Tucker Carlson Fed Me Cheesecake

By: Charles Geraci Last week I covered my first national political convention, the uproarious Republican gathering in New York City. Over the course of four days, I interviewed everyone from Wolf Blitzer to Ralph Nader, attended some amazing parties, and dove into a sea of thousands of protesters, a rare experience for any Medill j-student. Ten highlights follow:

1) There are always gaps in security.

Despite the purportedly stringent security inside Madison Square Garden, I witnessed several people who lacked proper credentials walking around on the convention floor. Some credentials were shared, others stolen. Security guards and their supervisors never seemed to be on the same page when it came to which credentials got you where at what time. Some guards admitted this.

An NYPD officer dared tell me on the second night that a security worker from another country managed to get into the convention with a gun and was seated extremely close to Vice President Cheney in the crowd. This man apparently did not pose a threat to the Veep, but should not have been escorted in, she said, especially with a gun in his possession. While the police department would not confirm this incident, I went over the details more than once with the NYPD officer.

2) Greta On the Record?

When I noticed Greta van Susteren in a hallway of Madison Square Garden, she was headed for the ladies' room. So I politely waited to toss her a few questions. As she walked back toward the arena, I asked if she had a minute. Her response: "I'm sorry, I can't. But if you ask Fox News and they say it's alright, I'd be more than happy to." This from the Fox News anchor whose show is called "On the Record."

In my many interviews with broadcast personalities throughout the week, only Greta and Fox's Shepard Smith explicitly refused to answer my questions.

3) Bras for Bush

The day before the RNC began, I spent seven hours on the street with the protesters. There were some colorful figures, but none stood out as much as Manuel Veledez, 27, who said he served in Iraq as a petty officer for about four months. With an American flag draped around his waist and a bra padded with paper towels around his chest, he shouted, "We're getting the boobs out of the White House!"

4) Free Diner Food

CNN sure knows how to put on a show. After interviewing Tucker Carlson, he arranged for me to get a pass for the CNN Diner across the street from the Garden. Not only did I watch "Crossfire" live, and appear on camera but, thanks to Tucker, I returned that night after the convention speeches to mingle and taste succulent desserts (the cheesecake was exceptional). I dined with a delegate from Arkansas, spoke with former Senator Alan Simpson (R-WY), and experienced the euphoria that was the RNC. Senator Simpson drew a laugh when, asked if he thought the media was biased, he said rather succinctly, "Oh, you ain't shittin'!"

5) Cutting on the bias.

Other prominent Republicans were quick to express frustration on the state of the media, even while the Republicans were in a very pleasing spotlight. When I spotted Newt Gingrich heading down West 33rd Street to catch a limo, I jogged to the scene. He had some tough words for USA Today and said The New York Times "has become unbelievably partisan in its news coverage."

6) Rocks vs. Green Cheese

When I asked Paul Begala, Clinton counselor and "Crossfire" co-host, what he thought of the Swift Boat controversy, he said the media is biased in favor of President Bush. Begala compared the dispute to arguing whether the moon is made of rocks or green cheese: "Why doesn't somebody call up Neil Armstrong and say, 'You've been there. Is it rocks or green cheese?'"

7) Sleep is overrated.

These were the words of John King, CNN's chief White House correspondent, the day after I interviewed him on his sleeping patterns, among other things. King told me he'd been getting three to four hours of sleep every night, then added, "That's not bad in a campaign year."

Paul Begala, who slept three hours the night before, remarked, "It's like that Warren Zevon song, 'I'll Sleep When I'm Dead.'"

Bowtie boy and nice guy Tucker Carlson did not appear to be faring much better. Tucker told me that when he went to The New York Times to interview Frank Rich for his PBS show, he got there an hour early because "I misread my watch." The next thing he knew, the makeup guy was tapping him; he had fallen asleep. When Carlson asked, "Was I snoring?," the makeup man replied, "Like an animal!"

8) Fun on the Floor

On the third night of the convention, I managed to obtain a blue floor pass, a most coveted credential. As I walked onto the convention floor, Senator Zell Miller (D-GA) was about to stir the crowd. I made my way through the throng of delegates, passing the sign for Florida, and told the security guard I needed to take a few pictures. Before long I was kneeling with the press photographers, the pros, snapping away with my pocket digital camera for E&P, about 15 feet from the stage. Some of the photos of Miller and Vice President Cheney came out swell.

9) The Other King.

I had seen Don King on television, but he is even more flamboyant in person.

10) Tom Edsall Makes My Coffee

Navigating the halls of the cavernous Farley Building, the designated spot for most of the media's workspace, I interviewed Todd Purdum and Adam Nagourney of The New York Times, then made my way over to the Washington Post. There, veteran reporter Tom Edsall was hesitant about being interviewed, but soon led me to the coffee station, where he made me a drink. For a half hour we sat, sipping coffee and contemplating the convention, while Edsall poked harmless fun at the Times, the newspaper down the hall.