St. Paul is confident

St. Paul thinks it and New York will be the final two cities in the running to host the 2008 Democratic National Convention due to Denver's union issues:

When Minnesota DFLers went to Boston for the Democratic National Convention in the summer of 2004, they stayed at the Radisson Cambridge, a union hotel. "The labor movement has been a close partner with the Democratic Party since the New Deal and we should do everything we can to honor that," said John Stiles, a St. Paul DFLer who made the trip.

As it seeks to land the 2008 Democratic convention, the city of Denver is learning that history the hard way: Officials there now acknowledge the city's bid will fail unless Denver gets a union hotel, which might leave the Twin Cities and New York as the best bets to win the prize. "We feel like we're one step closer to securing a bid. When you narrow the field, our chances just went from 33 percent to 50 percent," Erin Dady, St. Paul's marketing director, said Tuesday. Andrew O'Leary, executive director of the Minnesota DFL Party, said: "Obviously, Minneapolis and St. Paul are great union towns."

Of the three finalists, Denver had been considered a frontrunner by many observers, largely because of Colorado's growing political importance in national politics. But Denver officials are now going public with criticisms that many national Democrats have murmured about since the bidding process began.
...
The issue became contentious earlier this year when the Denver Area Labor Federation distributed a resolution fighting the city's bid unless it got a union hotel. The dispute revolves around a lobbying effort to organize the new Hyatt Regency Denver.

O'Leary said Minnesota DFLers have been promoting the Twin Cities as a great place for a national convention because of its people, atmosphere, geography and status as a political swing state. In addition, he said the region's media market hits five states, including two other swing states: Wisconsin and Iowa.

He said the state DFL makes it a practice to do its business with unions: "It's not just union hotels. We try to use union resources in everything we do."

The Twin Cities unions are also optimistic:

The head of the Twin Cities hospitality workers union says she thinks labor issues raised by union leaders in Denver can’t be resolved in time to win a bid for the 2008 Democratic National Convention. “I think they’re not going to go there,” says Jaye Rykunyk, state director for UNITE HERE, the union that represents local hotel staff, waiters and other hospitality workers.
...
Anyway, Rykunyk says she’s been following developments in Colorado, albeit from a distance. Other than some Sky Chef workers at the airport, she said, her organization doesn’t have any real presence in Denver -- the problem that the Denver Area Labor Federation is reportedly making a stand on.

(Leslie Moody, the federation president, has not responded to any recent inquiries about a May letter regarding the union issue there. There was, however, reportedly a meeting that touched on the issue on Tuesday.)

But the union grapevine, Rykunyk told the Scoop today, has it that there have even been threats to picket the Democratic National Convention if it shows up uninvited by organized labor in Denver. And that would make for some extremely bad television, not to mention the, um, interesting debate regarding whether or not Democrats would cross a picket line on their way to endorse a presidential candidate.

“The people who say, ‘We’ve got two years to straighten this out,’ are dreaming,” Rykunyk told the Scoop this afternoon. “These events are planned years in advance. There’s so much setup, you have to jockey all this stuff around and you have 10 days or two weeks that are basically just taken off the books… You can’t risk that kind of business on a maybe.”

Rykunyk said that unions in the Twin Cities, including workers at 20 hotels, are ready and willing to play ball. “They are guaranteed there won’t be any labor problems,” she said of the Democrats. “And all the work they need can be done by union workers. We’ve got stage hands, carpenters, painters, electricians, you name it.

Remember, all these opinions are from Minnesota, and are therefore all biased. It's also interesting that Leslie Moody, president of the Denver Area Labor Federation, has been relatively quiet on the subject since she was last quoted in May. In May, she said:

"This is not, 'Don't even bother, throw Denver out the window. We want to see this convention encourage the city to take the wages and benefits of our lowest-paid workers more seriously."

She did issue a statement last week, saying:

"It is our hope that Denver will have more than one union hotel by the summer of 2008 when the convention is due to be held."

Given the hint above that there was a meeting on the subject earlier this week, I don't think we should assume that this issue can't be worked out to everone's satisfaction.

Final bids due September 5th

The three cities hoping to host the 2008 Democratic National Convention have until September 5th to submit their "best offers":

Four senior Democratic Party officials returned to the Twin Cities last week, inquiring about the region's bus inventory and literally counting parking spaces outside St. Paul's Xcel Energy Center, the venue party officials have said they'd like if they come to Minnesota.

"There are a couple of pieces to the puzzle yet, a couple of outstanding things yet to be resolved, but we're confident that we have a great shot at hosting at least one of these conventions," said Erin Dady, St. Paul's marketing director.

She said Minnesota organizers will mail a "best offer" to Democratic Party officials, probably on Friday, ahead of a Sept. 5 deadline for the paperwork.

Party spokesman Damien LaVera, a member of the initial delegation to the Twin Cities, said Monday a site selection delegation is making a standard follow-up visit to all three cities on the short list to host the 2008 gathering. The third candidate is New York City.

LaVera declined to characterize the questions put to Minnesota or any other organizers and also declined to discuss any deadline for responses. "We're asking all the cities to provide the last answers to various questions," LaVera said.

St. Paul looking to take advantage

As Denver worries about union issues, St. Paul looks to take advantage:

The city once thought to be the front-runner for the 2008 Democratic National Convention may be flagging, and Minnesota organizers say they're more hopeful than ever they'll overtake Denver in the quest to host the gathering. Two of Colorado's top convention organizers publicly acknowledged over the weekend that the lack of unionized hotel workers in Denver could hurt its chances of landing the national Democratic gathering.
...
Unions have yet to organize a single hotel in Denver, although the convention doesn't open for another two years. ... By comparison, the labor group representing hotel workers in Minnesota, UNITE HERE, lists 13 organized hotels in downtown Minneapolis and St. Paul.
...
But follow-up responses and the fine print in the party's site inquiry could be the keys to the Democrats' 2008 site selection. The Democratic National Committee's request for proposals includes a provision that "unions of various jurisdictions will not engage in any work stoppage or similar action that would disrupt the convention" in return for the party's exclusive use of union labor "whenever available."

And although the Democrats did convene in Atlanta, a nonunion city, in 1988, the Denver Area Labor Federation said earlier this year it will oppose the city's 2008 bid unless it can successfully organize at least some of the city's hotel workers. The newly opened Hyatt Denver Convention Center Hotel seems to be a particular sticking point.

The 37-story, 1,100-room, publicly financed hotel would play a key role in a Colorado convention but has been buffeted by labor issues at a number of junctures since the project began in 2002.

Are the Democrats more concerned about work stoppages during the convention, or about the symbolism of having the convention in a nonunion city. I suppose it's both, but it would seem rather cynical if promises of no work stoppages would be enough to bypass this issue and put the convention in Denver.

Hurricanes and conventions

As we hit the one year anniversary of Katrina, and as we are almost exactly two years away from the 2008 Democratic and Republican Conventions, I wanted to revisit the question of whether the parties should hold their conventions in hurricane-prone cities.

When New Orleans was still a major contender for the Democratic convention, I claimed that the chances of a hurricane actually hitting a specific city during a convention was so low, that it was unfair to rule out New Orleans as a site for this reason. And it's not just New Orleans (which hosted the GOP in '88); it's also Miami, which has hosted multiple conventions, Tampa, in the running for the GOP in '08, and Houston, which hosted the GOP in '92. Unless you want to put a permanent hex on these cities' tourist industry every late summer/fall, it just wasn't fair.

Let's look at it another way. The Democrats were in San Francisco in 1984. In 1989, a major earthquake hit during the World Series. If the earthquake had happened 3 years before the convention, would the Democrats have been justified in going elsewhere? I don't think so.

Well, that's all well and good, but 24 hours ago, it looked like a hurricane was heading towards the west coast of Florida. (Luckily, the threat has lessened since then). Ohio blogger Psychobilly Democrat has been following the GOP site selection process because Cleveland is in the running, and he writes:

Just thinking out loud, but if I'm part of the committee deciding where to place the next GOP convention, I'm realizing that about 2 years to the day from now, the 2008 RNC Convention is slated to start.

I'm remembering that just a year ago, again almost to the day, Hurricane Katrina rumbled through the Gulf Coast and came ashore in Louisiana and Mississippi with 125mph winds, strong enough to earn Category 3 status.

I'm watching Tropical Storm Ernesto bearing down on Florida.

And I'm thinking: Tampa Bay isn't such a great choice, is it?

This is not good timing for Tampa's bid.

Harry Reid supporting Denver's bid

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid is supporting Denver's bid to host the 2008 Democratic National Convention:

After Nevada was awarded an early caucus spot in 2008, sandwiched between the Iowa caucus and the New Hampshire primary, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid told Colorado Sen. Ken Salazar that he would do whatever he could to help Denver land the party's national convention.

A quid pro quo for Salazar's support for the Nevada caucus? Looks that way, but it doesn't matter, as having Reid's support can only help Denver's bid.

Denver admits bid could be in trouble

I asked last Monday, is Denver's union issue really an issue? Well, representatives of Denver's bid have answered the question. It is an issue:

Denver will probably lose its bid for the 2008 Democratic National Convention unless the city gets a union hotel, leaders of the effort to bring the convention here have acknowledged. The pressure stems from a lobbying effort by a local union that has been trying to organize the new Hyatt Regency Denver at Colorado Convention Center. Its opposition to Denver's bid has caught on with delegates from strong union states.

"In my opinion, it would be extremely out of character" for the Democrats to choose a city without a union hotel, Debbie Willhite, a national Democratic insider and the executive director of Denver's bid, said Friday. The Democratic National Committee does not require organized labor as a rule. In 1972, for instance, the party held its convention in Atlanta without union hotels.

Well, first of all, the convention in Atlanta was held in 1988. Secondly, there were union hotels in Atlanta, just not many of them.

But the request for a proposal for the convention seeks an agreement between the host committee and labor - essentially to ensure there won't be a work stoppage. The Denver Area Labor Federation, AFL-CIO, distributed a resolution in May to fight Denver's bid unless the city gets a union hotel.

Democratic delegates from states with strong union presences say they're uneasy about staying in non-union hotels. "We simply cannot," said Vivian Guinan, comptroller of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party.

Attention in Denver is focusing on the new, city-bonded Hyatt. A group called Unite Here is working to organize about 650 of its workers. Labor at the hotel remains unorganized, however, despite language approved by voters that management cannot oppose unionization.

"No one has ever been against them forming a union," said City Councilwoman Elbra Wedgeworth, who is president of Denver's host committee and a member of the Denver Convention Center Hotel Authority Board. Denver Area Labor Federation president Leslie Moody could not be reached for comment Friday but issued a statement: "It is our hope that Denver will have more than one union hotel by the summer of 2008 when the convention is due to be held."

Denver is among three finalists - along with Minneapolis- St. Paul and New York - vying to host Democrats when they nominate their next presidential candidate. Denver has at times been considered the front runner because of perceptions that the Rocky Mountain West is politically in play.

But Willhite and Wedgeworth confirmed that they have been told by delegates that to win the bid, Denver needs at least one union hotel as a nod to labor. Both New York and Minneapolis have union hotels.

Willhite said she asked Democrats to give the city time to address the union concerns. She believes that if Denver shows progress toward organized hotel labor, the city could still have a good shot at the convention. "Really, we have two years to get this done," she said.

But Ilene Kamsler, president of the Colorado Hotel & Lodging Association, said if a union was needed, there would already be one. "I for the life of me don't understand why, if the employees don't want it, why the Democratic Party sees a need to impose that on the employees," Kamsler said.

Local labor groups have asked Mayor John Hickenlooper to back their efforts. The mayor, however, on Friday said that is not the city's role. "The city created a fair, unbiased opportunity for the union to talk directly to all the workers at the Hyatt," he said. "And right now we are waiting to hear what the workers decide."

I think what's happening here is that Willhite, who has extensive connections with the national Democratic party, realizes she needs to publicly apply some pressure to get at least one hotel unionzed, or Denver will not get the convention. Compare what Willhite said:

"In my opinion, it would be extremely out of character" for the Democrats to choose a city without a union hotel.

to what Wedgeworth said back in May:

"In terms of them using this as a vehicle to unionize the Hyatt, we don't feel that's appropriate," said Denver City Councilwoman Elbra Wedgeworth, who is also a co-chairwoman of the host committee. "They need to do that on their own."

and

Do they have a point? Of course," Wedgeworth added. "But should we be the leverage for them to make that point? I don't think so."

Willhite clearly understands that this issue needs to be resolved. But she says, "Really, we have two years to get this done." Given that the host city will be decided this fall, it might be more like two months.

Convention begins two years from today

The 2008 Democratic National Convention will begin exactly two years from today. As the Wikipedia entry on the convention states:

Almost everything else about the 2008 Democratic National Convention is
uncertain: where it will be held, who will chair it, what its rules will be, who
its speakers will be, and, most importantly of all, who its nominee will be.

And while there are hundreds of blogs discussing the more important issue of who the nominee will be, I just want to thank the readers of the only blog focusing on the still important question of where the convention will be held. I appreciate all the comments and emails, and I'll try to keep things interesting here as we move into the final stretch of the competition.

Will Katie, Brian and Charlie skip the 2008 conventions?

It's hard for me to believe that Katie Couric, Brian Williams or Charlie Gibson would pass at their first chance to anchor their respective program's from a political convention, but there are news reports that say otherwise:

As a handful of American cities vie for the honor of hosting the 2008 national political conventions, changes are under way that could further marginalize their value as tools to grab the country's attention and shape the final months of the presidential campaign. The key change could be a long-threatened boycott by the big TV network anchors, who might stay home. If the evening newscasts aren't anchored from the conventions, that would make it easier for the networks to scale back prime-time coverage of them even more.

Not that they need an excuse...

That would be one more step in the continual decline of what once were grand spectacles of raw political power and democracy at work.
...
But mostly, the conventions are a snore, one that more and more people tune out. That's put party officials in a downward spiral of their own making. They work ever harder to stage-manage the conventions to get the most pop they can out of limited TV coverage, but the inherent lack of drama leads to deeper cutbacks in TV network coverage every four years. In 2004, the major networks aired only one hour of live coverage a night.

Now comes the next step.
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With the conventions back to back, at least some network officials have told party organizers they want both conventions in the same city. That would cut the cost of shipping all the TV equipment.

At a recent gathering of Democrats in Denver -- which is hoping to land the Democratic convention -- some party members buzzed that the TV pitch would lead to a Minnesota win, with one convention in St. Paul and the other in Minneapolis.

I wrote about this earlier this month, but both St. Paul/Minneapolis and New York are committed to withdrawing from the other party as soon as either party picks them.

The result?

"The networks might use it as an excuse not to send the anchors," said one network official, who asked not to be identified because it could be controversial. "They would stay in New York, and we would just send correspondents to the conventions."

The networks send their anchors all over the world. But they won't send them to the site of the acceptance speech of the next president of the United States? Not to mention that as soon as one goes, the others will have to go anyway to avoid getting destroyed by the news critics as not being interested in hard news. I just don't believe this will happen - at least in 2008.

National Urban League president urges a New Orleans convention

While his heart is in the right place, the National Urban League's president Marc Morial's call for the Democrats and Republicans to hold their 2008 convention in New Orleans is a bit of a publicity stunt at this point:

In spite of the fact that New Orleans officials in July withdrew their bid to host the 2008 Democratic National Convention, the president of the National Urban League on Wednesday urged both parties to hold their conventions in the city.

New Orleans on July 13 said it was too difficult to raise money to finance a national political convention. A spokesman for the city told Congressional Quarterly that city officials wanted to focus on rebuilding the city after Hurricane Katrina instead of spending time and money on a political convention.
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National Urban League President and CEO Marc Morial said [the convention] could help rebuild New Orleans and that hosting one of the conventions there "will also demonstrate that the nation's political leaders are squarely and solidly committed to rebuilding."

In a letter sent Wednesday Morial urged DNC Chairman Howard Dean and RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman to consider New Orleans. Morial asked both political leaders to limit convention expenditures to 50 percent of the 2004 levels and contribute the rest to rebuilding the Gulf Coast.

"The GOP came to New York City's rescue in 2004. Why can't the political parties come to the aid of New Orleans, which was hit by a tragedy nearly as grave as 9/11 and as deserving of such grand gestures," Morial said.

Everything was OK until this statement. The GOP convention in 2004 did not come to rescue New York, it came to use New York as a prop in the GOP's politicization of 9/11. New York did not need any rescuing three years after 9/11, and certainly not from the GOP.

"Our political leaders need to put their rhetoric into real action. What better way to help the victims than to hold their conventions right in the midst of Katrina's Ground Zero," Morial said.

I think most people could think of lots of better ways to help victims of Katrina then holding a political convention 3 years later. If Morial was serious, he could have released this letter before New Orleans dropped out, when it was still relevant. But in any event, the leaders of New Orleans decided their time and resources were best spent elsewhere, and we should not ask them to revisit that decision.

For New York, it's about the money, not the politics

New York is mercenary about its bid to host the 2008 Democratic and Republican National Conventions:

Last week Mayor Bloomberg crossed party (and state) lines in favor of a much stronger allegiance: money.
...
the Mayor attended the Democratic National Committee’s annual summer meeting in Chicago, where he rubbed elbows with his former party’s brass and made a case for holding the 2008 Democratic National Convention in the Big Apple.
...
Bloomberg, however, seems colorblind when it comes to party (NYC is also on the short list to hold the RNC gala the same year). Rather than hoisting a candidate to the presidency, as NYC conventions did for both Carter and Clinton, Bloomberg sees only the financial boost. Along with plenty of protest and general bellyaching, the 2004 event reaped about $255 million.

Well I don't know about that $255 million, but the whole New York bid seem just seems mechanical. And yes St. Paul/Minneapolis has also bid for both conventions, but the attitude about the bids is different, not to mention, from the Democratic side, two Democratic mayors are pushing the bid for St. Paul.

Hat tip to the commentor below who referenced the above article.

Is Denver's union issue really an issue?

I've been tracking the Denver union issue here, here and here, but, to be honest, it's really hard to judge whether this will be a significant problem for Denver's bid to host the 2008 Democratic National Convention. In recent history, the Democrats have never held their convention in a non-union city before - it's a main reason the Democrats have never held their convention in New Orleans. However, Dean's 50-state strategy clearly calls for Democrats to go into and contest areas that aren't traditionally Democratic, and if Dean wants the convention in the Mountain West in order to make an impact in that area, by definition he's going to have to hold the convention in a city whose hotels are, in general, not unionized.

If there are any readers out there who feel that they have a good insight into this issue, please comment on whether you think the lack of union hotels is or is not a significant problem for Denver's bid.

Money now becomes the issue - or does it?

The site visits are over, the receptions are over. None of the three finalists have any show-stoppers when it comes to facilities, and two of the cities have a great political advantage - they're not New York. The Denver Post headlines an article today saying money is the issue; but reading more closely, the picture is less clear:

The three cities vying to host the 2008 Democratic National Convention will have to show fundraising commitments as the national officials look to narrow their choice to two next month. Denver, Minneapolis-St. Paul and New York have proved they can meet the basic logistical needs to host more than 30,000 delegates when they nominate the party's next presidential candidate. But whichever city is chosen will have to raise tens of millions of dollars.

As the three cities entertained the Democratic National Committee delegates at the Hilton Chicago this weekend, they heard from national officials that it is time to prove their fundraising muster. "It's really no surprise," said Chris Gates, a co-chair of Denver's host committee. He said now that the Democrats have evaluated each city for its facilities, it only makes sense to verify financing.

So money is the issue?

Questions about New York's fundraising abilities were answered about as quickly as "Sopranos" star Lorraine Bracco introduced billionaire Mayor Michael Bloomberg at the city's reception Thursday. "He's smart. He's good-looking. He's rich," Bracco said.

But Denver and Minneapolis-St. Paul have turned to regional support, banking on the Mountain West or the Midwest, respectively. "This is truly about bringing this convention to the West, not just Denver," host committee vice-chair Dan Slater told Western representatives Friday. And Montana Democratic Party vice chair Tracy Velazquez said, "Unless the National Democrats come out West in 2008, we are never going to win."

Minneapolis-St. Paul's bid is cut from the same mold. Where Denver is selling the Mountain West, Minneapolis-St. Paul is pitching the states along the Mississippi River. "It's time for the Democratic Party to control the heartland of this country," Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak told delegates Friday. "You win the Mississippi River, you win the presidency."

Strange quotes here, as they address political support, not money support.

The final decision is ultimately Howard Dean's. The national party chair did not attend any of the functions the three cities hosted, but he met privately with representatives. "He's keeping his cards close to his vest," said Denver City Councilwoman and host committee president Elbra Wedgeworth. "He's saying that it is going to come down to a technical decision."

So money is not the issue, technical logistics are? As DenverDan implied in the comments, a technical decision could cover lots of things, including logistics, money, politics.

Wedgeworth said the Democratic National Committee will narrow the field to two in September. For Denver, that means proving it can raise more than $70 million - including federal grants for security. Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper told delegates that "we are going to need your help."

Hickenlooper has pledged not to spend public dollars on Denver's bid, and he has already asked other Mountain West states to help raise money.

Dean says its a "technical decision", and the cities were told to get their money story in order. Unfortunately, money is the one topic that will be hardest to get any information on, so it may be a guessing game for a bit.

Denver throws a party

Well, at least a breakfast. Dan Slater from Denver's Host Committee likes what his city did:

The day began with a nice breakfast for the DNC members sponsored by the Denver 2008 Host Committee. Chair Pat Waak, Denver 2008 E.D. Debbie Willhite, Councilwoman Elbra Wedgeworth, and Mayor John Hickenlooper all addressed the group. Members enjoyed Denver Omelettes, Bloody Marys and “Mile-High Mimosas”, as well as more traditional breakfast favorites, all to a John Denver soundtrack.

I was a bit worried that the DNC Members might be disappointed in the lack of “flash” in the breakfast that was found in the New York and Minneapolis events the previous couple of nights. However, I spoke with many, and heard that they really appreciated the lower-key, more relaxed feel of the Denver event.

The parties are over. Things get serious from here until the decision.

Minnesota thows a party

St. Paul/Minneapolis hosted their reception Friday night at the DNC meeting in Chicago:

Maybe the wild rice was out of season, or the lutefisk would have been too confusing for fish lovers. But the end result was that there wasn't much that felt very Minnesotan at a party thrown Friday evening for members of the Democratic National Committee gathered in Chicago. Still, the drinks were free and they were flowing generously on the second floor lobby of the Hilton Chicago.

As Minneapolis/St. Paul, Denver and New York City lobby for the honor to host the 2008 Democratic National Convention, the food and party favors matter this weekend. The non-Minnesotan buffet perhaps simply reflected the confidence of the Twin Cities in winning at least one national convention, considering that they are also in the running for the Republican National Convention.
...
As DNC members left the Minnesota party for a night on the town, they were given a gift bag. Inside was at least one Minnesota classic: a hockey puck.

DemNotes has a picture of what was in the gift bag. Not much there beyond the hockey puck...

DNC to annouce two finalists next month

According to a well-placed source, the DNC has told the bid committees that they will announce two finalists next month, and then enter into even more serious negotiations with each city.

This can only mean one thing: this will soon be a two city race to host the convention, and the two cities will be Denver and St. Paul.

Update: This is now publically confirmed in today's Denver Post:

Denver City Councilwoman and host committee president Elbra Wedgeworth said the Democratic National Committee will narrow the field to two in September.

Democrats moving up decision time-table?

For those who didn't see it in the updated post below, from the Times today:

A decision from the Democrats could come next month, officials said.

Totally unconfirmed, of course, but I wonder if the Democrats want to keep their options also, and not lose St. Paul to the GOP. And therefore an early decision could be an indication of bad news for Denver.

But unless I see some confirming news, I would discount this. The GOP is just starting their site visits now, and I would think it unlikely they would come to a quick decision. Also, any decision before the mid-terms could lower enthusiasm in the losing areas, which all have critical races going on. I'm going to assume the decision will still come in November.

New York throws a party

Three reports on New York's reception at the summer meeting of the DNC to promote its bid to host the 2008 Democratic National Convention. From the NY Times:

There were the themed drinks: Manhattans and electric-green Big Apple martinis. There was a celebrity: Lorraine Bracco, bringing a whiff of glamour in a slim white suit. And there were the cheesy one-liners from Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, who had orchestrated a reception here for delegates at a Democratic Party
...
“I haven’t been in the company of such a large group of passionate, dedicated Democrats since I was one,” he added, to laughter, good-natured grumbling and cries of “Come back” and “Welcome home.”

Both Mr. Bloomberg and the idea of New York holding the Democratic National Convention were warmly received by many of the Democrats gathered in the wood-paneled room in the Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park. “We don’t hold the fact that he’s a Republican against him,” Mark Brewer, the chairman of the Michigan Democratic Party, said, laughing. “It’s a great convention city.”
...
Still, some Democrats expressed frustration with Mr. Bloomberg’s party affiliation, which they said was out of step with his political views. After Mr. Bloomberg joked that he did not have a psychiatrist (Ms. Bracco plays one on television) but that his children probably think he needs one, a man shouted, “You do, for being a Republican.”

Ray Buckley, chairman of the eastern region of the Democratic National Committee, said that although he did not think it would hurt the city’s chance of landing the convention, many Democrats were still upset by his party switch.
...
Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn, New York City’s ranking Democrat, accompanied the mayor for his pitch, the essence of which was that the force of the city would help their candidate’s chances. Mr. Bloomberg pointed out that both Democrats nominated in New York in recent years, Mr. Clinton and Jimmy Carter, had gone on to become president.

Well, 2 out of 3, as Carter lost in 1980 after a New York Convention. (Carter in '76 and Clinton in '92 both won coming out of New York).

“We won’t pick your candidate, but with the energy of our city we will make your candidate better,” Mr. Bloomberg said. “We won’t craft your message, but with New York as a backdrop we will make your message better.”
...
A decision from the Democrats could come next month, officials said.

Next month? November had been the month of decision...