The Indianapolis Star from Indianapolis, Indiana • Page 19

I THE INDIANAPOLIS STAR WWW.INOYSTAR.COM Politics SUNDAY, JULY 25, 2004 A19 DEMOCRATIGCONVENTION The flip side "The Bush administration may postpone the November election if there's a terrorist attack. Or they'll postpone it if there's scattered showers." David Letterman, from a recent "Late Show with David Letterman" DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION JULY 26-29 BOSTON Convention site locked down tight Group may take a pass on party HI mmmm ways of closures. About 40 miles of highway leading into and out of the city will be closed from afternoon into the evening during the convention proceedings. The city sits on Boston Harbor, and its waterways also were under tight security. Convention delegates and others have been warned not to roam without their hotel keys, because they can't get back into the hotel without them.

Dan Parker, executive director of the Indiana Democratic Party, said one high-tech hotel was even using a retinal scan to screen people entering its doors. Mike Harmless, chairman of the Indiana delegation, said he will receive a "walk-through" of the FleetCenter today so he can brief Indiana delegates on what to expect Monday, when most of them will get their first look at the convention locale. But, he said, he had known that in a nation so much more aware of terrorism in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, security concerns always high at conventions would reach new levels. "We knew it would be like this.

We could tell that it was going to be dramatically increased from (the 2000 convention in) Los Angeles, where I thought it was very secure," Harmless said. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Call Star reporter Mary Beth Schneider at (317) 444-2772. Robert f. Bukaty Associated Press personnel were on the lookout Saturday on Causeway Street near barricades have been set up in preparation for the convention.

Fighter jets will patrol, too: Security Boston's FleetCenter, where double trash cans at the security gates. During a light rainfall Saturday, those cans were filled with umbrellas and other items confiscated from people seeking entry into the center, most of them members of the news media. Thousands of delegates, journalists and political dignitaries will have descended on Boston by Boston's FleetCenter set up for Democrats The Boston FleetCenter has been extensively modified in preparation for its role as the official site of the Democratic National Convention. Along with its role as home to the MRA'c Ppltirc anri NHI Bruins, it hosts up to 225 events and more than 20 tail million visitors a year. Getting ready for the delegates About 400 workers have made substantial changes to the center.

Nearly 3,000 seats were removed to build the stage and press areas. Workers also installed items such as these: 4,000 miles of cable 60 tons of steel .25,000 square feet nf nff irp i .1 Delegate Video Press seating Air monitors, retinal scans and no trash cans are part of security plan. By Mary Beth Schneider mary.beth.schneidergiindystar.com BOSTON The first thing Democrats arriving in Boston see are the smiles of the volunteers welcoming them to this city's first national political convention. The second are the police, military and other security forces, who have transformed this convention town into a fortress. Barricades, razor-wire fences and dog patrols ring the FleetCen-ter, where Democrats will meet Monday through Thursday to nominate Sen.

John Kerry of Massachusetts for president. Security agents loaded with sophisticated equipment disguised in backpacks monitored air quality in that area, on the lookout for radiological, biological and chemical attacks. Air Force Maj. Eric Butter-baugh, a spokesman for the North American Aerospace Defense Command in Colorado Springs, said fighter pilots would be on patrol over Boston. Litter is everywhere on the sidewalks surrounding the Fleet-Center.

There's nowhere to put it. Trash cans have been removed from that area. But there are many gray rubber Delegates About 250 applied for 81 slots in the state delegation. From A1 In a delegation that includes a bona fide celebrity in Elaine Irwin Mellencamp a 5-foot-ll blond model married to rocker John and political stars as U.S. Sen.

Evan Bayh, Glazebrooks will be the short woman the camera taking as many pictures as she can. While some go to conventions to build their political reputations or campaign funds, and others go for the nonstop parties, Glaze-brooks goes to look for inspiration for another generation. Her mission: Return with as many photographs, buttons and other souvenirs as she can squeeze in her suitcase to show her students. Glazebrooks' first convention was the Democrats' 2000 event in Los Angeles, where she was an alternate. She put together a PowerPoint presentation when she returned that she's shown her students for four years.

The pictures of politicians may not have thrilled students. But when they saw that wrestler-turned-movie-star Dwayne Johnson better known as The Rock was among the politicos, it got their attentioa "A lot of students are apathetic about politics. Almost half of my students don't know who the sitting vice president is when they walk into my class," Glazebrooks said. "When they see The Rock was there, they think, 'OK, maybe it's not so bad after The teacher's interest in politics was sealed by watching the 1976 Democratic National Convention on televisioa "They were really into diversity, they did the delegate count bilingually," she said. "That's when I said to myself, 'I'm a Democrat, and I want to Glazebrooks inspired two of her students to become delegates to the state party conventions, one as a Republican and one as a Democrat.

And, she said, she helped the Republican student file to become a national convention delegate, although the 18-year-old didn't wia Both parties elect the bulk of their national convention delegates at their state conventions. Additional slots are filled by national committee members and other party leaders. This year, about 250 Hoosiers applied for the 81 elected slots in the Indiana delegation. The oldest delegate is a former state representative from Muncie, 77-year-old Hurley Goodall. The youngest is 21-year-old Rachelle Hatcher of Gary.

She's the daughter of former Gary Mayor Richard Hatcher, who in 1967 became the first black elected to lead a major U.S. city. He held the office for five terms. By Mary Beth Schneider mary.beth3chneiderindystar.com Indiana may say "no thanks" to Boston's hello. The city is hosting 29 welcome parties for state delegations as they arrive Sunday for the Democratic National Convention.

But an ongoing labor dispute between the union representing Boston police and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino may mean several states, including Indiana, won't attend. "We have no intentions of crossing any picket line in Boston," said Terry Burns, spokesman for the Indiana Democratic Party. Though an arbitrator settled the contract dispute last week, giving the police a 14.5 percent raise over the next four years, officials of the Boston Police Patrolmen's Association said they still will have informational pickets outside the parties. Michigan and Ohio two battleground states where the support of organized labor is key to winning elections already have canceled their welcome parties. Mike Harmless, director of Sen.

John Kerry's presidential campaign in Indiana and chairman of the Indiana delegation to the convention, said he hoped the reception would go oa "If it's an informational picket, I think it's different," he said. But Terry Thurman, director of United Autoworkers Region 3, said he expects the union members in the delegation won't cross any picket line. "The labor unions in this day and age have to stick together," he said. Call Star reporter Mary Beth Schneider at (317) 444-2772. About the delegates What's a delegate? It's a person who III" represents his or her local district or state at the Democratic Party's national convention.

How are they chosen? The Democrats have i i 5 several ways. About 65 percent of any state's pledged delegates are chosen in local elections after pledging support for a presidential candidate of their choice. Delegates are then allocated on a district-by-district basis among presidential candidates who get at least 15 percent of the vote in a state's primary or caucuses. About 18 percent are "superdelegates" party leaders and other notables chosen because of their stature within the party. The rest about 17 percent, are statewide at-large delegates pledged to support a presidential candidate.

What's a delegate's duty? 4 The 4,353 delegates collectively nominate the MMKH Party's candidate for fiTTrtnn president, approve the party's platform a lengthy statement of ideals and positions and hash out the rules and bylaws that govern the party's organizational structure. Do they have unofficial duties? a Absolutely. Remember, a Saw lot of modern politics is rifll image. And in the Mm television age, convention delegates help national party leaders create a sense of enthusiasm around candidates and add to the pageantry when the camera lights come on in the crowded convention hall. That's why many delegates wear funny hats, colorful shirts and creative buttons they're the extras to the political theater playing out on television.

Are there other perks? Most are political 55 Junkies, so the best perks are chance meetings with famous officials, movie stars or athletes. Source: Guide to U.S. Elections, Volume 1 Gannett News Service if police were patrolling the hallways as she attended a credentials committee meeting in a hotel Perry Secrest, an Indianapolis attorney vacationing in Boston, said there were military officers, dressed in camouflage, patrolling on a subway train he rode. Electronic and wooden signs warned motorists along the high Indiana's delegation Here's a breakdown of Indiana's delegation to the Democratic National Convention: 93 Number of delegates and alternates 46 Number of women 13 Number of blacks 4 Number of Hispanics 1 Number of Asian-Americans 1 Number of Arab-Americans 3 Number of disabled 3 Number of gays and lesbians 15 Number of elected officials 25 Number of labor union members 9 Number of committee members who represent Indiana on the rules, platform and credentials committees 2 Number of Hoosiers could go as delegates but won't Gov. Joe Kernan and U.S.

Rep. Pete Visclosky will not attend. It could not be immediately learned if U.S. Rep. Julia Carson will attend.

This week's convention will be the fifth he has attended, and he's seen firsthand the difference a convention can make. He was there in 1984 in San Francisco as Walter Mondale gave his acceptance speech, ready to roar his approval for all the great things he expected Mondale to say. What he didn't expect was that Mondale would promise a tax increase. "I remember standing up and feeling the breath go out of me," Moses said. "We literally didn't know what to do.

We walked out thinking there was no hope. The best thing to do was deny we were ever in San Francisco." He expects to hear a far more moderate tone from Kerry and isn't at all afraid that Massachusetts with its political track record as the only state carried by George McGovern in 1972 will be a repeat of 1984. "If Kerry can give a compelling and clear vision, he can win pretty convincingly," Moses said. Kip Tew will be attending his fourth convention, and his first as the Indiana Democratic Party chairman. And the TV networks' decision to give the convention only three hours of coverage over four nights has him boiling.

"To me, they're vital," he said. "It's an election, for God's sake." Sure, he admitted, the conventions are packaged. But it's the one chance for the party and nominee to present their vision to the nation. Tew is going with more on his mind than hearing speeches. "I'm trying to raise money," he said.

While he is not holding fund-, raisers, he is trying to make the contacts that can pay off later. "It's just meeting people and impressing upon them the fact a ii i. ALA. Vodiumsi" CUA- VIRGIN ISLANDS 11. ft -I cam.

8.0. MM 1 B. D.C. yn "sl" tonight, when welcoming parties for state delegations will be held. Purses, backpacks and computers weren't merely scanned they were unzipped, unbuckled, every pocket opened and every item inside inspected.

Karen Horseman, a former Indianapolis City-County Council member who is a delegate, said Vital statistics Cost to build: $160 million, in 1995 Entrance Maximum jT seating: 19,580 The FleetCenter opened nine years ago to replace the legendary but outdated -Boston Garden, which opened in 1928 as a citywide community center. The new building was squeezed onto 3.2 acres, literally within arm's length of the old Garden. seating screen Press seating ALASKA 1 delegates jj OHIO MONT. PUERTO 3 inwi mnn Mifli, win ll-Nll. a.u.

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ft 'f suites The arena holds 18,400 fans for basketball, and its technological advantages include a full-screen, 3-foot-high video display that rings the arena with messages. tics as a University of Georgia student volunteering for John F. Kennedy's presidential campaign in 1960. Unless, that is, you count the time when she was 5 and passed out campaign literature on the Walker County Courthouse steps for her neighbor, who was running for sheriff. Now, she's a 63-year-old retired teacher about to attend her fourth convention, including two trips with the Georgia delegation.

"I always want to go to be a part of the excitement," she said, even if conventions lack the sizzle they once had. "So much of it happens behind closed doors, before the convention," Martin said. "I'm thinking that sometime down the road that they'd say it's just too expensive, and we're not going to hold them. That would be a shame." State Rep. Win Moses, D-Fort Wayne, can't imagine that Boston and every convention for a political junkie like him "is the epitome of where to be." long SIMM-1 sv.

i ft Here's a look at prominent Hoosiers in the state's delegation: First lady Maggie Kernan, Indianapolis Lt Gov. Kathy Davis, Indianapolis U.S. Sen. Evan Bayh, Indianapolis U.S. Rep.

Baron Hill, Seymour Indiana House Speaker B. Patrick Bauer, South Bend Elaine Mellencamp, model and wife of rock star John Mellencamp, Nashville Bren Simon, wife of Indiana Pacers owner Mel Simon, Carmel Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson Evansville Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel East Chicago Mayor Robert Pastrick Hobart Mayor Linda Buzi- -nec New Albany Mayor James Garner State Rep. Sheila Klinker, Lafayette Source: Indiana Democratic Party Justin Sullivan Getty Images The stars: Delegates will cast their votes for Sen. John Kerry (right) and his running mate Sen. John Edwards.

that we need money. It's building the relationships so that you can raise money. That's my big goal," he said. Much of the convention activity takes place outside the Fleet Center. Although Gov.

Joe Kernan isn't going, Lt. Gov. Kathy Davis is. She'll be meeting for the first time with other lieutenant governors. There are caucuses, receptions and other events for every conceivable group teachers, veterans, gays, women, Hispanics where people go to network.

Mayor Bart Peterson will get together with other mayors. "I'm not sure anyone really makes a name for themselves at the conventions, unless you're a keynote speaker," he said. "Some world-class schmoozers might get noticed. But you've got to realize there are thousands of world-class schmoozers at the convention. So it takes a lot to distinguish yourself." Call Star reporter Mary Beth Schneider at (317) 444-2772.

4 TEXAS UTAH NEV. COLO. 4 Luxury Other modifications added: 3,000 linear feet of drywall 538 data lines 177 cable hookups 267 computers 793 telephone lines Sources: www.dems2004.org; Boston FleetCenter; Democratic National Committee Associated Press, Knight RidderTribune, The Star Although she grew up with politics, this will be the first time Hatcher has attended a national convention. Conventions still matter, said Hatcher, an economics student at Valparaiso University who ran unsuccessfully last year for a seat on the Gary City Council. Both parties' nominations are settled: President Bush always was a certainty for renomination by the Republicans, and Kerry locked up the Democratic nomination months ago with his string of primary election wins.

"We still need to get the party riled up and ready to fight so John Kerry can win," she said. With young people voting in fewer numbers than senior citizens, she's also hoping to help appeal to the youth vote. "It's time for young people in this country to start getting out there," she said. "We should start as soon as we can." Charlotte Lewis Martin, of Avon, was just about Hatcher's age when she got her start in poli.