But obstacles loom: insiders
New York has emerged as one of the top three contenders to host the
2016 Democratic National Convention, but Mayor de Blasio's bid faces
significant obstacles, party insiders tell the Daily News.
While no one puts on a show like New York, and hometowner Hillary
Clinton may be the party's nominee, many top Democrats say it makes more sense
to gather in Philadelphia or Columbus, Ohio -- the two cities bidding for the
convention that are in swing states.
"I see no reason why the Democrats would benefit from having it
here," a party official told The News ahead Monday's visit by the
Democratic National Committee's site-selection committee to evaluate de
Blasio's Brooklyn-centric bid.
"It doesn't get you anything. Why not have it in a swing state --
especially if Hillary is the nominee? It's like shoving New York down
everybody's throats," the source added. "We're
wonderful, but we're not the most popular people in the world for the
rest of the country."
The other two cities still in the running, Birmingham, Ala., and
Phoenix, have drawbacks that make their bids long shots, Democrats say.,
The DNC's site-selection committee will spend Monday and Tuesday in the
city, evaluating the de Blasio's administration convention plan, which calls
for holding the convention at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn but housing most
of the delegates in Manhattan.
On Wednesday, the site-selection committee heads to Philadelphia, which
Team de Blasio sees as its main competition.
Philadelphia Michael Nutter gleefully contends his historic city is not
only a Democratic stronghold in a battleground state, but shares New York's
diversity and ability to handle major events -- all in a more compact setting
easier for convention-goers to navigate from their hotels.
Columbus, meanwhile, stresses in its pitch letter that it is "in
the swing region of the most important swing state," making it the
most-visited contested-state city for presidential candidates in 2012, although
its chances may have been dented by Republicans picking nearby Cleveland for
their 2016 bash..
Representatives of the selection team, comprised of 15 members and led
by DNC CEO Amy Dacey, have already checked out Birmingham and Columbus. They
plan to visit Phoenix in September.
Once the team completes its analysis, it will present the results to
Democratic National Chairwoman and Florida Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz. She
will announce a decision late this year or early next.
New York "will be the third of five site visits, so it's too early
to start ranking cities, but the fact that the group wants to see the city
firsthand means it's a strong proposal," DNC spokeswoman Lily Adams said.
Even those who want New York to win the attention and business the
convention would bring have their doubts.
Politically, the selection of a convention site "should be to get
us something that we do not have," a New York DNC official said.
"Some people are wondering if it's more important to find a state
that will help us win the White House."
Another longtime ranking party official expressed a concern competitors
have sought to highlight about de Blasio's bid - the logistical challenges of
moving nearly 20,000 delegates, politicians and media personal between Brooklyn
and Manhattan over three days. As the Daily News has reported, no hotel in
Brooklyn meets the DNC's criteria to be the headquarters for the party, the
media or the nominee.
"It's not like it's easy [with] things the way they are getting
around the city, and you're not going to put them on subways," the
official said of convention delegates. "They don't know how to
travel."
Added the official: "Clearly [the mayor] did not choose the most
convenient or the easiest location -- and if you don't do that, what's the
rationale?"
Birmingham, though small, is symbolic for its role in the civil rights
movement and would represent a Democratic foray into Republican territory.
Eternally sunny Phoenix is playing up its claim to "one of the
fastest-growing Latino populations in the nation."
Not everyone's buying it: "I think Birmingham is a gimmick and
that Phoenix is unrealistic," the latter in part because of Arizona's
immigration-policy wars, said Ed Espinoza, a former DNC regional political
director.
"New York is a great convention city. It has all of the necessary
facilities and accommodations, and it's home to all of the major
networks," said Espinoza. "Maybe the only drawback is that New York
is not a swing state -- but with the exception of (Denver in 2008) that's never
really been a real factor."
Some Democrats see New York's bid as formidable.
Chris Lehane, a Democratic strategist who worked with the Clinton White
House and as press secretary for Al Gore 2000, argues "New York, almost by
definition, is in a prime position" to secure the convention.
A convention in the nation's press capital is guaranteed to churn out
more coverage than anywhere else, Lehane said: "In the modern age, the
most important thing to come out of the convention is to be able to occupy a
lot of media real estate to get your message out and showcase your candidate
[and] your ticket."
As important, he said, "one of the dynamics of any convention is
who's going to pay for it… that's another area where a city like New York [can]
check the box really easily."
Finally, Lehane said, "New York is a great mosaic that really
reflects what the winning Democratic demographic looks like," including
women, Latinos, and millennials.
"And at the end of the day, Brooklyn's cool."
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