colorado Democrats a good time when they visit Colorado Springs.

In addition to those efforts, the local Democrats and the State Party are working hard to make sure that delegates and alternates are treated well, and plans are being made to do just that. After leaving the first meeting, I attended a meeting of local committee chairs. As I told the committee last night, there is simply no way we can over-estimate the crowds we will see in May. Plans are being made to double the estimates of the crowds we usually have (and the crowds we usually have are pretty big), but we really could see a lot more than that even. We are working to make sure that the State Party learns from the crowds seen on caucus night and at the county assemblies, and that we make sure that the plans are in place to deal with those crowds effectively and efficiently.

There are a number of efforts already underway. We have a committee working to ensure that transportation issues within Colorado Springs are handled well. Another committee is focusing on accessibility issues, and working to keep focused on planning for delegates and alternates with disabilities. Yet another committee is working to be sure that registration runs smoothly; another committee is focused on being certain delegates and alternates are warmly welcomed to Colorado Springs and questions are answered quickly (and correctly). We even have a committee focused entirely on “greening” the convention — making sure our efforts are as environmentally-friendly as possible. And that’s just a handful of the committees. The planning is going very well!

—————

A couple of days ago, I mentioned the Denver Film Society’s “Cinemocracy” efforts in conjunction with the National Convention. Well, the Host Committee has issued a press release this morning with more details. Here is some of that release:

Building upon the Denver 2008 Convention Host Committee’s Call to Democracy effort, the Denver Office of Cultural Affairs (DOCA) and Denver Film Society (DFS), producers of the Starz Denver Film Festival, are pleased to announce the creation and launch of the Cinemocracy Film Festival, an open source film festival to coincide with the 2008 Democratic National Convention. As an official event of the Host Committee, Cinemocracy calls for open participation in the political process.

Info at a Glance:

– 2008 Cinemocracy Film Festival addresses the topic of “How do you define Democracy?”
– Top-ranked films will be publicly screened in Denver during the week of the 2008 Democratic National Convention (August 25-28).
– For submission guidelines and official rules, visit www.denverfilm.org/cinemocracy.

During a year of monumental change, the Host Committee, DOCA and DFS invite citizens of the world to speak out and share ideas on what democracy is (or isn’t) through the creation of short films. All films submitted via free upload will be judged by the online public and the top 10 will be screened at a free public event in Denver during the week of Aug. 25-28.

Additionally, the winning film will be screened as part of the official program of the 31st Starz Denver Film Festival (November 13-23). The film festival is one of many events planned that underscore the Host Committee’s Call to Democracy efforts, encouraging public engagement and civic awareness in the democratic process.

Submitted films can be up to five minutes long and can be uploaded from March 1 through July 15 to www.denverfilm.org/cinemocracy. Voting will remain open until Aug. 1.

If you’re an amateur (or maybe even better-than-amateur) film-maker, take a look at this and do your submission ASAP. And, heck, you might even see your submission in May at the State Convention if you get things done and submitted early enough! I have had a preliminary discussion with the Denver Film Society, and we may be able to show a few of their submissions at the State Convention on May 17 (if you attended the State Convention in 2004, you may recall we used some Moveon.org submissions in a similar contest during that convention).

Because of the intense interest in unpledged delegates, I asked Phil McNamara of the DNC to give us a little history. His comments follow:

“Super delegates — or as they are technically known ‘unpledged delegates’ — were first introduced by the Party in 1982 for the 1984 nominating cycle.

These individuals serve as delegates because of some prominent office they hold or have held. While unpledged delegates probably do have a presidential preference, this is not a factor in why they are delegates. Rather, they serve as delegates because the Democratic Party wants the important perspective they bring to the decision-making process at the National Convention.

In recommending the creation of unpledged delegates the Commission on Presidential Nomination (the Hunt Commission) sought a way to more effectively bring elected official and Party leader participation back into the Convention. The Hunt Commission found that elected officials made up just 14% of the total delegates at the 1980 Convention.

Political scientist William Crotty wrote about the super delegates in 1983 and said the following:

‘As presented to the Hunt Commission, then, the gains from increased participation in nomination decision-making by party professionals would be substantial:

These leaders and officials, as experienced politicians, would bring seasoned and sensitive judgment to the selection of a nominee and to the conduct of other party business.

Convention participation would create stronger ties between the party and its officeholders, promoting a unified campaign strategy and teamwork in government.

The inclusion of more elected officials would strengthen the party’s ties to their constituencies and its broad mainstream approval.’

Also DNC member Elaine Kamarck has a pretty good historical background of super delegates on the Harvard Kennedy School website. Link is:

http://www.ksg.harvard.edu/ksgnews/Features/opeds/021408_kamarck.htm

(Cross-Posted to DemNotes at www.DemNotes.com)

Last night, I headed up to the mountain counties to attend the Eagle and Summit county conventions. The two counties had coordinated to allow folks from outside of the counties to attend both — Eagle was set to start at 6 pm, with Summit an hour later, at 7 pm.

Sunday night, after my last post where I mentioned my plan to head up there, I received several e-mails from folks who warned me that the weather would be bad. I spent Monday monitoring road conditions and weather forecasts, and it seemed like the drive would be passable. I was mostly worried about the two-lane road over Hoosier Pass on Highway 9. I drove up, running into some heavy snow just before getting to Hoosier Pass, in the small town of Alma in Park County. The roads were a little slippery, but I made it over the pass just fine.

As I was almost to Frisco, I tried to call Debbie Marquez in Eagle County to let her know I’d be a few minutes late due to the snow. I left her a message — just as I noticed a lot of traffic and flashing lights ahead. As I got to I-70, it became clear: they’d shut down the interstate going West. I tried the other Frisco exit, but there was no use — nobody was getting through. I had to call Debbie and let her know I would not make it.

On the positive side, I did make it to Summit County’s Convention and Assembly in Frisco plenty early!

In Summit, folks there were grappling with the snow. One delegate told me about his 5-mile, hour and a half ride from Silverthorne. Sen. Dan Gibbs called and said he was going to try to drive south around Dillon Lake to make it to Frisco via a very circuitous route. (He made it with time to spare.) In the end, folks planned well, and nearly every delegate made it to the meeting — I guess they have some experience with snow in Summit County.

Once the meeting started, there had to be some folks in the audience who wondered if they’d stumbled onto the “Dan Slater Show,” because it seemed like I was being called up to the stage to talk for the first half of the meeting. As in Gunnison, I was honored to welcome folks to the meeting on behalf of the Colorado Democratic Party — I think I sure helped in warming things up and getting folks a little more fired up. Then, only a few minutes later, the agenda called for the Presidential campaigns to have their representatives speak, so I gave a brief talk for Senator Obama. Then, shortly after that, they were taking some time seating some remaining alternates, so Chair Sandy Briggs had me just “keep the audience entertained” while they seated the alternates. For the first time in a long time — maybe ever — I ran out of stuff to say.

Once the alternates were seated, they held the Presidential preference vote — neither my speech nor the Clinton campaign’s speech swayed a single vote. The delegates voted the same as they came in: 58 Obama, 38 Clinton. This resulted in 25 delegates for Obama and 13 for Clinton from Summit County. As in prior assemblies, everybody wanted to be a delegate, so it took both camps a while to figure out who would be delegates and alternates. While they were doing this, the caravan from Eagle County arrived: Jared Polis, Joan Fitz-Gerald, DNC Field staffer Kim Phillips, and DNC Training Director Parag Mehta. I greeted everybody and then headed back to my car in the snow — for the two-hour drive home.

In case anybody’s wondering, they did the preference poll for the CD-2 race shortly after I left. Senator Fitz-Gerald won the preference poll, with 56 votes to 17 votes for Jared Polis. This led to a delegate split of 29-9 in favor of Fitz-Gerald.

Debbie Marquez has been kind enough to send me her narrative of what happened in Eagle County to put in place of my absence. Here it is:

Last night was the first assembly elections for our CD2 Congressional candidates. Both Eagle and Summit Counties voted for the CD2 race. We were fortunate to have candidates Jared Polis and Joan Fitz-Gerald address our assembly with passionate speeches. Jared Polis received 62 votes and Joan received 63 and there were about a dozen uncommitted that didn’t achieve viability. They will split the delegates even Steven with 23 each. Both candidates spent a lot of time in the county and phoning delegates, but with our two of our commissioners lending their support to Joan, I thought she would get more votes at assembly. But Jared seems to have attracted undecided voters to vote for him. (For disclosure sake, I [Debbie] am the treasurer for the Jared Polis for Congress campaign.)

Thanks to Debbie for that narrative.

————————

After about 5 hours of sleep, I got up and headed up to Denver for the Denver 2008 Host Committee meeting this morning. On the way, I ran into about everything imaginable: rain, snow, fog, ice — I even think I may have seen the Four Horsemen of the Apocolypse out there! (That’s the only explanation for one of the slow-downs near Castle Rock.)

The meeting this morning at the Colorado Convention Center was for all of the various committee members. While I arrived an hour late, I must say that it was extraordinarily impressive. When I helped kick off the concept of bidding for the Convention, I had dreams — but some of these things that are planned for Denver exceed my wildest dreams.

Throughout Denver during and around the Convention, we’ll see all sorts of artistic expressions of various media — object art, musical art, and performance art will be seen throughout the city. There will be a focus on so much citizen involvement from now through the Convention. For instance, the Denver Film Society is working on a project that will launch on March 1, called Filmocracy. People can submit their 5 minute (or less) videos that focus on democracy and what we’re doing in Denver.

Others are encouraged through another program, called America - Live and In Person, to submit their essays, artistic works, etc. for use surrounding the convention. More details about this will be released as they become available.

We also heard about the amazing work “greening” the Convention. Mayor Hickenlooper has pledged to make this the greenest Convention ever, and the Host Committee and DNCC are working to keep that commitment.

The Pepsi Center had a representative there, too. He spoke about the collaboration between the Pepsi Center staff and the DNCC / Host Committee. He also pointed to the “mojo” they expected from the convention. What mojo? Well, in 1996, the Chicago Convention led to the Chicago Bulls winning the NBA Championship. In 2000, the LA Lakers won the NBA Championship the same year as the LA Convention. And in 2004, the New England Patriots had a Super Bowl-winning year the same year as the Boston Convention. So, maybe Forsberg is just what the Avs need for the “mojo” to happen here!

Finally, we heard from the Downtown Denver Partnership. They spoke about their work to make sure Coloradans know that Downtown will be “open for business” before, during, and after the Convention. There are a lot of different activities planned for downtown, and they are working hard to keep area residents involved in getting out during the Convention and having fun.

Well, that’s all for now. I had planned on heading down to another county assembly tonight, but exhaustion from the driving and lack of sleep is kicking in, so I doubt I’ll make it. I’m off to Colorado Springs tomorrow night for meetings on the planning for the State Convention — I’ll write more about that when I can.

Dan Slater did a nice job of commenting in his blog on the State Executive Committee and State Central Committee Meetings this past Saturday. In spite of the weather there was a terrific turn out. It underlines the enthusiasm on the part of Democrats in the state. I personally welcome Butch Hicks as our new treasurer. He has big shoes to fill with Rep. Mark Ferrandino moving on. But Butch has been treasurer in Adams County for years and brings a ton of experience.

The next day, Sunday, Sky Gallegos and I flew to Durango for another community conversation and training. Over 80 people from La Plata, Montezuma and Archuleta County showed up to hear about the upcoming convention. They stayed for the next hour to learn about the caucus process and the DNC’s Neighbor to Neighbor project.

It was the liveliest session we have had, with tons of questions. I used part of Dan Slater’s really good powerpoint presentation, plus a new chart that Billy Compton has put together to show the total process. Dan’s presentation is up on the website so it can be downloaded. However, he is conducting a number of trainings throughout the state, as am I and Carolyn Boller. I also know that many counties are conducting their own.

Among the participants on Sunday, Joelle Riddle and Wally White, La Plata County Commissioners, were in attendance. John Whitney from Rep. John Salazar’s office was on hand. The Durango Herald called the event part pep rally. And we all agree.

After dropping Sky Gallegos at the airport, I stayed at Alison Dance’s lovely guest studio. Because of the ice and snow, I experienced what it is like to be without my winter tires. The car I was driving slid down a hill into the ditch. Luckily I was rescued by my hosts and no damage to the car or myself. The next morning’s snow storm cancelled my trips to Cortez and Dove Creek, so I spent most of the day on conference calls and my trusty Blackberry.

On Tuesday morning, Joelle Riddle and I traveled through the snow to have breakfast with Chairman Frost of the Southern Utes. We discussed how we might get some of the Democrats in the seven tribes to run for delegate. I have a list of people to confer with in the next few weeks.

It cleared enough so I could fly back to Denver and meet with Beage Atwater, who is once again directing the coordinated campaign. That was followed by a larger meeting with the DSCC and consultants. Staff is already working on outreach efforts,.

That evening a dozen members of the CDP Faith and Politics Project met with Rev. Terri Lavelle, director of the DNC Faith in Action Program, and John Kelly, who works on outreach for the same program. The night before they had attended a house party of 20 people from the Catholic community.

Our major discussion was around the upcoming seminar on Engaged Spirituality. We hope to use this event to recruit more people who would be willing to hold house parties. To follow is the information on the seminar to be held January 12, 2008.

Registration is 9:30 a.m. Program begins at 10:00 a.m.
End time: 4:00 p.m.

The event is at the Iliff School of Theology, 2201 S. University Blvd.
Denver, CO 80201. The meeting will take place in the Great Hall to the right as you enter the main entrance.

Agenda to follow:

Engaged Spirituality Forum
Faith and Politics Project of the Colorado Democratic Party
Hosted by Iliff School of Theology
January 12,2008

10:00 a.m. Native American Meditation: George Tinker

10:15 a.m. Welcome: Iliff President David Trickett

10:30 a.m. Greeting and Introduction of Keynote Speaker: Pat Waak, Chair, Colorado Democratic Party

Keynote Speaker: The Rev. Leah Daughtry, Chair of the 2008 Democratic Convention

11:00 a.m. A panel discussion: Exploring the Constitutional Mandates: Establishment Clause and Free Exercise Clause
The Rev. Ron Stief of “Faith in Public Life”
Taj Ashaheed: Executive Director of the Colorado Muslim Council
Representative Morgan Carroll, Colorado General Assembly

12:30 p.m. Lunch with Governor Bill Ritter

1:30 p.m. & 2:30p.m. Break-out Workshops
Faith and Immigration: American Hospitality and Economic Necessity
Representative Terrance Carroll, Colorado General Assembly
Dr. Miguel de la Torre

Faith and War: Superpower for Conquest or Common Good
Larry Howe-Kerr, Catholic Social Justice Activist
Pastor Ted Fritshel

Faith and Healthcare – Life-Health Issues in a Broader Context
Representative Jim Riesberg , Colorado General Assembly
The Rev. Dr. Michael Attas, Medical Ethics Professor at Baylor

Faith and the Environment – Making the Connections
The Rev. Peter Sawtell, Director of Eco-Justice Ministries, UCC
Eileen Regan, Environmental Scientist and Spiritual Director

Registration fee is $20, which includes a box lunch. You can register online at www.coloradodems.org

Contact for information: Pat Waak, Chair, Colorado Democratic Party, pwaak@coloradodems.org

Coming back from the DNC meeting, we had the opportunity to hit the ground running. Monday night Sky Gallegos, Deputy CEO for Intergovernmental Relations of the DNCC, and I conducted a community forum in Fort Collins. It was standing room only, with representatives from Larimer, Weld and Morgan Counties in attendance.

The meetings that Sky and I are doing include an opportunity to discuss what will happen at the Democratic National Convention next year, as well as caucus training and the DNC’s Neighorhood Leader program. The questions were centered around volunteering and ways to promote your local community to incoming visitors. For some fun commentary, check out www.demconvention.com. They have a blog with video interviews.

However, the caucus training was important as well. About 60% of the audience had been to caucus before. The rest were really learning about caucuses and how to become delegates. Adam Bowen, Larimer County Democratic Chair, said that there were lots of new faces in the crowd. And we recruited about 15 new neighborhood leaders.

On Tuesday, Dick Wadhams and I made presentations to the Denver Lions Club. A packed lunchtime group listened to us talk about the importance of caucuses in Colorado and the changes we expect to see with the coming year’s participation. My prediction is that we will have a record turnout in 2008 because of all the Presidential candidates working in the state, the early date for our caucuses, and the interest in becoming a delegate to the National Democratic Convention in Denver.

On Wednesday, over 200 people gathered at A Spice of Life conference center in Boulder. The DNCC held a community conversation with Leah Daughtry, CEO of the DNCC, and Rep. Alice Madden, Colorado House Majority Leader. The big announcement was the introduction of Andrea Robinson, who will be in charge of “greening” the national convention. I also had a few moments to explain the caucuses and how one could become a delegate.

Other upcoming events:
1) The Colorado State Executive Committee and State Central Committee will be meeting on Saturday to approve next year’s budget, elect a new treasurer, and handle party business.

2) There will be Faith and Politics House Parties on Monday evening. On Tuesday of next week, we will host a larger meeting at the CDP at 6:30 P.M. Rev. Terri Lavelle and John Kelly from the DNC’s Faith in Action Project will be here.

3) The Faith and Politics Seminar is scheduled for January 12, 2008 at Iliff School of Theology. Speakers will include Leah Daughtry, Governor Bill Ritter, Rep. Terrance Carroll, Rep. Morgan Carroll and Rep. Jim Reisberg.

4) Sky Gallegos and I will be hosting a community conversation and training in Durango, Sunday, Dec. 9, 2007 at the Durango Community Recreation Center (Peaks Room). The event will go from 1:00 P.M. to 3:00 P.M.

5) I will be visiting with Montezuma County Dems in Cortez at The Main Bookstore in Cortez at 10:00 A.M. on Monday, Dec. 10, 2007.

6) And I will be having dinner with the Dolores County Dems at the Blue Mountain Cafe in Dove Creek at 6:30 P.M. that evening.

Hope to see you at one of these events.