I also spotted New York State Assemblymember, Jonathan Bing, who I supported early and enthusiastically when he ran for his Upper East Side seat. We spoke briefly, and he told me that despite the DNC event being in his own district--in fact, four blocks from his apartment--he had not received an invitation, and had to pull strings to get in.

As Jonathan moved on to take his seat, I discovered that the submitted and approved list of expected DV guests could not be found by event staff.

So far, the signs were not good that this event was going to be truly open and accessible. After all, if Assemblymember Bing was having a hard time, what chance did "just" rank and file Democrats have? A supervising staffer, Jody, requested that each DV guest show photo ID and enter their information on a sign-in sheet. Citing fire regulations, she said she would let guests in as room allowed. Fortunately, this proved to be the final hurdle. I was in the first group of 10 to be admitted, and from my vantage in the balcony it seems that pretty much everyone who wanted in was admitted. I certainly hope so, since throughout the entire forum there were never fewer than 30 to 40 or more unclaimed seats reserved for registered attendees--mostly DNC members, I assume--who clearly did not bother to show up.

Tomorrow I will post Part 2 of my report, which will be the substantive dispatch, summarizing the comments of the seven candidates (all men, by the way) vying to chair the DNC. I hope you'll come back to MyDD to read that report. You'll discover what ideas the candidates have, and also learn:  

1. Which candidates got the best crowd reactions;
   
2. Which candidate mentioned the "blogosphere;"
   
3. Which candidate rose on a point of personal privilege to defend a member of his family;
   
4. Which candidate complained of being a victim of "opposition research" done not by Republicans, but Democrats;
   
5. Which candidate got hissed, and
   
6. My own reactions to the forum and candidates.