Helicopters swarmed above downtown
Charlotte this afternoon and uniformed police officers from as far away as
Chicago policed the streets surrounding the Charlotte Convention Center on
Tuesday, Sept. 4 on the first official day of the Democratic National
Convention.
Already the convention area
is swarming with dignitaries, delegates, community members and protestors. At
noon, one carried a poster board stating: Jesus Lives, as he roamed the
sidewalk preaching the gospel from a bullhorn. Not long after a motorcade of
cops on choppers churned the streets. An hour and a half later, the DNC
reported breaking news at 1:46 p.m. placing hundreds of protestors in a standoff
with law enforcement at the NASCAR Hall of Fame three blocks away.
Major news outlets will carry
the Democratic Party’s plank supporting the Hispanic community and women’s
rights issues with the placement of San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro in tonight’s
keynote speaker slot in the 10 p.m. hour. Castro will be followed by First Lady
Michelle Obama, who is expected to put a human face on the leader of the free
world as her husband watches from the White House with their daughters Sasha
and Malia.
At the top of the evening, Debbie Wasserman
Schultz, Democratic National Committee chair will welcome all to the convention
during the 5 p.m. hour, later turning her gavel over to The Honorable Antonio R. Villaraigosa,
mayor of Los Angeles, named 2012 chair
of the Democratic National Convention Committee.
During the 6 p.m. hour North
Carolina Governor Bev Perdue will make remarks from the podium.
One of the highlights of the
evening for Democrats is expected to be a look back at the Kennedy legacy. This
year marks the 50th anniversary of John F. Kennedy’s election. A Kennedy
Family tribute will air in the 7 p.m. hour followed by remarks from Joe Kennedy
III.
The six-hour convention
opener will be held at the Time Warner Cable arena in Charlotte’s downtown.
The climate inside the
convention center is one of controlled chaos with media scrambling to meet the
1 p.m. cutoff for picking up press credentials.
Lumina News and Wrightsville
Beach Magazine has been issued high security access that allows its reporter
access to the arena bowl for the duration of the evening and eligibility to
speak briefly with delegates.
