Dan Solis

Website: http://www.thinkyouth.org/

Bio: I'm the 17 year old Editor-in-Chief of Think Youth. I live in Southern California. I began blogging on my own a few years back, and I decided to create this community of progressive youths to keep us all connected.

Obama’s speech last night…

Apparently over 84,000 people were at Invesco Field last night, and about 38 million people watched the speech on television.

I definitely thought it was a good speech, just not amazing. There weren’t really any great one-liners to stick in your head following the speech. It wasn’t like his speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention. When comparing the two speeches, even Obama himself said that, “there’s a special moment there that we can’t recapture.”

What are your thoughts about the speech? Was it really Obama at his best?

Hillary nominates Obama at the DNC

When it looked certain that Barack Obama was going to be nominated President of the United States, the state of New Mexico yielded to the state of Illinois who had passed earlier in the roll-call vote. Illinois, knowing that Obama was close to being put over the top, then yielded the floor to the state of New York. In a surprise twist, Hillary Clinton came out, suspended the roll-call vote, and ended the process.

The crowd went wild, people in the audience were in tears, and Barack Obama became the Democratic nominee for President of the United States.

John McCain at the DNC

While I was walking into the Pepsi Center tonight, Mitt Romney was walking out. He was walking so fast, and unfortunately I was unable to get a picture. It was unusual to see what could have been the Republican nominee at the Democratic Convention. It was as if Hillary Clinton were to make an appearance at the Republican Convention next week. There are easy ways to explain unpredictable events such as this. Mitt Romney must have been a guest on one of the network news shows.

Romney was at the DNC to provide John McCain’s side of the story. A side of the story that was already being told all night by the numerous Democrats and the few Republicans that spoke.

What we’ve learned tonight from the Democrats is that a President McCain would not be good for the economy, healthcare, women, minorities, and America. What I wanted to hear more about is why John McCain won’t be good for future generations, and young people specifically.

I guess it can also be said that all of those issues I mentioned above do have a direct influence on America’s young people. A strong economy for the future depends on what we are doing right now to plan for it. And a strong America today can lead the way for a stronger America tomorrow.

Madness in front of MSNBC’s Hardball

On Tuesday, during a taping of MSNBC’s Hardball, 9/11 Truthers were shouting, “Do your job!” After their mini riot, Code Pink showed up. They began singing a song about bringing the soldiers home. During a commercial break, David Shuster tried to quiet down the crowd, and for the most part it worked. We didn’t want to risk getting sprayed with teargas, so we left.

Here is the video:

Behind the Podium at the DNC

One perk of being a blogger at the DNC is the access to the upper stage behind the podium while the speeches are being made. During Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell’s speech I was able to take some photos and videos of the the delegates and the media. It’s an overwhelming experience as the crowd is chanting and cheering.

Democratic Women’s Caucus Meeting

At the “Democratic Women’s Caucus” meeting, the numerous speakers heavily emphasized how women voters could be the ones to decide this election.

United States Senator from Michigan Debbie Stabenow spoke of equal pay for women.

Ann Richards daughter, Cecile Richards, gave a very moving speech about her mother and how proud she would be to campaign for Barack Obama today. Since the focus of the caucus was on women voters, Richards’ best line was, “Women voting for John McCain is like chickens voting for Colonel Sanders.”

Hillary supporters still in their for President attire roamed the aisles looking gloomy and upset. There is a lot of healing that needs to take place with these older Hillary supporters. The convention speeches have done a great job of honoring Hillary’s candidacy and at the same time emphasizing the importance of Barack Obama’s.

Fran Drescher’s speech covered women dealing with cancer, she is a cancer survivor herself. Her organization is called, “Cancer Schmancer.”

David Sirota - Now with free time!

I ran into David Sirota in front of “The Big Tent,” and no, I did not ask him about the canceled interviews.

Democratic Youth Press Avail

The Democratic Youth Press Avail was an energizing event to kick off our Democratic convention coverage. They stressed the importance of youth involvement in the Democratic Party, but their main objective seemed to be to keep those young people in our party even after the election, on November 5th specifically, the day after the election.

It’s important that young voters know that their work is not over even after Barack Obama is elected President of the United States. After politicians are elected, it’s important to hold politicians accountable for their actions.

Jane Fleming Kleeb hosted the event, she is the Co-chair of the DNC Youth Council, and the Executive Director of the Young Voter PAC.

The MTV “Street Team” spokesman Liz Nord discussed their focus was on the effects of veterans returning from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

One of Jane Fleming Kleebs best lines was “We are not unicorns. We are not going to just show up.” She was signaling the importance of youth voter outreach and the Democratic Primary.

One of the last speakers representing the Colorado Young Democrats, with the help of the audience, had this to say about young voters in this and every election: “Worth a lot. Not for sale.”

What do you want to know?

Today we will be around Denver, and who knows, we just might run into someone influential or famous. What do you want to know? Leave a comment and suggest a question we might want to ask someone. It can be related to any specific issue, or just anything you’d like to know.

Think Youth on the issues at the DNC

Think Youth Announces Coverage Focus for Democratic Convention

When Think Youth was informed of our attendance for the 2008 Democratic Convention, we were thrilled to be one of the few youth blogs covering the convention this year. Because of our status as an all youth contributor blog, a fair majority of our coverage will be related to youth issues and education. We will be roaming Denver for politicians, pundits, and journalists from all over America to ask them questions and get their take on the important issues. In addition to all day long updates through blog posting, we will also be communicating with our readers through photos, videos, live call-in podcasts, and live streaming video.

• Subscribe to us on YouTube where we will be uploading videos of the convention all throughout the week.
• Pay close attention to our Flickr for photos of the convention.
• For quick updates and announcements, follow us on Twitter.
• Listen to our daily live podcast through the Heading Left station on BlogTalkRadio.
• If you want to watch live video of us, or see one of the events we will be covering, watch us live on Ustream.

Special thanks to Joshua Davis, one of Think Youth’s editors, for designing and creating our special edition header as well.

Mike Gravel and Joe Lauria Interview: A Political Odyssey

On Thursday, August 14th, Think Youth was honored to have Fmr. Senator Mike Gravel and journalist Joe Lauria on the podcast to discuss their book, “A Political Odyssey, The Rise of American Militarism and One Man’s Fight to Stop It.”

Co-hosted by Johnny Camacho, Elizabeth Cable, Jeff Pritchard, Mike Rushmore, and Dan Solis.

Special thanks to Seven Stories Press.

Episode 26 | [Download MP3]

Mon. July 28th Live Podcast: Episode 25: A Reunion?

Dan Solis, Jeff Pritchard, Koko Chassid, and Johnny Camacho reunite to host an accidental special edition of the Think Youth Live Podcast. We discuss our non-existent guest, Obama and McCain VP choices, and the Michael Savage remarks.

Show Page | Download MP3

Obama’s VP shortlist loses a few names

Barack Obama’s possible Vice Presidential candidates are dropping like flies. I think it’s safe to say that these names can be cut from the list.

Mark Warner of Virginia - The former Governor and now U.S. Senate candidate plans to focus solely on his current race:

“Let me be clear about this: I have been working very hard these last few months to ask the people of Virginia to give me the honor of being their United States senator,” Warner said. “I will not seek, and I will not accept, any other opportunity.” [WaPo]

———-

Ted Strickland of Ohio - The current governor of Ohio said in a Shermanesque fashion when asked about a VP slot, “Absolutely not. If drafted I will not run, nominated I will not accept and if elected I will not serve” [Political Radar] Strickland has promised to do everything he can to help elect Barack Obama president.

———-

Chris Dodd of Connecticut - The former presidential candidate and current United States Senator recently has found himself in some hot water. Dodd is being investigated for allegedly receiving VIP treatment from home mortgage lender, Countrywide. In all fairness to Dodd, he did say, “If anyone had ever suggested to me that somehow I was going to get preferential treatment because I was a United States senator, that would have ended the relationship immediately. Terminated. Immediately — never do business with that organization again.” [Political Ticker]

Regardless, this would be an unnecessary distraction after presumptive Democratic nominee Barack Obama has publicy criticized specifically Countrywide.

———-

Jim Webb of Virginia - Webb’s first controversy came up during his senate race in 2006, after it was uncovered in 1979 that Jim Webb wrote an article in The Washingtonian titled, “Women Can’t Fight.” I doubt Clinton’s women supporters would be happy about this.

On June 10, 2008, The Politico reported that Webb has, “An affinity for Confederacy.”

Most recently, Webb has sided with Bush and McCain in favor of offshore drilling for oil. Obama is opposed to drilling. [The Hill]

———-

Sam Nunn of Georgia - The former United States Senator has a gay problem. It’s been reported that in 1982, Nunn allegedly fired his staffer for being gay. [Washignton Blade] This was not Nunn’s only anti-gay issue. During the ’90’s Nunn actively campaigned and fought against gays serving in the military through his support of the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy. [WaPo]

In the past, according to Wikipedia, Nunn has taken more moderate voting stances while in the U.S. Senate from 1972-1997.

He voted in favor of school prayer, capping punitive damage awards, amending the U.S. Constitution to require a balanced budget, and limiting death penalty appeals. On certain issues like abortion, the environment, gun control, and affirmative action, Nunn took a more moderate line. [Wikipedia]

Why Hillary Clinton should be Obama’s VP

Throughout this entire campaign I have agreed with Barack Obama that America is in need of a desperate change. During the last eight years under the Bush administration, the only change our families have are the dimes and nickels left over from paying four dollars for a gallon of gas. But, I also believed that change cannot be accomplished without a leader who is ready, willing, and able to take on the task realizing that change. The American people have spoken, and the Democratic Party has decided that Barack Obama is that leader.

Surely, the argument can be made that Barack Obama has valuable experience to offer America. His eight years as a member of the Illinois State Senate, his ten years as a constitutional law professor at the University of Chicago, and his three and a half years as a United States Senator would be a welcome relief for America looking for a president who knows the legislative process, and the Constitution, and what it truly means.

I do not believe Obama’s experience is enough for him to have a successful presidential administration. With Hillary Clinton at his side, as his vice president, they will be an unbeatable force. It is essential to victory that we combine both coalitions that have already been established throughout the Democratic primary. And, only together will these two be able to effectively govern over a stronger America.
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