Day 2 of the Democratic Convention: A Granite Stater's Take

Today, Tuesday, is the second day of the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte. The top events will be the keynote address by Mayor Julian Castro of San Antonio and a speech by presidential first lady Michele Obama. Look for Michele's speech between 10 and 11 o'clock tonight.

Yesterday, events at the convention weren't televised. Just across the street from the convention center, a home for a veteran was being assembled by volunteers. Actually, one half was put together in Charlotte (home of the Democratic convention); the other in Tampa (site of the Republican convention). The two will be happily joined together here in Charlotte. Wouldn't it be nice if our two political parties could work together so constructively?

Several delegates from New Hampshire volunteered to help with the home construction. Carol Croteau, Democratic State Senate candidate from Kingston, and Kristi St. Laurent from Windham, another Democratic State Senate candidate, put on their work clothes, and joined the effort. When finished, the completed home will be moved to land donated by local government. (How did that happen? The GOP keeps telling us government is of no help at all [smile]).

Other delegates had the opportunity to attend caucuses dealing with the interests of special groups. If you were alive and breathing, there was a caucus for you. Included among them were a Faith Council, a Youth Council, a Disability Caucus, a Hispanic caucus, a Senior Council, an LGBT caucus, a Women's Caucus, an African-American Caucus, a Veterans and Military Families Council, a Native-American Council, an Ethnic Council.

I guess that reflects the diversity of the Democratic Party. Well, the smarties hadn't thought of everything. My wife and I were insulted. There was no Caucus for Crabby, Cheapskates from New Hampshire, so we ignored the caucuses, and visited Carolina Fest, a gigantic street fair taking place outside the Charlotte Convention Center.

Coming from nearly all-white New Hampshire, we were impressed by the variety of Americans around us - Latinos, Asian- Americans, and African-Americans.We got a real sense of the pride that African-Americans have in President Obama. Here they were slaves 150 years ago, and now one of their own holds the highest office in the land. That's a very gratifying success story.

Today, Tuesday, at the New Hampshire Democratic Party breakfast, we heard talks by Obama Deputy Campaign Director Jennifer O'Malley Dillon and ABC News and CNN News analyst Donna Brazile.

Dillon spoke with more than a little difficulty - she is quite pregnant with twins, and, as she said, "they are sitting on my lungs." Nevetheless, Dillon spoke (breathlessly as you can imagine) about the challenges of the presidential campaign. First, Democrats will be outspent by Republicans, due to the GOP Super Pacs. Second, the Romney campaign is purposely misstating Obama's record on Medicare, welfare, and his support for private enterprise. Third, the GOP is trying to suppress Democratic voter turnout through the passage of photo ID bills.

However, Dillon said, despite all that, the race has been remarkably stable with Obama maintaining a narrow lead for many months. Romney received little, if any, of a "voter bump" upward as a result of the Republican convention.

She said Democratic enthusiasm for the presidential contest has picked up, particularly among young voters. Obama spoke to 10,000 people in Des Moines last week, and to 14,000 more in Boulder, Colorado. The campaign registered 100,000 more Democratic voters in the past week, and has passed the 3,000,000 mark in the number of individual donors.

Brazile said that Obama in his acceptance speech will try to accentuate the positive, rather than responding to political attacks. In contrast to Romney who states goals, but never provides details how they will be achieved, Obama will provide specific objectives for his second term and how they will be attained.

Well, this could be a busy television week for you. In addition to the Democratic convention, I am told that WMUR-TV will be carrying a debate featuring Democratic gubernatorial candidates Maggie Hassan, Jackie Cilley, and Bill Kennedy at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 5. Hassan and Cilley are neck-and-neck in an exciting race with Hassan holding a small lead. 

Keep your Visine on hand to treat those tired television eyes.