Kent Said:

Where can i watch the whole democratic national convention online?

We Answered:

cspan

Ernest Said:

Who is The Democratic National Convention speaker?

We Answered:

Bill Clinton spoke tonight.
Barack Obama will speak tomorrow (8/28) and accept the party's nomination.

VOTE OBAMA/ BIDEN '08!!

Jenny Said:

How can I get a video of the 2008 Democratic National Convention?

We Answered:

http://www.demconvention.com/

On that site you can find all the footage shot in HD under video and then galleries. They do use a pretty rare video format so I'll give you some alternative links as well but those probably will not have all the content like that site does.
http://dnc08.c-span.org/
is the best alternaitive with the most content and organized in a way it's easy to find what you're looking for

Other alternatives are
http://nl.youtube.com/results?search_que…
http://video.google.nl/videosearch?q=dem…


Hope this helps.

Philip Said:

Why have a the Democratic National Convention if the president nominee has already been chosen?

We Answered:

It is a 'formal' selection...where all of the delegates come together and cast their votes for the candidate of choice.

Marvin Said:

How does the democratic national convention actually nominate a candidate?

We Answered:

That situation allows a lesser voted candidate to broker their votes for whichever candidate they can get the most concessions from, or which ever is closest to their position.

Felicia Said:

Which station should broadcast the Democratic National Convention (DNC) and the RNC?

We Answered:

Lots of questions, so I will take each one separately.

I think they both need to be broadcast on a cable station, as too many people are addicted to the dramas and comedies on the regular networks and the bigger cable stations. I would think that either Fox News or MSNBC would be good choices. I don't think they need to have analysts giving the play-by-play like you find with sporting events. I think, actually, that the ideal situation is to have less intervention and interpretation from the network which carries it, and more of just letting people make up their own minds. I personally prefer Fox, despite the fact that everyone seems to think they are biased. When you come right down to it, both of them are biased.

I think that the RNC is most likely to resemble a circus, simply by virtue of the fact that there are so many people seeking the Republican nomination. Realistically, the Dems only have three contenders, and one of them is so far behind in the polls they don't count. I will leave you to take that as you wish. I think the Reps are going to have a lot more people jockeying for positions just because it is such a large field.

Actually, having watched documentaries on the conventions for both parties last time, I think the whole concept of a party convention is surreal. They really remind me of a weird religious revival, of the type that used to travel and set up a tent in small towns, and then move on after the weekend was over. I think both will be pretty surreal, but I think the Reps will present the better show in that respect, as there are so many tiny, weird issues for various candidates to contend with. Romney will be busy trying to keep people's minds off the fact that he is Mormon. (He really should handle it the way JFK handled being Catholic: "I won't let it interfere with my presidency if you don't let it interfere with your vote".) Giuliani will be trying to keep the more conservative people from thinking about the fact that he is a divorced Catholic who is technically (by Catholic doctrine) living in sin. McCain will just be busy trying to get people to pay attention to him. Thompson will be acting like an elder statesman, and trying to stay calm, and keep the people who are so pro-Fred from acting up. Then there are all the lesser known guys, like Huckabee and Brownback and Paul et al. I think the simple fact that there are so many of them is what is going to make it so surreal.

On the flip side, you will have the Dems looking at two strong candidates who are minorities, with a woman and a black man. That's going to be pretty surreal, as well, simply because it's such a change from white anglo saxon protestant men in dark suits and red power ties. The other thing that will be surreal is that all three of the big Dem candidates really need to court the liberal religious folks. I have a feeling there's going to be a lot of praying and testifying about personal beliefs and relationships with God. Personally, I think religion is playing too large a part in this election for every single candidate--it should be a non-issue. But it will be weird to be treated to face-to-camera talks about such personal issues.

Funny speeches will abound! They always do. I definitely have my preferences, and I definitely know where my sympathies lie, but the truth of the matter is that when people are in a situation like that, flubs fly. I haven't made up my mind yet on just who will most likely win the award for best stupid speech that makes them look silly, but I am quite sure that someone, or maybe more than one, will oblige us.

I dislike Rice. I only sort of like Clinton. I think people make a mistake when they say Clinton is stupid, because she isn't. But Rice has a lot more freedom about what she says in a debate because she's not running for office. That means that she doesn't need to weigh her words quite as carefully, and can go for broke in a debate. Clinton, on the other hand, has to be a lot more careful. Both are smart, but they are smart about different things. I hate to admit it, but I think Rice would win a debate. Clinton just has too much to lose if she takes a misstep, so her debating is really...sucky. A fistfight, however, is another question. Clinton would win in a heartbeat. Rice is an excellent pianist, and it is ingrained in their minds to take good care of their hands, so she would not be throwing punches well. Clinton would just clobber her. In all truth, I would rather see them have a bare-knuckles match than a debate.

I think the very best candidate for either side who is not running is Colin Powell. He could trade on his warnings about the situation in Iraq, which I think is a big issue which is on everyone's mind. And to tell you the truth, I have so much confidence in the man, and in his personal integrity, that he could run on the Socialist ticket and I would probably still vote for him. (Naturally, my electoral vote would go elsewhere--I live in a red state--but you get my point.)

In all of this, I do know of one person who will emerge smelling like a rose and rolling in money. A friend from high school has an uncle who has a printing business in Denver. The majority of his contracts are in the form of printing t-shirts, bags, hats, etc... for various conventions which come to Denver and other places here in the West, including Las Vegas. He has a contract for the DNC. Beginning 1 January 2008, the only work done in his shop will be for that event. He is currently trying to clear up all the other contracts he has so he can get ready to move into high gear next year. My friend said that they have already done the artwork for much of the work, and that they will have the artwork ready for all contingencies once the official nominees are selected. As soon as the official candidate and running mate are chosen, his shop will begin cranking out goodies with their names on them. He has bid for these types of contracts before, but never won one. My friend asked him how much money he stands to make, and his uncle's only reply was that after next summer, he should have enough money that if he closed shop for good, he could still live very well for the rest of his life, and so could his employees. It sounds like a profitable business. I wish him the best.