Democratic delegates 'all fired up'
Joan Vetter Ehrenberg of Whitefish has been at the center of American politics this week, with a bird's-eye view of major players at the Democratic National Convention in Denver.
Vetter Ehrenberg chairs the Flathead Democratic Central Committee and is one of 25 Montana delegates at the convention.
She watched Gov. Brian Schweitzer's rousing speech at the convention Tuesday night, sitting next to her friend, Nancy Schweitzer.
"We were so proud to see our governor in the national spotlight with Glacier National Park in the background," she said, referring to a huge image of Glacier mountains projected behind Schweitzer. "And sitting next to Nancy on the floor of the convention was just over the top."
Schweitzer got rave reviews from some quarters for leading a pep-rally style speech on energy, blasting Republican Sen. John McCain as being a candidate for "four more years" of George W. Bush leadership, and praising the "clean energy" plans backed by Democratic candidate Sen. Barack Obama.
"Wearing cowboy boots and a bolo tie, the burly governor from the Big Sky state had people electrified from the get-go - including someone who is, well, pretty well known for his prowess - former President Bill Clinton," wrote one observer from the Christian Science Monitor.
"Video cameras cut often to the former president - all smiles - applauding and laughing at the governor's powerful and entertaining delivery."
A McCain spokesman grumbled to The Associated Press that Schweitzer's speech was "incredibly deceitful," ignoring Obama's vote in support of the Bush-Cheney energy bill with subsidies for oil companies while McCain opposed it.
No matter to the cheering Democrats in Denver.
"It was amazing," Vetter Ehrenberg said. "We were just all fired up. The place was wild. We had a bunch of speakers, and they weren't very exciting, and Brian gets out there and kicks it up."
Ehrenberg said Schweitzer's speech, and that Obama was watching the convention events from Billings, gave the state a lot of national attention that it typically does not get.
Ehrenberg said her first convention has been an exciting - and exhausting - experience.
"I've been pretty busy," she said. "There's just all of these events and receptions with other delegates."
Delegates attend a mandatory breakfast with instructions for the day's agenda, followed by meetings, lunch and then on to the convention floor until the major speakers finish late at night.
"I compare it to a two-day 40-mile overnight trip in Glacier National Park," Vetter Ehrenberg said of the energy demanding convention.
She attended a women's caucus with about 900 other women, with speakers calling on Hillary Clinton supporters to back Obama. National media have been reporting on rifts between the two camps, but Vetter Ehrenberg said Hillary supporters are getting behind Obama.
"There is grieving," she said. "She was a fantastic candidate and she lost and there's a lot of emotion involved with that."
Schweitzer was the warm-up for Hillary Clinton's speech Tuesday.
"Hillary's speech was superb," said Vetter Ehrenberg, who is an Obama delegate. "She has done so much for women we should be proud of that and embrace that and we should celebrate what she did do rather than what she didn't do."
Vetter Ehrenberg is looking forward to the convention's grand finale, when Obama speaks tonight at Invesco Field, home of the Denver Broncos.
"Absolutely. With Bruce Springsteen and Bon Jovi," she said of the night's planned entertainment.
Reporter Jim Mann may be reached at 758-4407 or by e-mail at jmann@dailyinterlake.com