CHARLOTTE, N.C.–The Democratic National Convention does not officially start until Tuesday–but delegates are arriving on Sunday and the “official” welcome parties are this evening. The convention originally was to cover four days–with a big event at the NASCAR Stadium here–but that opener was dropped months ago–the venue was just too big and too expensive to fill.
Anyway–Charlotte was promised four days of business and Democrats are giving it to them. There is a big “CarolinaFest” on Monday with Democratic caucus group meetings and lots of entertainment–including James Taylor, Jeff Bridges and more. On Sunday night, there are state delegation welcome parties around town.
Illinois is grouped with Delaware, Hawaii, Ohio and Pennsylvania for a welcome party at the Mint Museum Uptown, located in a historic district here.
The Sunday Sun-Times has a package of stories previewing the Democratic National Convention.
