THE REPUBLICAN CONVENTION: A TRIP TO GROUND ZERO

As published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
Sept. 1, 2004

NEW YORK _ A white-bearded man with a flute played a slow, sad version of "Amazing Grace," while just up the sidewalk by a subway entrance, an Asian man bowing a one-stringed instrument played a whimsical "Oh! Susanna." An angry woman marched up and down the sidewalk chanting, "Bush and the CIA attacked America," provoking a man in a Bush-Cheney hat to walk up to her and tell her to "shut up."

A short man in a NYPD T-shirt was selling photo albums titled Remember the Heroes with pictures of the World Trade Center before, after and during the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. "It's still deeply embedded in New Yorkers," said vendor David Sterton, pointing to his heart. "It's like it happened yesterday."

Just like the photo albums Sterton was selling for $6, the program the night before at the Republican National Convention at Madison Square Garden was designed to evoke memories of Sept. 11.

As the Democrats did at their convention in Boston in July, there was an emotional musical tribute featuring the song "Amazing Grace." There was testimony by family members of those who died in the attack. And the night was capped off by a speech by former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, who became known as "America's mayor" for the way he handled the aftermath of Sept. 11.

The message was reflected in the local headlines Tuesday "It's9/11,"creamed the headline of The New York Post above a large photo of Giuliani.

It's obvious that both major parties will be trying to use Sept. 11 for their own political advantage.

Speaking with those who gathered towers had been Tuesday morning -- tourists, convention delegates and even a few locals -- it became apparent that people are split on the implications of Sept. 11.

"I think the politicians are using 9/11 as a political stepping stone," said Sterten, the photo album man. "Especially (John) Kerry. I'm not sure about him with all his off and on. I would rather have Bush running the country."

Jamie Walker, 44, of Seattle agreed.

"I think Sept. 11 is a legitimate political issue,' said Walker, who said he was making a "pilgrimage" to Ground Zero.

Considering that it's the biggest attack ever on American soil it is right for us as a nation to make this a political issue," Walker said.

But Kim and Mary Lou Ratz of Minneapolis, who were in the city on a business trip said they don't like how Bush has used Sept. 11.

"I kind of wish politicians would focus on domestic issues," Mary Lou Ratz said.

Specifically, they said, they don't believe Bush is correct in using the attack on the World Trade Center to justify the war in Iraq.

"I don't think war is the right way to fight terrorism," Mary Lou Ratz said.

The Ratzes said they are backing John Kerry for president.

So is Connie Demidio, a New York interior decorator who was at Ground Zero with her sister, Petra Gleich of Germany.

"I think George Bush is wrapping himself in a blanket of Sept. 11, which I think is wrong," Demidio said.

Eliine Bagshau, 74, of Sydney, Australia, said she believes both Bush and Australian Prime Minister John Howard use the image of Sept. 11 to "keep people more afraid." And both leaders used the threat of terrorism as a reason to invade Iraq, she said.

"I think it's starting to backfire against our prime minister," she said. "It certainly had nothing to do with terrorism. It was all about oil."

A convention delegate from Florida, Bob Waechter of Sarasota visited Ground Zero with his wife and another couple.

Not surprisingly, he said Bush is right to stress Sept. 11 in the campaign. "It's an irrefutable issue since it's the most significant thing to happen in the last 10 years.

But Waechter had a personal reason for being there. He's a retired New York City firefighters.

"I was here three weeks after it happened," he said. "I volunteered to help out a little."

Waechter said this is the first time he’s been back to the scene since the fall of 2001.

"The main thing I notice is that it looks so much smaller," he said. "Before, when it was a big pile of rubble it was just overwhelming. It seems so much smaller now."

THE REPUBLICAN CONVENTION: CONVENTION NOTEBOOK DAY 1

A published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
August 31, 2004

NEW YORK _ Former New Mexico Gov. "Lonesome" Dave Cargo has always had a tenuous relationship with the more conservative elements of the Republican Party when he was in office in the late 1960s. And Cargo's move Monday won't do much to endear himself to GOP regulars.

Cargo has helped to launch a group of moderate Republicans called Back to the Mainstream, which urges the GOP to go back towards the center. The group purchased a full-page ad in the New York Times to greet Republican delegates on the first day of their convention.

"The Republicans have gone far enough to the right, they're going to fall off the cliff," Cargo said in a telephone interview.

"We've let the extreme right push us," he said. "It's time to push back."

Cargo isn't exactly lonesome in this endeavor. He's joined by about 20 other political figures. Trouble is, there are few, if any, contemporary GOP leaders. The biggest names were in power about the time that Cargo was governor.

Among those signing on are former Gov. William Milliken, a three-time Michigan governor; Daniel Evans, a former Washington governor and U.S. Senator; former New Hampshire Gov. Walter Peterson; former Virginia Gov. Linwood Holton; and two former Environmental Protection Agency chiefs Russell Train and William Ruckelshaus.

Cargo said he started the group with Larry Rockefeller, grandson of John D. Rockefeller.

Republicans should be better on civil rights and environmental issues, Cargo said. "Some of these important environmental laws we have were passed when Richard Nixon was president," he said.

But even though he is critical of the Bush administration Cargo said Back to the Mainstream as an organization isn't endorsing or threatening to endorse Democrat John Kerry.

"I'm not terribly enthusiastic about Kerry," he said.

Broadway Joe

New Mexico delegates who went to a Sunday night performance of The Phantom of the Opera at the Majestic Theatre were greeted by a few dozen protesters who heckled and held signs with anti-Bush and anti-war slogans.

"They wanted to yell at rich Republicans," said state Sen. Joe Carraro, R-Albuquerque, a delegates. "But most the Republicans there aren't the type who would be spending money on Broadway plays."

The New York convention host committee and The New York Times sprung for Broadway tickets for delegates Sunday night.

"Some of the delegates complained about the protesters being so loud," Carraro said. However, Carraro, a former resident of Manhattan, was undaunted. "I told them that's just New York. It's just loud here. They had to be loud to be heard at all."

Full disclosure on graft:

There were no Broadway tickets for reporters, but there was a gift bag for reporters registering at the Hotel Pennsylvania Monday morning.

The black canvas shoulder bag (with the logos of the Republican National Convention and "NYC 2004") was packed with goodies.

Among the swag: a copy of the Guide to New York City Landmarks, a children's book about a bunny on a bicycle called Miffy Loves New York City, a History Channel DVD about Ellis Island, a Con Edison pocket flashlight, a disposable camera, a tiny packet of Dunkin Donut coffee, a pack of red, white and blue M&Ms, a pack of Listerine strips, a Statue of Liberty tie pin with the AT&T logo and a "Limited Convention Edition" box of Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, featuring an elephant holding a sign reading "Republicans in 2004."

But no apple:

On the last day of the Democratic convention in Boston, a law enforcement officer working the press entrance to the Fleet Center confiscated my jar of Bill Richardson salsa, which the New Mexico delegation was giving away to promote the state. The Secret Service wasn't impressed by the promotional tool, saying it violated a rule against glass jars in the convention center.

On the first day of the Republican convention I had another contraband food item confiscated.

An apple.

This convention has a rule against round fruit, which apparently some fear could be easily hurled at politicians.

"No round fruit is allowed," the officer told me. "You should have brought a banana."

THE REPUBLICAN CONVENTION: SECURITY BLANKETS NYC

As published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
August 31, 2004

NEW YORK _ Anyone who thought security was intense during the Democratic National Convention last month ought to come to New York for the Republican convention.

Compared to New York, the security in Boston was Woodstock.

"It's a sign of the times," said U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici. "I've been to some conventions where there was almost no security."

Besides GOP conventioneers, New York this week has been a magnet for anti-war and anti-Bush protesters. Hundreds of thousands of people marched Sunday to demonstrate against the Republicans. Today has been designated as a day of civil disobedience by some protest organizers.

Domenici, who has been going to Republican conventions for more than 30 years, said that besides the post-Sept. 11 fear of terrorism, extra security is needed because of the intensify of bad feelings by many toward President Bush.

"Some people have been sold on the idea that the president is mean and hateful," Domenici said. "I know him well and I know that this just isn't true."

Delegate Joe Carraro, a state senator from Albuquerque, agreed. "There really is a lot of animosity over the issues of the war."

In the streets around Madison Square Garden, where the convention is taking place, there are police every few yards on the sidewalks and large clusters of police on the corners.

You literally can't even get away with jaywalking. There are barricades preventing pedestrians from crossing anywhere but at the intersections. At some intersections officers use orange plastic temporary gate material to keep pedestrians from crossing streets until the police say it's time to cross.

Entering Madison Square Garden, reporters must pass through not one but two checkpoints with metal detectors. This also is the case for delegates said Darren White, a delegate from Albuquerque.

Even the hotels where delegates are staying have far more severe security than convention goers saw in Boston.

Boston's Sheraton downtown, where New Mexico Democrats stayed, had a near carnival atmosphere with delegates, party officials and even radical protesters from the Lyndon LaRouche campaign milling about and merchants hawking humorous anti-Bush paraphernalia.

In contrast, only guests can go inside the Roosevelt Hotel, where the state's Republican delegation is staying. Five or six police officers guard the front door of the hotel.

And the police presence doesn't go away when the convention isn't in session. During the early morning hours Monday police presence was strong in the area. Many weary-looking uniformed officers took breaks in all-night coffee shops and delis, some chatting with their fellow cops, some sitting alone staring blankly into cups of coffee.

New Mexico Republicans said Monday they've never seen such a police show of force.

Carraro said he is still amazed that his party would chose New York City, and especially surprised that the location would be Madison Square Garden.

"I grew up here," Carraro said. "Madison Square Garden has to be the hardest place for security. There's subways running under it, There's an Amtrack running beneath it. I was surprised they'd chose this place."

White, who is Bernalillo County sheriff, said "This is the tightest security situation I've ever encountered."

White complimented the New York City Police -- the most visible of dozens of law enforcement agencies working around Madison Square Garden.

"They're performing spectacularly," White said. "The last thing you want to is to come here and not be able to have fun for fear of something going wrong."

A state tourism official in New York this week expressed frustration with the heightened security

"I was stunned at the level of security in Boston, but this is Boston to the nth degree," said Jon Hendry, director of marketing for the Tourism Department.

"I am totally screwed," Hendry said. "I'm driving a 34-foot motorhome and I've been hassled by city cops, state cops and cops I've never heard of."

Hendry said every time he enters Manhattan Island police search the large brightly painted motorhome. "I have to take everything out of it," he said.

He concedes that one thing that probably made it easier on him in Boston was the fact that Gov. Bill Richardson was the chairman of the Democratic Convention and had worked closely with the city of Boston. “We had some contacts there," he said.

Even native New Yorkers are amazed by the huge concentration of law enforcement.

Curtis Sliwa, who founded a citizen protection group called The Guardian Angels in the 1970s because he felt the subways and parks were unsafe now says New York City is "the safest place on Earth."

"That's because there's a cop every five inches," Sliwa -- wearing his trademark red beret and red Guardian Angels jacket quipped during an interview Monday at the Stage Door Delicatessen, across the street from the convention hall

Sliwa, who currently is a radio talk show host on the conservative WABC, said he went to the 1992 Democratic Convention at Madison Square Garden.

"There was almost no security there, he said. "Of course the city swept the area of all the hookers and pimps and homeless people right before the convention started."

OFF TO NEW YORK

I'm flying to New York City today to cover the Republican National Convention for The Santa Fe New Mexican. I'll also be filing reports for KSFR, 90.7 FM.

I'll post most of my New Mexican coverage here on this blog, but also check the paper's Web site.

Here's the preview in this morning's paper:

As published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
August 29,2004


A month after the Democratic Party’s John Kerry love fest in Boston, Republican leaders from across the country will hold their own extravaganza to lavish praise on President Bush — and to officially nominate him and Vice President Dick Cheney for another term in the White House.

Like the Democrats, the Republican National Convention is expected to follow the three-Ps principle: Propaganda — pounding in the Republican message on television; Pep Rallies — getting the faithful charged up; and Parties — lavish receptions, dinners and other social events, courtesy of big corporations and other special interests that have found a fun-filled loophole in “soft-money” laws.

But, unlike the Democrats, a fourth “P” undoubtedly will be a significant part of the Republican convention story.

Protests.

While the protests in Boston last month seemed anemic and halfhearted, anti-war and anti-Bush activists have for months been planning for demonstrations and disruptions at the New York convention.

State Sen. Joe Carraro of Albuquerque, a convention delegation who served on the GOP Platform Committee, noted that several convention speakers — U.S. Sen. John McCain of Arizona, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani — “have different positions on different issues.”

Carraro said this will be a great symbol of GOP unity.

But while some of the speakers will have more moderate opinions than Bush on social issues such as gay rights, abortion and stem-cell research, Carraro said there will be no disagreement on the podium on perhaps the biggest issue of the campaign — the war on Iraq. All will agree with Bush that the war was necessary.

“This will showcase what the president has done and answer some of his critics,” Carraro said. “The president has to show he’s got party unity. If he’s unable to show that, he’s got a problem.”

There is little doubt, however, that New York will be anything but a huge display of party unity.

New Mexico delegation

New Mexico’s Republican Party is sending 21 delegates and 21 alternates to New York. According to a news statement earlier this month, the state’s delegation is among the most diverse in the convention, with 43 percent of delegates members of minority groups.

Delegates include some of the top GOP leaders in the state — U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici, U.S. Reps. Heather Wilson and Steve Pearce, former Interior Secretary and U.S. Rep. Manuel Lujan, former gubernatorial candidate John Sanchez, state Sen. Joe Carraro, state Reps. Jeanette Wallace and Jane Powdrell-Culbert, Bernalillo County Sheriff Darren White and Public Regulation Commission candidate and former San Ildefonso Pueblo Gov. John Gonzales.

Before the Democratic Convention last month, much was made of the increased visibility the New Mexico delegation there would receive because Gov. Bill Richardson was convention chairman.

There hasn’t been quite the same attention paid to the state’s Republican delegation. Barbara Longeway of Albuquerque, the delegation’s coordinator, said in a recent telephone interview that the Republican delegation doesn’t have as many activities planned as their Democratic counterparts. “We don’t have Bill Richardson’s money,” she quipped.

But plenty will be offered to keep the delegation busy.

Like all delegations, New Mexico’s is invited to see a Broadway play tonight, courtesy of The New York City Host Committee and The New York Times. New Mexico delegates are invited to a performance of The Phantom of the Opera at The Majestic Theatre.

Also planned for the delegation is a tour of the Fox News studios Wednesday.

It’s not all fun and parties in New York for the delegation, however. Longeway said each state delegation has been asked to perform some type of community service in New York. New Mexico’s delegation has agreed to work for several hours at the Latino Pastoral Action Center in the Bronx. This is a Pentecostal group that has several programs including those dedicated to gang intervention, crisis counseling, an after-school academy and other activities.

Republican party time

Just like the Democratic Convention, the GOP will have plenty of breakfasts, receptions, fund-raisers for various candidates, luncheons, dinners, concerts and late-night parties — nearly all of which are sponsored by corporations and business groups.

According to politicalwatchdog groups such as the Alliance for Better Campaigns and the Center for Public Integrity, corporations, unions and other special interests are now using lavish parties at political conventions as a way to buy access and influence — skirting the new campaignfinance laws that prohibit “soft-money” donations to political parties.

Because of the restrictions, according to a report on the Center for Public Integrity’s Web site, “large quantities of cash have been pouring into host committee coffers and into hands of party planners, where lavishness is the name of the game.”

Domenici, who chairs the Senate Energy Committee, will be honored at several such events during the convention. On Monday, the American Petroleum Institute is sponsoring a reception honoring Domenici at the River Café. On Tuesday, Dow Chemical is sponsoring a breakfast honoring the state’s senior senator.

And Wednesday, the American Gas Association, Edison Electric Institute, the National Mining Association, The Nuclear Energy Institute and the National Electrical Manufacturers Association are sponsoring An Evening By the Lake Honoring Chairman Pete Domenici at The Loeb Boathouse at Central Park.

In Boston, New Mexico’s Democratic U.S. Sen. Jeff Bingaman, a past chairman of the Energy Committee, was honored at special events including a harbor cruise paid for by the Interstate Natural Gas Association and a breakfast sponsored by Public Service Company of New Mexico.

According to a report by the Campaign Finance Institute, at least 38 companies that gave Republicans $80,000 or more each in soft money in the 2000 and 2002 election cycles also donated to the New York host committee to pay for the convention.

Fighting the man

Many have speculated that next week’s protests in New York could be the biggest at a convention since the 1968 convention in Chicago — which climaxed in what an official report labeled a “police riot,” where police clubbed and beat demonstrators.

Estimates of the number of anti-war and anti-Bush protesters expected to descend upon New York have been as high as 300,000.

Democratic Party Chairman Terry McAuliffe told The Associated Press on Friday that he was worried his party would be blamed if the demonstrations at the Republican Convention get out of hand. “I think they’re almost hoping for problems up here,” McAuliffe said of Republicans.

Demonstration organizer Jason Flores-Williams says he doesn’t care if the Democratic Party or John Kerry suffers because of the protests in New York. Flores-Williams is an activist, political writer for High Times magazine and a former freelancer for The New Mexican.

“It’s bigger than John Kerry or George Bush,” he said in a phone interview from New York on Friday. “We need an instillation of fear from the people to the people in power.

“In the end, I’m probably going to vote for John Kerry, but when you get down to it, Kerry’s just another Skull & Bones member.” The Skull & Bones Society is a secret organization at Yale University to which both Kerry and Bush belonged.

Rep. Joe Thompson, RAlbuquerque, an alternate delegate, said Friday that he thinks fears of protests are overblown. “I don’t expect there to be any effect whatsoever,” he said Friday. “They won’t disrupt our purpose for being there.”

Asked whether McAuliffe was correct that Republicans would benefit from violent protests, Thompson said, “Well, if we see Terry McAuliffe out there chucking eggs, that might help us.”

“There’s really a vibe here,” Flores-Williams said Friday. “The convention hasn’t even started yet, and already there’s been 90 arrests. Basically what’s happening now is there’s just a giant, constant protest.”

Shortly after Flores-Williams made that comment, another 200 people were arrested in a protest involving bicycles.

Today, 250,000 people are expected to march against the war in Iraq.

But Flores-Williams said Tuesday is the big day. “We’re calling it A-31, the day of direct action,” he said. “That’s the day we’re going to shut down Manhattan.” Sit-ins, marches and street theater are scheduled.

“If we don’t do something, we’re going to lose the American dream to the corporations,” Flores-Williams said. “We’ve got to fight the man!”

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has estimated the cost of security for the convention at $65 million. The federal government is expected to cover most of that.

THE SANTA FE OPRY PLAY LIST

Friday, August 27, 2004
KSFR, Santa Fe, NM
Now Webcasting
10 p.m. to midnight Fridays MDT
Host: Steve Terrell

(Before show started. Southwest Stages ended early)
Rebel Flag in Germany by Jason Ringenberg

OPENING THEME: Buckaroo by Buck Owens & The Buckaroos
My Baby's Gone by The Backsliders
Bonnie Blue by The Shiners
Take This Job and Shove It by Bobby Bare, Radney Foster, Buck Owens & Jeff Tweedy
Mystery by Simon Stokes
Motorcycle Man by The Riptones
Drunk By Noon by The Handsome Family
Deep Red Bells by Neko Case
You Shouldn't Have by Elizabeth McQueen

I Remember You by Steve Earle with Emmylou Harris
Baghdad Baghdad by Acie Cargill
Motel Time Again by Bobby Bare Jr.
Banned At the Bluebird by Betty Dylan
Fools Hall of Fame by Johnny Cash
Brilliant Disquise by Elvis Costello
North to Alaska by Johnny Horton
Mister Love by The Buckarettes
Can Man Christmas by Joe West

DRIVE-BY TRUCKERS SET
Puttin' People on the Moon
Sink Hole
Daddy's Cup
18 Wheels of Love
Outfit
Southern Thing

Come a Long Way by Kate & Anna McGariggle
Deep as Your Pocket by Tres Chicas
Whiskey Willie by Michael Hurley
Somebody's Husband, Somebody's Son by Tom Russell, Dave Alvin & Peter Case
Something to Thing About by Willie Nelson
CLOSING THEME: Comin' Down by The Meat Puppets

Steve Terrell is proud to report to the monthly Freeform American Roots
Radio list