Yesterday, I spent an entire day fully involved in politics. If I make anyone jealous, I apologize but I just had to share the events from yesterday. My friend works for John Edwards and needed an extra hand for Day 2 of the poverty tour. He does advance for the Edwards campaign.
We made sure Edwards, his staff and the traveling press corps had hotel rooms and cars to take them on the second day of the poverty tour. A little after midnight last night, I along with a few other volunteers picked all of them up at the airport in Cleveland. I had the honor, of driving John Edwards.
He jumped in the front seat next to me, and we exchanged a few words. Before we began our short conversation, he called his wife Elizabeth to let her know he loved her and he arrived safe. Then, he thanked me for helping out during the poverty tour, and for driving him to the hotel. I told him I was from Virginia and was due to head back there that evening for the Iraq Vote.
After we arrived at the hotel, we all slept. The next day, I was part of the "staff" although I am not a paid staffer. I helped out with escorting the local media in part of the walkthrough he did through a very poor neighborhood in Cleveland.
As I was there, I ran into fellow kossack be inspired who was there to blog the event for Daily Kos and her blog.
After he met with the 3 homeowners, he drove off to the rest of his tour. I feel honored that was able to help out a likely President. I still am undecided, but I am moving closer and closer to John Edwards for President.
I left after everyone else headed for their next stop and drove back down to DC to accept an invitation from Senator Harry Reid to Vote Vets (who met members of Congress yesterday to try to pressure those on the fence to come over to our side). I didn't arrive until after the Vote Vets speech at a nearby park from the Capitol with Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, and many other Congressional leaders.
We saw some of the fireworks last night in the private Senate Galley reserved for family of the Senators. Harry Reid requested that members of VoteVets or affilated with them could have full access to the Senate yesterday.
At midnight I saw the GOP block the cloture vote to proceed as my Senator, Jim Webb was presiding over the senate.
The Veterans who were sitting with me last night were, Jon Soltz the head of Vote Vets, Andy Horne, Paul Granato, John Bruhns, and famous Abdul Henderson who starred in uniform in Fahrenheit 9/11 with Michael Moore.
I had a short conversation with Andy Horne, getting advice for another friend who's nearly ready to file for Congress against Tom Davis in Virginia. My friend, Doug Denneny is also a retired military officer and thought Andy could give me some good advice for him, and he did. We also talked about the changing politics of his home state of Kentucky where he unsuccessfully ran for Congress last year.
I mentioned to Andy a passage from one of Barack Obama's books that basically says that losing his first race (also a Congressional) was refreshing and liberating. I told him I think losing helps people sometimes. I asked along with a hint from Jon Soltz that he would be a great candidate for US Senate against Mitch McConnell.
He laughed because he doesn't believe he's a politician. He told me, "The problem is, is that I am not a politician". He thinks that hurts him, I have assured him it does not. Along with being a good friend of Soltz, he's also a good friend of General Wesley Clark. I think the Fighting Dems, could have another big impact in 2008. Along with everything else I talked about here, help me convince Andy Horne that he should challenge his fellow fraternity brother from college Mitch.
I finally left the Senate last night, or early this morning at about 3am after I saw some fireworks between Sen. Jim Webb and Sen. John McCain. After I saw that Naval Academy spat, I left and went home to fall asleep after a long and eventful day.
I'd thought I would share it with all of you.
McCain's just mad because the only thing that hasn't resigned from his presidential campaign is his pompous sense of entitlement.
Awesome post Dave!
I won't bore you with the details, but I met Mondale, one of the most decent men ever and had the best time of my life.
Mondale's campaign staff got the idea of treating the traveling press corps to stone crabs at a famous place called Joe's Stone Crab, in Miami Beach. The problem was Joe's didn't take reservations and usually had a line over two blocks long to get into the restaurant during the stone crab season.
He wouldn't hear of reserving seats for a hungry press corps, not even for a presidential candidate, not even for all the publicity he would get. And, really, he already had people lining the streets to get in to his place. Publicity he didn't need.
But this very intense advance man was intent to make it happen and it was my job - volunteer though I was - to try to convince somebody to convince Joe. We tried the head of the union that represented the restaurant workers. But nobody could budge Joe.
Finally, I muttered under my breath, "Why the hell don't they just cater it at the damned hotel?" The advance man heard me and pronounced the idea brilliant. Joe was agreeable to that. He was happy to send over the crabs. He just wasn't going to hold tables and turn customers away.
My next challenge was to get ice for drinks from a staff of Cubans who refused to speak to me in English because they were Republicans - honest, they were still holding a grudge for the Bay of Pigs in the 60s (Miami is strange). But I managed to get ice in the bathtub, the sink and in buckets and iced down drinks. I also worked with Secret Service.
At the end of the day, Walter Mondale walked off the elevator, into the hospitality suite, shook my hand and told me I had done a great job. But even more gratifying, the intense advance man also told me quietly that I had done a great job. I was thrilled and never forgot the experience.
By the way, my husband drove the press in Mondale's entourage that night. And he also drove Joe Biden and other candidates over the years that we lived in Fort Lauderdale.
Those are such great experiences to have. Dave, I'm glad you got to experience it first hand. You are a great Democratic worker and those are the perks. Hope you enjoyed meeting Edwards, whom I think the world of.