Recap of Day 3 at the Democratic National Convention

We're almost there, folks, and your fearless reporter is still on the case at DNC08.



This night wasn't about Obama or about vice presidential candidate Joe Biden (a Catholic who made exactly one reference to faith and zero about being Catholic). It was about the old guard of the Democratic Party.

After the roll call vote, Pepsi Center had returned to a dull state. That all changed when former President Bill Clinton strode on stage to an incredibly loud roar. I looked around to see if Joe Sakic just scored a goal. The arena woke up, and people picked up their pace scurrying about.

Anyway, Bill Clinton may have spoken about Barack Obama, but it was all about him. He basked in the spotlight as long as they would let him, and longer. Clinton was allotted 10 minutes, but he went 17 or 18. However, it was the only time this week I saw just about everyone in attendance hang on every word of a speaker.

Watching a hero of the Democratic party

It was all downhill after that, especially during former Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry's speech. He also made it about himself, dredging up grudges from his failed 2004 campaign. He was not so well received.

Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi also delivered an incredibly short speech that did not touch on her abortion views, but she was mainly there to cermoniously nominate Biden as the party's vice presidential candidate.

I logged some time in an alternate press gallery for a change of pace tonight, and it was looking like they stuck all the foreign press in there. In the main gallery, most of the journalists appear to have a vested interest in the outcome, while the foreign press seems to observe with bemusement.

Outside the entrance gates was the most organized demonstration I have seen yet. On a night that was dedicated to the military, a group that claimed to be Iraq War veterans assembled to protest said conflict.




Police were at the ready again in case anything erupted.



That's about all I can tell you that you can't read elsewhere. The same Democratic Party message attacking Republicans was delivered like a bludgeon again (read last night's post for the message). I'm interested to know what any veterans thought of the Democratic Party message regarding the military, espcially the video toward the end of the night.

UPDATE: I realized that many of our readers may not have seen some of the speeches, and military may be interested in what veteran Tammy Duckworth had to say. I got word that the major networks threw their coverage to their anchors after the veterans video until Biden came on. Luckily, I don't have to transcribe it and can defer to the DNC's Web site.

All photos by Jim Myers/The Colorado Catholic Herald