I think it was late 2006. Earlier that summer, YearlyKos in Las Vegas had been a huge success.

By the fall, I was working for Harry Reid in Washington. And the executive director of YearlyKos, Gina Cooper, came to visit DC. My friend Ari and I invited Gina up for a tour of the Capitol. As we walked the halls, the three of us talked about ways our leaders in Congress could interact with the online community at the next YearlyKos.

Reid doesn't like to shy away from confrontation. So Ari and I suggested an event at Netroots Nation we knew Reid would like: "ask him anything." Gina loved it. And the Speaker's office liked the idea too, so "Ask the Leaders" was born.

Unfortunately, at the very last moment the Congressional calendar kept Reid and Pelosi in DC last year. "Ask the Leaders" didn't happen.

So this year, we're thrilled that it's rescheduled, if slightly modified. Despite Herculean efforts on the part of his staff, Harry Reid just couldn't get out of a conflict.

But "Ask the Speaker" is on.

Gina and Jeffry Feldman will moderate, and they've created something really innovative: at askthespeaker.org, you can submit your own question for Pelosi and rank the questions others have asked.

So head over and ask the Speaker.

And if you haven't registered for next week's conference, what are you waiting for??