Celtic Diva's Blue Oasis: Ack...The New York Times is "bad pressing" the Democratic National Convention planning! Howard Dean reponds.

Sunday, July 06, 2008

Ack...The New York Times is "bad pressing" the Democratic National Convention planning! Howard Dean reponds.


Per the Sunday morning story:
With the Denver convention less than two months away, problems range from the serious — upwardly spiraling costs on key contracts still being negotiated — to the mundane, like the reluctance of local caterers to participate because of stringent rules on what delegates will be eating, down to the color of the food. At last count, plans to renovate the inside of the Pepsi Center for the Democrats are $6 million over budget, which may force convention planners to scale back on their original design or increase their fund-raising goals.

The convention is being organized by the Democratic National Committee, which is run by Howard Dean, with his chief of staff, the Rev. Leah D. Daughtry, leading the effort. Only in the last month has the Obama campaign been able to take over management of the convention planning with the candidate claiming the nomination, and his aides are increasingly frustrated, as the event nears, at organizers who they believe spent too freely, planned too slowly and underestimated actual costs.

Did anyone bother to mention that...Oh, I don't know...maybe the shortage is due to t Hillary staying in too long and sucking-up Dem funds that should have gone to the party? Did anyone mention that folks are being asked to donate to her to cover her debt?

Did anyone mention that when you're doing the planning, for some things you must have the money up front?

Howard Dean responds for the Dems:
We are proud to stand at the helm of the finest Convention team we’ve known. As the arm of the national Party tasked with planning and organizing the Democratic National Convention in Denver, the Democratic National Convention Committee has been at this for more than a year. And we take great pride in our work. That's why we were astonished to read in Sunday’s New York Times such a gross misrepresentation of the groundwork that has been laid to date.

The New York Times asserts that this is a Democratic convention effort “marred by costly setbacks.” That is false. In fact we are ahead of the game. Anyone who has ever worked on a national political Convention would tell you as much. This is a well managed Convention.

The New York Times states that the Convention is facing “upwardly spiraling costs on key contracts still being negotiated.” That is false. All major contracts have been executed and we are on track to move in to the Pepsi Center to begin build out on Monday as planned.

The New York Times implies that the Convention has imposed eating restrictions on delegates to the Convention. That is false. Democrats at the Pepsi Center and other official Convention venues can have all the fried goodies they can stomach. Talk of anything to the contrary is just plain silly.

Read the rest at the website.

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