Tuesday, July 27, 2004

Random Thoughts - Night 2 of the Democratic Convention PBS, once again showing they are the network of the common man, closed their coverage with a Henry Cabot Lodge joke from Jim Lehrer.  Thank you so much. Barack Obama, Howard Dean, and Teresa Heinz Kerry spoke tonight, and not one of the three big networks showed it.  Oh sure, there was MSNBC and Fox News.  But apparently the Big Three were too busy showing reruns of Last Comic Standing, Extreme Makeover and Nacy NCIS.  Not even new shows - reruns.  The American people have spoken, and they want Jay Mohr. Howard Dean used his stern-college-professor voice, not the set-the-crowd-on-fire voice, but the crowd was quite willing to light themselves on fire anyway.  He was strong and delivered a fine speech, but Dean on his own is so much more than Dean with handcuffs. Barack Obama was a little nervous, a little unpracticed on camera and on TelePrompter, but  he showed flashes of fire that sent the room into frenzy.  There was one moment when he called on the idea of America as a community.  I was hoping someone would jump on this; the Democrats have run for too long from the legacy of LBJ and FDR, the Great Society and the New Deal, the idea of lifting all boats instead of double-coating the paint job on the yacht.  Obama declared with passion that when one child is unable to read, when one senior lacks health care, (and most stirringly) when one person is arrested without cause or defense, we all suffer as a people.  A fantastic declaration of self from Mr. Obama. Teresa may become the next generation's Hillary, but it's too early to see if she becomes "Teresa," rather than "John Kerry's wife."  She delivered a heartfelt, but surprisingly soft-touched speech.  She even demanded that strong women be shown the same respect as man - not be labeled "opinionated," but intelligent and well-educated - in a gentle, reassured voice.  It struck me that there is a particularly American way to deliver a speech, and THK does not use it.  She has a self-assured, measured, almost sleepy way of speaking that draws you in the way bossa nova music does in - not with bravado, but with quiet presence.  And one lingering question from last night:  Bill "Latino for the 21st Century" Richardson is the Governor of New Mexico.  He was born in California.  Why, then, does he sound like a Chicago union steward when he speaks? 9:04:57 PM    comment []

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