ST. PAUL, Minn. – At a political convention with no politics on the agenda, what’s a delegate to do?

Apparently, take pictures of celebrities and trade political buttons.

Delegates spent most of the first evening of the Republican National Convention Monday swapping political pins and celebrity sightings, after the schedule for the first night of the convention was scrapped because of Hurricane Gustav.

“My goal right now is to get as many pictures and as many buttons now as possible, and this may be the best time to do it,” said Augustus Shaw, a delegate from Arizona who snapped pictures of television personalities and the political celebrities they interviewed, such as Mitt Romney and first lady Laura Bush.

“We’re basically doing what you’re doing, trying to see if we find anyone famous,” said Matthew Hopkins, a delegate from Rhode Island, as he stood near the CNN booth.

“Hey, there’s Brokaw,” fellow delegate Caswell Cooke said to Hopkins, pointing to NBC’s Tom Brokaw nearby.

There was still a place for politics at the convention, despite presidential candidate John McCain’s pledge that it had no room on the stage that night. It turned out it was mostly on delegate’s chests, in the form of political pins or buttons.

Nick Stepovich, a delegate from Alaska, handed out buttons that read “McCain-Palin No-Bama” to his fellow Alaskans.

“Buttons are important at a convention like this,” Stepovich said. “They represent your views and tell everyone what you believe.”

They also gave delegates a chance to still share some of the red-meat political attacks that were discouraged given the hurricane.

That included Thomas Angers’ red-and-blue “Beat Obama and Osama” button which he traded and sold on the convention floor Monday. Angers said he made about 250 of the buttons and had already sold and traded nearly 50 in the first night of the convention.

One delegate who said he wouldn’t buy any buttons was Gordon Pederson from South Dakota. Decked out in a vest and cowboy hat adorned with political buttons dating back to the 1970s, Pederson said he got all his buttons by trading.

“I’m a poor man. I’m not going to buy something I can trade for,” Pederson said.

Some, frustrated they couldn’t find any buttons they liked, improvised and made their own. Kendal Unruh, a delegate from Colorado, fashioned a makeshift button using the underside of a hotel drink coaster.

“Maniacal, foaming at the mouth, feverishly fervent Palin nut,” the button read.

“Is that subtle enough?” she said.

Maybe more subtle than the button being distributed by some members of Indiana’s delegation. The buttons, which show a picture of McCain with running mate Sarah Palin, proclaims its bearer as one of the “Hoosiers for the Hot Chick.”

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Republicans, determined to propel John McCain to the White House, opened their storm-shortened national convention on Monday amid distractions involving running mate Sarah Palin. Police made more than 50 arrests in the surrounding streets as anti-war protests turned violent.

Delegates had scarcely settled into their seats when it was disclosed a lawyer had been hired to represent the Alaska governor in an investigation of her firing of the state’s public safety commissioner. The other disclosure was personal, not political – the pregnancy of her 17-year-old unmarried daughter.

The convention’s opening session was abbreviated as Hurricane Gustav hit the Gulf Coast, sparing New Orleans the type of damage inflicted by Hurricane Katrina almost exactly three years ago.

President Bush skipped his planned speech to go to disaster and relief centers, determined to avoid a repeat of the mismanagement of Katrina.

McCain was in Waterville, Ohio, where he helped pack supplies to be sent to the Gulf.

Both men’s wives sparked cheers when they appeared before the delegates, shunning politics to urge contributions to help storm victims.

Virtually the only political business of the convention’s 2½-hour session was approval of a platform that sidestepped the Iraq War, one of the key issues in the campaign between McCain and Democrat Barack Obama.

“The waging of war – and the achieving of peace – should never be micromanaged in a party platform. … In dealing with present conflicts or future crises, our next president must preserve all options,” it said.

Outside the Xcel Center was a reminder of the passions the war stirs. Protesters smashed windows, punctured car tires and threw bottles, and there were reports that delegates from Connecticut were attacked as they stepped off their bus to attend the day’s convention session.

Police used pepper spray to disperse demonstrators, and reported making at least 56 arrests.

The convention was less than 15 minutes old when Mike Duncan, chairman of the Republican National Committee, asked delegates to use their cell phones to text a five-digit code that would make a donation to the Red Cross for victims of the hurricane.

It was a theme that first lady Laura Bush and Cindy McCain picked up more than an hour later.

“This is a time when we take off our Republican hats and put on our American hats,” McCain said.
 
Added the first lady: “Our first priority for today and in the coming days is to ensure the safety and well-being of those living in the Gulf Coast region.”

Behind the two women was a giant screen showing the names of state-approved charities in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.
  
There was money news of a more conventional type, when John McCain’s aides announced he had raised at least $47 million last month for the fall campaign against Democratic rival Barack Obama. It was the largest monthly amount to date for the GOP candidate.

While the opening day convention program was shorn of political rhetoric, aides said McCain was likely to deliver his nomination acceptance speech as scheduled on Thursday.

They added they would determine the podium schedule for the balance of the week on a day-to-day basis.

Some Republicans were eager for a more traditional convention week.

“When the storm passes and we can see that there are enough resources and that lives are not in danger any longer and help is on its way or in place, then that’ll be the green light for us to enjoy the celebration we’re all here for,” said Kelly Burt, a delegate from California.
 
But what there was revolved around Palin, little know nationally until McCain named her his running mate last Friday.

An attorney has been hired to represent Palin in the legislature’s investigation into the dismissal of public safety commissioner Walt Monegan, who was dismissed after he refused to fire a state trooper who had divorced the governor’s sister.

“We have been hired to represent the Governor and the Governor’s Office” in the investigation, wrote Anchorage attorney Thomas V. Van Flein.

“We fully welcome a fair inquiry into these allegations. … Please know that we intend to cooperate with this investigation,” the lawyer said.
  
As for Palin’s daughter, McCain’s campaign aides said Monday’s statement was issued to rebut Internet rumors that the governor’s four-month-old baby was, in fact, daughter Bristol’s child.

“Bristol and the young man she will marry are going to realize very quickly the difficulties of raising a child, which is why they will have the love and support of our entire family,” Sarah and Todd Palin said in the brief statement.

The father was identified in the statement as Levi, but the campaign said it was not disclosing his full name or age or how he and Bristol know each other, citing privacy.

Aides said Palin had informed McCain about her daughter’s pregnancy before she was picked to be his running mate. At several points during the discussions, McCain’s team warned the governor that the scrutiny of her private life would be intense and that there was nothing she could do to prepare for it.

“Senator McCain’s view is this is a private family matter. As parents, (the Palins) love their daughter unconditionally and are going to support their daughter,” said McCain spokesman Steve Schmidt.

“Life happens,” he added.

Prominent religious conservatives, many of them long cool to McCain’s candidacy, issued statements of support.

James Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family, commended the Palins for “for not just talking about their pro-life and pro-family values, but living them out even in the midst of trying circumstances.”

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Some protests near the site of the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minnesota, have turned violent.

Police say protesters smashed windows, punctured car tires and threw bottles during an anti-war march. Police used pepper spray in some confrontations with demonstrators and arrested five. They’re accused of setting fire to a trash bin and pushing it into a police car.

Police estimate there were 8,000 to 10,000 protesters.

Instead of the single coherent march that organizers had hoped for, fringe groups raised havoc along the streets between the state Capitol and the Xcel Energy Center where the convention is taking place.

The arrests occurred several blocks from the arena.

Some marchers smashed windows of cars and stores, tipped over newspaper boxes, pulled a trash bin into the street, bent the rear view mirrors on a bus and flipped heavy stone garbage bins on the sidewalks.

They were followed by teams of riot officers carrying batons, rifles and guns that could be used to shoot tear gas.

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Among Republicans here for their national convention, the initial surprise – if not shock — of John McCain’s choice of Sarah Palin as his running mate quickly morphed into near elation.

Many of the delegates are social conservatives who had worried that McCain might  pick a supporter of abortion rights or gun control or other moderate positions.

At a welcome party for delegates Sunday night, Theresa Padgett of Brandenburg, Ky., told me about riding a campaign bus to Dayton, Ohio, Friday to be in the crowd when McCain unveiled his choice.    

“On the way, I was kind of nervous. I didn’t know who he was going to pick,” she said. “And then he introduced a lady I’d never even heard of.”

But as Palin, the governor of Alaska, spoke, Padgett was so happy she cried.     

“She stood for everything I do!” said Padgett, whose family owns apartments and car washes in Brandenburg.

“From being a lifetime member of the NRA to being pro-life to hunting and fishing to being a hockey mom and playing basketball herself, to her and her husband having five children, the baby with Down syndrome….

“I don’t think he could have picked a better one. If I could have written down everything I wanted (in a vice presidential candidate), she has it all,” Padgett said, tears again welling in her eyes.

Palin also faces a situation common to many families in both parties. She announced Monday that her unmarried, 17-year-old daughter, Bristol, is about five months pregnant and plans to marry the baby’s father. McCain’s aides said he knew about the pregnancy when he chose her.

When a presidential candidate chooses a running mate, he can go with a campaign choice, someone he thinks will help him win the election, or he can go with a governing choice, someone to help fill out his knowledge gaps after the election, or he can try to find a combination of the two.

Palin, 44, governor of Alaska for less than two years, is a risky bet in the first category. She’s long on spunky personality, Western sensibilities and hobbies and conservative values — but short on governing.

Republicans here are energized and excited. They love that Palin is a reformer who has stood up to Big Oil and the “Bridge to Nowhere.”  They’re untroubled that she lacks foreign policy experience, saying McCain will find people who can bring Palin up to speed.

Problem is, McCain is 72, and Palin would be a heartbeat away from the presidency on Jan. 20, 2009.

 Republicans counter that McCain’s mom is in her 90s and going strong. They say Palin’s meager experience – she was mayor of Wasilla, a town of under 10,000 — is actually greater than Barack Obama’s. But he was a community organizer, then a state senator in the Illinois legislature for seven years before being elected to the U.S. Senate in 2004.

McCain, with 30 years in the nation’s capital, has spent months reassuring voters that he has the judgment and experience a president needs. In his first big decision, though, he undercut his own argument.

 It’s good for McCain that the party faithful are delighted with his choice. But Republicans  send a confusing message when they assert that Washington experience is irrelevant for the president.

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Republicans hurried to turn the opening day of their national convention into a fundraising drive for hurricane victims Monday, with presidential candidate John McCain’s wife and first lady Laura Bush appealing for Gulf Coast help. McCain visited a disaster relief center in Ohio.

Convention talk also focused on an announcement that the 17-year-old, unmarried daughter of McCain’s running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, was pregnant – a disclosure the campaign said was aimed at rebutting Internet rumors that Palin’s son, born last April, was actually her daughter’s.

Party officials in St. Paul kept a watchful eye on still-dangerous Hurricane Gustav Monday to decide next steps for their shortened convention. They said they still expected McCain to address the convention at Thursday night’s finale.

McCain’s wife, Cindy, and Mrs. Bush were to address the abbreviated convention session on relief efforts.

Mrs. Bush told Texas delegates they would talk about “what people around the country, as well as the people here – the delegates here – can do to help specific states.”

The Republican National Committee modified its Web site to show an opening banner that states: “Hurricane Gustav: How You Can Help.”

President Bush, whose administration was widely accused of a botched handling of the Katrina disaster three years ago, traveled to Texas rather than to St. Paul, where he had been scheduled to speak on the opening night of the Republican National Convention. Bush planned visits to Austin and San Antonio to visit staging grounds for hurricane response efforts. There was no word on whether he would address the convention at some point by satellite.

Democrats also swung their attention to the hurricane.

Presidential nominee Barack Obama urged hundreds of thousands of supporters to donate to the Red Cross to help victims of Gustav. In a mass e-mailing, he urged supporters to “please give whatever you can afford, even $10, to make sure the American Red Cross has the resources to help those in the path of this storm.”

He scaled back a Labor Day speech to unions in Detroit to keep attention on the Gulf Coast. After stops in Michigan and Wisconsin, he was returning to his Chicago headquarters to monitor the storm’s progress and decide his schedule for the rest of the week.
 
Obama has said he may visit storm-damaged areas once things have “settled down.”

Democratic vice presidential nominee Joe Biden canceled plans to march in a Labor Day parade in Pittsburgh to monitor storm developments. “Our focus right now should be on what’s happening in the Gulf,” he said.

The Republican convention remained in limbo on its first day. At McCain’s behest, party leaders called off the usual festivities and planned only a truncated meeting in the afternoon.

Gustav, weakened somewhat to a Category 2 storm with 110 mph winds, came ashore in the heart of Louisiana’s fishing and oil industry about 70 miles southwest of New Orleans on Monday, delivering only a glancing blow to New Orleans.

In Waterville, Ohio, McCain visited a disaster relief center, and helped pack cleaning supplies and other items into plastic buckets that will be sent to the Gulf Coast area.

Linda Green, who runs the center, thanked McCain for directing Republicans to avoid “hoopla” at the convention and respecting the needs of storm victims instead.

“Each one should use whatever gift he or she has received to serve others faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms,” the Arizona senator said, reading from Green’s business card.

McCain, who visited Mississippi on Sunday, said that while there is now better coordination among federal, state and local authorities, there are still problems.

“There’s still, I think, not as much communications equipment as we want. There’s still not enough search-and-rescue capabilities, although they’re trying to fix that. It’s not perfect, but I think that it’s dramatically different than it was in response to Katrina,” McCain said in an interview broadcast on NBC’s “Today” show. The interview was taped on Sunday.

Cindy McCain and Palin arrived in the convention city Sunday night.

A statement on the pregnancy of the vice presidential candidate’s daughter was released by the campaign on Monday. It said that Bristol Palin will keep her baby and marry the child’s father. The baby is due in late December.

“Our beautiful daughter Bristol came to us with news that as parents we knew would make her grow up faster than we had ever planned. We’re proud of Bristol’s decision to have her baby and even prouder to become grandparents,” Sarah and Todd Palin said in the brief statement.

Obama condemned campaign rumors involving the children of candidates. Speaking Monday to reporters in Michigan, he said, “I think people’s families are off limits, and people’s children are especially off limits.”

Obama adamantly any suggestion that his campaign helped spread the rumors.

“I am offended by that statement,” he said. “Our people were not involved in any way in this, and they will not be. And if I ever thought that there was somebody in my campaign that was involved in something like that, they’d be fired.”

Concerned about negative images of partying delegates while Gulf Coast residents suffer, the Republican National Committee and the McCain campaign were trying to police activities on the convention sidelines.
 
That included a warning to Louisiana delegates against traditional alcohol-laced “hurricane parties” – following reports of a late-night celebration on Sunday ahead of the storm’s landfall on Monday.

The GOP also is overseeing an effort by the American Red Cross and the Minneapolis-based Target department store chain to assemble comfort packs for Gulf Coast residents.

GOP Chairman Robert “Mike” Duncan said certain legal requirements had to be met despite the decision to truncate the convention in order to legally place McCain’s and Palin’s names in nomination.

One piece of business slated for Monday was of special interest to delegations from Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina: a rule to cement their leadoff status for the 2012 campaign. It declares that no state can hold its primary or caucus before the first Tuesday in March, except for Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina.

They, in turn, cannot hold their votes before the first Tuesday in February, a stark contrast to this year, when Iowa held its caucuses on Jan. 3, and New Hampshire and South Carolina held their primaries on Jan. 8 and Jan. 19, respectively.

About 2,000 protesters waving peace sign flags rallied at the state Capitol on Monday before an anti-war march to the convention site. Hundreds of police wearing bulletproof vests and carrying billy clubs stood by.

ST. PAUL–The Democrats had their fun in Denver. This was supposed to be the Republicans’ week in the spotlight, but Hurricane Gustav could focus the nation’s attention elsewhere.

Wary of appearing insensitive during a natural disaster, the GOP convention will kick off today with an all-business, no politics session in St. Paul. John McCain is scheduled to accept his party’s nomination in a prime-time speech on Thursday, but that could change.

Here are five things to watch for this week:

Stormy Weather
The convention will open today, just as an extremely powerful Gustav makes landfall somewhere along the Gulf Coast. Forecasts suggest that the possibility of major flooding in New Orleans is very real, which would present two major political problems for the party.

It would remind voters of the Bush administration’s botched response three years ago to Hurricane Katrina. And party officials are worried about the juxtaposition of images of flooded cities in Texas, Louisiana, Florida, Alabama or Mississippi with partying delegates in Minnesota.

The party shortened Monday’s session, cancelling all political speeches for the day. The session will take place before prime-time and will be limited to passing the party platform and taking legal steps to ensure McCain’s nomination later in the week.

The schedule for the rest of the week is in flux. It’s unclear if McCain will even show up here, his campaign said Sunday, leaving open the possibility of an acceptance speech via satellite.
Disunity

Much was made last week of the Democratic party split between supporters of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. McCain, who crafted an image as a maverick for not always toeing the party line, has his own intra-party issues.

McCain and evangelical Christians – a key GOP voting block that helped put President Bush in office twice – have never fully warmed to each other. Though he’s a Christian, religion has never been a big part of his identity and McCain has often seemed uncomfortable talking about his faith.

Since winning the nomination, though, he’s courted key evangelical leaders and reached out more directly to this group. Many were pleased with his pick of pro-life Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin. He will likely need a strong turnout from evangelicals to win in the fall, and many will be watching his speech for a sign that he – and not just his running mate – truly cares about their cause. If he fails to make a strong case, some could simply stay home on Election Day.

Who Is She?

McCain surprised pretty much everyone by choosing Palin as his number two. Much of America – the lower 48 states – will hear her speak for the first time Wednesday night, assuming the current schedule holds.

McCain has attacked Obama for months as too inexperienced to be president. In choosing Palin, he selected someone who has been a governor for less time than Obama has served in the Senate.

Before that, she was mayor of a town with less than 10,000 people. Besides using her speech to introduce herself to America, Palin will likely make a case for why she is ready to be commander-in-chief should something happen to the 72-year-old McCain.

Who Is She?, Part 2

Though she has been on the campaign trail for months, would-be first lady Cindy McCain remains unknown to most voters. She rarely gives interviews and has resisted the spotlight to a greater degree than wives of other presidential nominees.

Her considerable wealth from her family’s beer distribution business has garnered much attention in recent weeks, after her husband revealed he did not know how many houses the couple owned.

Her speech, currently scheduled for Wednesday, gives her an opportunity to define herself and her husband on her own terms. Expect to hear a lot about her charity work and not much about real estate.

Not Just Any Old Joe

The political arc of Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut presents perhaps the most interesting subplot of the convention. He was the Democratic vice presidential nominee in 2000. In 2006, his support of the Iraq war led to his loss in the Democratic primary. He left the party, ran as an independent and returned to the Senate.

He almost always votes with Democrats. But he’s extremely close to McCain. McCain was strongly considering picking him as vice president, and Lieberman’s campaign appearances help McCain argue that he has support from more than just Republicans. Lieberman was scheduled to address the convention today before the party cancelled all speeches. He could speak later in the week.

Poll: With hurricane Gustav threating the Gulf Coast should they cancell the Republican National Convention (RNC)

WASHINGTON-The Democrats had their fun in Denver. Now the Republicans get a week in the spotlight.

The GOP convention kicks off in St. Paul tomorrow and runs through Thursday, when John McCain officially accepts his party’s nomination in a prime-time speech.

Between now and then, there’s plenty worth paying attention to. Here are five things to watch for:

Disunity

Much was made last week of the Democratic party split between supporters of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. McCain, who crafted an image as a maverick for not always toeing the party line, has his own intra-party issues.

McCain and evangelical Christians – a key GOP voting block that helped put President Bush in office twice – have never fully warmed to each other. Though he’s a Christian, religion has never been a big part of his identity and McCain has often seemed uncomfortable talking about his faith.

Since winning the nomination, though, he’s courted key evangelical leaders and reached out more directly to this group. He will likely need a strong turnout from evangelicals to win in the fall, and many will be watching his speech for a sign that he truly cares about their cause. If he fails to make a strong case, some could simply stay home on Election Day.

Who Is That?

McCain surprised pretty much everyone by choosing Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his number two. Much of America – the lower 48 states – will hear her speak for the first time Wednesday night.

McCain has attacked Obama for months as too inexperienced to be president. In choosing Palin, he selected someone who has been a governor for less time than Obama has served in the Senate.

Before that, she was mayor of a town with less than 10,000 people. Besides using the primetime speech to introduce herself to America, Palin will likely make a case for why she is ready to be commander-in-chief should something happen to the 72-year-old McCain.

Out With the Old

President George Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney and First Lady Laura Bush are all slated to speak on Monday night. The Bush administration’s approval ratings are extremely low and Democrats argue a McCain victory would represent a third Bush term. The Bush appearance presents problems for Republicans. While he remains popular with much of his own party, a speech that highlights similarities between McCain and Bush could turn off independents and conservative Democrats.

In With the New

Though she has been on the campaign trail for months, would-be first lady Cindy McCain remains unknown to most voters. She rarely gives interviews and has resisted the spotlight to a greater degree than wives of other presidential nominees.

Her considerable wealth from her family’s beer distribution business has garnered much attention in recent weeks, after her husband revealed he did not know how many houses the couple owned.

Her speech Wednesday gives her an opportunity to define herself and her husband on her own terms. Expect to hear a lot about her charity work and not much about real estate.

Not Just Any Old Joe

The political arc of Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut presents perhaps the most interesting subplot of the convention. He was the Democratic vice presidential nominee in 2000. In 2006, his support of the Iraq war led to his loss in the Democratic primary.
He left the party, ran as an independent and returned to the Senate.

He almost always votes with Democrats. But he’s extremely close to McCain. McCain was strongly considering picking him as vice president, and Lieberman’s campaign appearances help McCain argue that he has support from more than just Republicans. Lieberman is slated to address the convention Monday.

***

On the Web, Republicans are offering a live video feed, daily video recaps and speech texts at GOPConvention2008.com. Also visit MGWashington.com for continually updated convention coverage.

Here are three little words you’ll hear over and over during the Republican National Convention that starts Monday in St. Paul: ready to lead.

No, it’s not exciting. It’s not a teary Bill Clinton mouthing “I love you” to Hillary during her speech at last week’s Democratic National Convention. Nor is it the adulation Democrats showered on their presidential nominee Barack Obama in Denver.

And that suits the Republicans fine.

If the Democrats’ convention was mostly about larger-than-life egos and healing the party’s rift, the Republicans hope their convention turns the conversation to who’s right for the Oval Office.

They believe they can sell voters on John McCain as ready to lead the country. They’ll tout his experience and hammer at Barack Obama as unprepared.

That leads to interesting questions to ponder during the GOP’s convention. What does it mean to be ready to lead the country in 2009? How important is the resume and experience and how important is vision and the ability to inspire?

Democrats have cast McCain as President Bush’s heir, and Republicans have painted Obama as a celebrity who lacks experience. In new ads, the McCain campaign is using Obama’s running mate Joe Biden’s remarks when he ran against Obama in the primaries.

“I think he can be ready, but right now I don’t believe he is,” Biden said then, and, “The presidency is not something that lends itself to on-the-job training.”

Republicans started laying the groundwork for their transformative convention during the Democrats’ week in the sun. In a series of media interviews, high-profile Republicans in Denver stressed in nearly the same words that McCain is “tested, ready and right on the issues.”

They’ll try to finesse the issue of McCain’s age – he just turned 72 – into an advantage. People may feel more safe with a grandfatherly figure in the Oval. Even more challenging is the argument that Washington is broken and McCain, a long-time Washington veteran, can fix it.

Much of the pitch is standard Republican fare. McCain wants lower taxes, less government spending and a strong military, and he’s better able to deal with the Russians, Iraq and Iran, his backers say.

The Democrats may yet rue giving away half their convention to the Clintons with primetime speeches on two of the four nights. The Republicans will hear from President Bush and Dick Cheney, but they’ll get the unpopular duo out of town after the first night. Expect all four nights to be devoted to raising doubts about Obama, his character and his abilities.

The overall theme of the Republican convention is “Country First,” and each night will highlight aspects of McCain’s biography, including his years as a POW in Vietnam and in the Senate. They’ll likely try to paint McCain as a reformer and Obama as a radical.

In a sign of things to come, Republicans were discounting Obama’s Invesco Field extravaganza even before it happened. Romney said that “when the issues are not with you, you go with celebrities and fanfare.”