Final RNC Thoughts

When I found out a couple of months ago that I was going to go the Republican convention as the "liberal" blogger and Tommy C. was going to Denver, I cursed Tommy up and down out of pure jealousy. He was going to hang with the exciting Dems and their celebrity friends and I was stuck with a bunch of stick-in-the-mud Republicans and celebrities I could care less about!

As it turns out, I'm glad I got to go to Minneapolis-St. Paul and see a side of the world that I don't relate to very much. Plus, I had the added bonus of being in a hotel that also housed Air America and the Washington Post and found enough liberal media lurking about that I at least had some oasis during part of the days and nights in the hotel bar. Oh, and MInnesotans? Fantastic people. I often forget how rude we are in the Northeast until I travel elsewhere.

The AOL crew was fantastic. Up to this point, the most actual contact I'd had with most of them were emails and a few phone conversations. This gig is part-time for most of the Political Machine bloggers and we don't work out of the NY or VA offices of AOL. My thanks to all of them for making it a great experience for me. Fellow blogger Mark Impomeni was a great help identifying obscure (to me) Republicans and is an absolute doll.

During my downtime not working on blog posts or researching for them, I was able to snap some great pictures in and around the convention area. I met a bunch of great Republican politician and operatives, media and delegates and while I may not agree with them politically, I was impressed with their willingness to open up to a liberal blogger. The overwhelming positive response to Sarah Palin was almost infectious - almost. From what I understand from some others, the Democrats in Denver were not always as open-minded toward Conservative media. Here's a few pictures (click image for larger one):


The Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis has it's own "bridge to nowhere":


Air America's Thom Hartmann.


Utah Senator Orrin Hatch.


Libertarian Candidate Bob Barr.


Rally for the Republic emcee and MSNBC's Tucker Carlson.


1/2 of Angelina Jolie's DNA


Katie Couric during a CBS Radio interview.


Ambassador John Bolton with AOL PM's Mark Impomeni (left)


Huffington Post's Arianna Huffington