Blacks have smaller GOP role

Michael Steele was once the symbol of the Republican Party's ambitions to expand its reach into black America -- a high-ranking elected official who traveled the country telling Democrats why the GOP should be their new home.

But as he stepped onto the stage Wednesday to deliver a prime-time speech, he was greeted with a disheartening sight: Out of 2,380 delegates in St. Paul, only 36 were black, or 1.5 percent of the total. Four years ago, the GOP seeded the convention with minority members, including 167 black delegates, said a report by the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies in Washington.

By comparison, 24.5 percent of the delegates -- or 1,087 -- who attended last week's Democratic National Convention were black.

As of Wednesday afternoon, about 250 people at the Republican convention had videotaped nominations at the YouTube booth near the newsrooms at RiverCentre.

Most appeared to be for John McCain. And many expressed enthusiastic support for Sarah Palin, said Steve Grove, news and politics head for YouTube. The issue most often mentioned? "Pro-life," he said.

YouTube got about 520 nominations at the Democratic National Convention, Grove said.

Several candidates announced that they were running this year on YouTube. Sen. Norm Coleman, R-Minn., and DFL challenger Al Franken participated in a YouTube debate.

Whatever attributes the McCain-Palin ticket may or may not share with President Bush, one break was clear. When Sarah Palin talked about energy policy Wednesday, she was careful to correctly pronounce "nuclear." And just to make sure there were no Bush-type "nucular" fumbles, the teleprompter spelled it "newclear."

A new poll shows the Democratic ticket of Barack Obama and Joe Biden with a healthy lead over John McCain and Sarah Palin in the battleground states of Minnesota and Iowa.

In Minnesota, the Democrats are ahead 53 to 41 percent; in Iowa, they're ahead 55 to 40 percent.

The poll, conducted Sunday through Tuesday for Time magazine and CNN, is the first to include both running mates. It has a margin of sampling error of 3.5 percentage points. Both campaigns have targeted the two states as winnable.

The Bush Legacy Tour made a stop Monday night in Sen. Norm Coleman's St. Paul neighborhood. But it's unlikely the senator was cheering.

But the larger statement, said spokeswoman Julie Blust, "is about the conservative ideology that he has governed with." The tour is sponsored by Americans United for Change, a progressive nonprofit organization. It will be at Harriet Island Regional Park today, Blust said.

Former Hillary Rodham Clinton supporter Betty Jean Kling had big plans to sit in a personal box Wednesday at the Xcel Energy Center cheering on Sarah Palin, but she almost didn't get access when invitations fell through.

Kling said a Republican National Committee official would hand over the tickets only after calling the Star Tribune to confirm they received them. The RNC official said he was unable to comment, but confirmed the ticket exchange.

Kling said sexist media coverage led her to stand by Palin, but she now feels in no-woman's land. "It's not an issue of Democrats or Republicans, because we are being treated shabbily by both," she said. "These tickets were not given to us in good faith."