Edwards wins PDA Presidential Straw Poll at YearlyKOS Convention

August 6, 2007, Chicago, IL

Steve Oren and Lorin Klugman

At the PDA table in the exhibition hall at the McCormick Center, a straw poll was conducted on Saturday, August 4. Edwards won hands down, followed by Obama. Richardson placed in the middle, with Kucinch, Clinton, Gravel, and Biden in almost a dead heat at the rear.

The national team, with the aid of Chicago area chapter members Mike Peroff, Mike Lynn, Steve Oren, Arlene Hirsch and Betsy Schonitzer, tabled for three days, handing out “Impeach” stickers and our five core issue flyers to the over 1500 attendees at the sold-out event, which took place August 2-4. We sold “Impeach Bush and Cheney” t-shirts, buttons, and bumper stickers, as well as “War Made Easy” DVDs, and we signed up hundreds of new bloggers from all over the country.

The convention was entirely organized by volunteers, and they did an excellent job. There were dozens of workshops, panel discussions, and films, as well as regional caucus meetings, which effectively brought folks together to discuss regional issues. Bloggers were busy on their computers throughout the entire hall, either wirelessly or wherever an outlet could be found. Staying online was sometimes difficult because of the number of wireless connections using up bandwidth.

An array of notable people were in attendance, including George Lakoff, Joe Trippi, Brian Weston, Howard Dean, John Dean, Wesley Clark, PDA’s own Tom Hayden and many others too numerous to mention here.

Saturday, August 4, was the big day when presidential candidates Clinton, Edwards, Gravel, Kucinich, Obama, and Richardson dropped in for a presidential forum. The consensus among attendees was that Edwards won, but each of the others received good reports, with the exception of Clinton. The forum was immediately followed by break-out sessions with the individual candidates, and the PDA team split up to cover them. We were unable to get in to see Obama; Kucinich’s schedule precluded him from attending a breakout, and there were no takers for Gravel.

Deputy Director Sherry Bohlen, who attended the Clinton break-out (which preceded the forum because of her campaign schedule), reported that it was disappointing—no mention of the Iraq occupation, Iran, or immigration. When asked about bills passed during her husband’s term, she waffled on NAFTA and said that more good than bad came out of the welfare reform bill. During the forum, Clinton testily maintained that she would continue to accept contributions from Washington lobbyists when challenged by Edwards to forego them.

National Director, Tim Carpenter attended the Richardson session. Governor Richardson is moving left and gathering support among progressives. His straight talk and self-deprecating sense of humor is appealing, and he is a highly qualified contender. From immigration to energy to the occupation of Iraq, Richardson scored well. In addition, he made himself available for the rest of the afternoon, mingling with the bloggers and appearing later at the Teamster picnic.

Communications Coordinator Laura Bonham sat in on the Edwards meeting. The chairs were arranged in a circle with Edwards in the center. He rotated around the room taking questions on myriad issues. He was in his element, answering questions directly with humor and grace. Most notable was his direct talk on organizing: “You are the people, you have the power to change things now,” he said, reflecting on the grassroots organizing that he (and PDA) has been doing since the last presidential election. When asked about the last election and voting discrepancies, Edwards said he supports paper ballots.

The day ended with a huge party sponsored by the Teamsters. We were treated to an old-fashioned barbecue picnic on the shore of Lake Michigan and heard from James Hoffa, Governor Richardson, and Senator Gravel. It was gratifying to see the overwhelming progressive support for unions. It is hoped this will set the stage for coalition building with the Labor movement.

It was not only a successful convention but a success for PDA. We look forward to the next YearlyKOS convention.

http://pdamerica.org/articles/news/2007-08-06-23-56-37-news.php

Since I was at the Yearly Kos Convention, I can confirm that no announcement of a straw poll was made. Anyone who found the time to make their way to the exhibition hall on Saturday--the busiest day of the convention, what with important panels in the morning, presidential forum and breakout sessions and a Teamster's cookout in the afternoon--and find their way to the PDA booth certainly did so either by accident or by direction from someone's campaign.

If you'd wandered into the Exhibitors' rooms in the days before, there was little reason to return on Saturday. I'd already gotten all the free ballpoint pens and t-shirts I cared to by then.

Lastly, this was not even a Yearly Kos straw poll, it was a PDA poll. It's influence is nil to counterproductive for any candidate.