GOP 2004: Franken, Liddy, Dionne & Stein (Not a Law Firm)

By: Joe Strupp As the Republican National Convention lumbered through Day Two on Tuesday, pundits in and around New York's Madison Square Garden spent the day weighing in on everything from convention floor access to Ralph Nader's candidacy.

Along the political confab's Radio Row, which includes portable broadcast outlets for about 30 stations and networks, hosts ranging from Al Franken to G. Gordon Liddy, as well as varied guests, were not at a loss for opinions on the event.

Franken, who headlines the fledgling Air America Radio lineup, took issue with his treatment on the convention floor, accusing Republican Party "goons" of limiting his ability to interview people. "They are on the floor with earpieces, they surround me and don't let me move," Franken told E&P following his daily radio program Tuesday. "I try to move forward or talk to a delegate and they get in front of me, they follow me, and when I try to talk to someone who wants to talk to me they don't let me."

Although he says party leaders and delegates who have spoken with him are cordial, Franken believes the efforts to intrude on his interviews are unfair. "It's shocking to me," he said. "I love Republicans and I think this is sad."

Across the floor, having just finished his own daily show, Liddy offered a different view of the convention, saying he has had no problems and believes it is going well, although he admitted it is not as exciting as in the past. "I go back to the days when conventions had drama and horse-trading," he recalls. "You don't have that anymore."

Liddy and Franken, who consider themselves friends, also weighed in on the first-night uproar involving Michael Moore, the filmmaker who is writing a convention column for USA Today.

"I think it was a little harsh," Franken said about the crowd booing him at length. Liddy's response: "He asked for it."

E.J. Dionne, The Washington Post columnist, summed up the convention so far as a success in getting out the Republican's key messages: "Defend Bush on Iraq and whack Kerry," Dionne told E&P. "The rest of it was disjointed."

A bit earlier in the day, while the president's wife, Laura, and his twin daughters, Jenna and Barbara, were engaged in a convention stage walk-through for their appearance Tuesday night, conservative commentator and ex-game show host Ben Stein was found observing the proceedings. "Aren't they just beautiful?" he said about the first daughters.

After explaining that he was at the event both supporting Bush via broadcast interviews and "flogging my book," Stein admitted he also liked Nader and would probably vote for him if he got on the California ballot. "It is a futile gesture because Nader doesn't have a chance," Stein stressed. "But I like him. He is an extreme environmentalist as I also am, and he pays attention to stockholders' rights."

Stein also lambasted the press for being "wildly pro-Democratic."

Then there was former Rep. Bob Barr, who was found in the second-floor hallway of the mammoth media center across the street from the Garden, copying down some fun facts about New York that convention organizers had plastered on the walls.

Explaining that he was gathering the information for a piece he planned to write about the convention for Creative Loafing, an alternative Atlanta-based publication, Barr said he had just come from an online chat for washingtonpost.com and was doing commentary for CNN.

"It shows you the increased and importance of talk and the Internet," he said about his varied obligations while in town. "I don't think it goes overboard and I'd like to see them all, even Air America, do well. The competition is good."