NEWS

Live From The DNC: Day 3

[All week long, writer Brad Listi will be reporting for Complex at the Democratic National Convention in Denver. Check back each day for an update!]

Got a floor pass last night at the Democratic National Convention and was able to wander amid the throngs in the belly of the beast for nearly an hour. Being at the Democratic National Convention is not unlike being in the live studio audience for a taping of the American Idol finale. It has a sort of game show feel—slick, with cheesy music. Shiny. And hyper-produced.

As I told a friend this morning: It’s kinda like a game show with serious geopolitical military consequences.

The folks in attendance run the gamut: Bigwig donors, left-wing zealots, ecstatic delegates, angry activists—you name it…

I found myself feeling a little bit extraterrestrial as I made my way around the floor. A fish out of water. A stranger in a strange land. This is odd in a way, because I am a bit of a political junkie. One would think that I would’ve felt right at home. But no. I found it odd. I found it deeply odd. Exciting and interesting—but odd. It was like moving through a Technicolor version of American history in real time.

The floor itself is an exercise in organized chaos..an absolute crush of people.

Left-Wing Mecca in full effect.

On my way back up to press row, I passed by Howard Dean in the bowels of the Pepsi Center, shortly after he made an appearance with David Gregory on MSNBC. He put his cell phone to his ear and pretended to be on the phone so that I wouldn’t try to talk to him.

Dick.

-BL

PS. Here are some photos from the floor.

Brad Listi is the author of the bestselling novel Attention. Deficit. Disorder. and the founder of the online publication TheNervousBreakdown.com. You can find him at BradListi.com.