DNC Convention Update

On Wednesday August 5th, the Biden Campaign made Official what had been apparent for a while, the Candidate’s Milwaukee Convention was Dead.

Joe Biden will accept the Democratic Presidential Nomination in a Speech Broadcast from Delaware.

Credentialed Reporters were told to Stay Home. Convention Delegates already had No Plans to Attend and are Voting on Party Business via an Electronic Form.

Since some think Biden’s Entire Campaign is coming down to the Question of how President Trump has handled the Pandemic, it was Surprising that he waited this long to pull the plug on the Gathering, Scheduled to start on Aug. 17th.

Democrats have been rigorous in their Commitment to Safe Practices. For example, Reporters, who were to be Tested for the Virus Daily, were told that unlike Previous years they would Not have been Allowed to Share Credentials with Colleagues because Swapping Neck Lanyards could cause Contagion.

“I’ve wanted to set an example as to how we should respond individually to this crisis,” Biden said at a Fundraiser after the Announcement.

Conventions long ago stopped being Deliberative Bodies that chose the Presidential and Vice Presidential Nominees. Howard Dean, the Former Head of the DNC said that a New Rule Change this year even gives Biden the Sole Authority to Nominate his Running Mate. Previously Delegates would still have a Vote, but that’s been Pro-Forma for a long time, and now it has been Dispensed with Entirely.

Policy Conflicts over Platform Language were once Serious Business, but they No Longer Matter as much. As far back as 1996 Bob Dole, the Republican Presidential Nominee, Dismissed the Relevance of the Platform when he shrugged, “I haven’t read it.” This year, Republicans simply Adopted the Entire 2016 Platform Verbatim.

The Democrats have had a more Robust Debate but they already worked out their Platform before the Convention Starts.

The Conventions are still Justified as Vehicles for raising Money, for Highlighting the Next Generation of Talent, and, most Importantly, for Speaking unmediated to the Electorate over Four Nights of Prime-Time Speeches.

The Virtual Conventions, this year, will Dispense with Everything except the Primetime Programming, which is really the Main Event anyway, and can be done without Putting Thousands of People in a Tightly Packed Convention Center.

They will provide the Parties with an Experiment about what Really Matters. And as with a lot of our Adjustments during the Pandemic, Child Care Routines, Work Habits, Vacation Plans, Social Life, the Two Parties and the Media may find that many Features of these Antiquated Gatherings are No Longer Necessary.










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker