Venice For Change: Watch The 2012 Democratic Convention LIVE at Venice For Change!

It's ~~almost~~ time to get your political junkie on. For three days the party faithful are gathering in Charlotte, NC to formally nominate Vice President Joe Biden and President Barack Obama the standard bearers of the Democratic Party.

If you're like me, it's not enough to watch whatever encapsulated primetime line up the major networks deign to show, so Venice For Change is happy to join with hundreds of blogs from around the country to livestream the convention 24/7 from our site. To make things interesting, we'll also be running a live twitter feed from our CA delegation and updating the site with any photos, impressions and links they share. Be sure to check back often for updates!

Miss the first day? Watch video of some of the outstanding speeches here.

You can read the Democratic Party Platform here.

Thursday Evening Speaking Schedule

(full schedule here - all times Eastern)

4:30 PM – 6:00 PM

NC Senator Kay Hagan
NC Lt. Gov Walter Dalton
NC Congressman G.K. Butterfield
NC Congressman David Price
NC Congressman Mel L. Watt
James Rogers - CEO Duke Energy
Live Performance - James Taylor
Call to Order - Antonio R. Villaraigosa
Invocation - Reverend Gabriel Salguero
Presentation of Colors - American Legion Post 400 of Charlotte, North Carolina Darrell B. Bonapart, Joe Michalic, Robert E. Welch, Marvin R. Weber
Pledge of Allegiance - Gabby Giffords
National Anthem - Marc Anthony
MD Congresswoman Donna F. Edwards
MS Congressman Barney Frank

6:00 PM – 7:00 PM

GA Congressman John Lewis
Stronger Together Video: Don’t Ask Don’t Tell
American Voices - Jason Crow
Live Performance - Mary J. Blige
FL Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz
Antonio R. Villaraigosa
Tammy Baldwin - Candidate for US Senate, Wisconsin
Michael Nutter - Mayor of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Stay Stronger Together Video: Marriage Equality

7:00 PM – 8:00 PM

Jim Messina - Campaign Manager, Obama for America
American Heroes Video: Auto Workers
American Voices - Kenyetta Jones, Ryan Case, Ed Meagher, Martha Figueroa, Lucas Beenken, Rob Hach
Vice Presidential Nomination Intro - Antonio R. Villaraigosa
Nominating Remarks - Beau Biden, DE Attorney General and Son of Vice President Joe Biden
Vote by Acclamation
Live Performance - Foo Fighters
SC Congressman James E. Clyburn
Scarlett Johansson and Kerry Washington

8:00 PM – 9:00 PM

Caroline Kennedy
CA Congressman Xavier Becerra
Jennifer Granholm - Former Governor of Michigan
Eva Longoria
Brian Schweitzer - Governor of Montana
Charlie Crist - Former Governor of Florida
MS Senator John Kerry

9:00 PM – 10:00 PM

Video: Veterans
Admiral John B. Nathman - United States Navy, Retired
Introductory Remarks - Angie Flores
Dr. Jill Biden
Vice President Joe Biden Video
Joe Biden - Vice President of the United States

10:00 PM – 11:00 PM

IL Senator Dick Durbin
Video introducing President Barack Obama
Barack Obama - President of the United States

Updated photos and stories below the fold:

Sept 6 2:15pm

Sept 6 2:00pm

California's Oldest Delegate Gives A Command Performance In Charlotte:

Charlotte, North Carolina (CNN) - He's not the oldest person attending the Democratic National Convention, but Stephen E. Sherman may be the most resourceful.

Although the California delegate survived the Great Depression, World War II, and segregation over the course of his 91 years, there was one little thing that almost prevented him from witnessing the renomination of the nation's first black president: the billfold containing his ID and convention credentials that he left sitting at home shortly before his cross-country flight.

But that's when "The Commander" took over. That's what he likes to be called: "Commander Sherman."

Using a combination of charm and the bright array of military decorations adorning his green Army jacket, the Commander talked, laughed, and cajoled his way through the TSA checkpoint all the way to Charlotte and into a new set of tightly controlled convention credentials. Unbeknowst to millions of American air travelers who obediently remove their shoes and their metals and provide proof of identification upon demand, being Commander Sherman has its privileges.

Sept 5 5:05pm

Sept 5 3:10pm

Unforced error:
From the Washington Post:

Democratic delegates narrowly reinstated to their party platform Wednesday the position that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel, reversing an omission that had angered some Jewish organizations and drew criticism from Republicans that President Obama was distancing the United States from its closest ally in the Middle East.

The amendment to the platform, which essentially restores the language on Jerusalem from the 2008 version, was introduced by former Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland. It was put to a voice vote by Antonio R. Villaraigosa, the mayor of Los Angeles, who had to ask three times for “aye” votes before determining that the amendment had a two-thirds majority.

Sept 5 10:45am

Manhattan Beach delegate Tony Salvaggio is profiled at Democratic Convention Watch:

He is involved not just as a delegate, but with California state and local politics because of the kind of world he wants to leave for his kids. Of note, in California, 2/3 of the delegates are chosen at local caucuses. He ran and won, after having been previously elected as an in- state delegate, and having been an OFA volunteer in 2008, and having attended the 2008 convention as a guest. Tony pointed out that there are strict rules in his state about the make-up of the delegation, not just 50/50 men:women, but also as relates to race, disability and other factors....

In Charlotte, he's been heavily involved with the California delegation activities, starting with a daily breakfast with terrific speakers. He's signed up for a host of panel discussions, many of which relate to economic issues.

Sept 5 7:00AM

Sacramento Bee: California delgates have more on their mind than Obama re-election

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The welcome packet for California delegates attending this week's Democratic National Convention includes a letter from state party Chairman John Burton calling the four-day political gathering the "kickoff for our final push to victory in November."

"When we return to California, we've got a real fight on our hands," the letter reads.

Burton wasn't talking about re-electing President Barack Obama. The opponent California Democrats "must defeat," he wrote, is Proposition 32, a November ballot measure that could curb unions' influence by banning the use of payroll-deducted dollars for political spending.

With Obama a virtual shoo-in to carry blue California, state Democrats have pivoted hard to state-specific election concerns this week, particularly Proposition 32, which could dramatically alter the balance of power in state politics.

Sept 4 8:20pm

Chris Hayes on MSNBC just now, commenting on Michelle Obama's speech: "She didn't mention Mitt Romney once.........and she crushed him."

Sept 4 8:15pm

Conservatives on Twitter react to Michelle Obama's convention speech.

Sept 4 7:45pm

Sept 4 6:45pm

Sept 4 5:45pm

Sept 4 3:50pm

Sept 4 3:45pm

Sept 4 3:30pm

Sept 4: 11:00am

Planned Parenthood launches "Yes We Plan" effort at the DNC convention. From TPM.com:

You see them everywhere on the streets surrounding the Democratic National Convention here: legions of women sporting bright pink “Yes, We Plan” T-shirts, featuring an image of a pack of birth control pills.

It’s a not-so-subtle reminder that Planned Parenthood is here in a big, big way.

Once an area of political agreement among many members of both parties, Planned Parenthood has emerged as one of the defining partisan divides of the 2012 cycle. Both sides have aggressively courted the female vote. Republicans want to strip Planned Parenthood of all government support, reasoning that federal money is a government endorsement of abortion (though abortions represent a mere fraction of the group’s health services). Democrats and women’s health advocates say that eliminating the government dollars that go to the group as part of programs aimed at increasing access to mammograms and other women’s health issues will severely restrict preventative care for women, especially among the poor.

Sept 4: 10:30am

Sept 4: 10:15am
Los Angeles Mayoral candidate Wendy Gruel posting on Facebook,

"Delighted to be joining civil rights leader Dolores Hureta, Mayor Villaraigosa, Nancy Pelosi, and many more at the Latino Leaders Network lunch today in Charlotte. In the midst of the Democratic National Convention, it's nice to connect with friends and colleagues and talk about how we can inspire the next generation of Latino and Angeleno leaders."

Sept 4: 9:00am

Photo posted by CA-33 delegate Tony Salvaggio, "Look who showed up at the CADEM breakfast....POTUS"

#EASTWOODING

Tony, a volunteer from the '08 Obama campaign, had a few choice words for the Reublican competition. Money quote: "At one time I was a registered republican. Certainly there were many things that caused me to change perspective on issues over the years, but I also truly believe that the mainstream of the republican party has moved so far to the right I don't even recognize them as a party I once belonged to."

You can read his posts from the convention here.

Cancer survivor and Oakland, CA resident, Kenya Wheeler, advocating for patient's rights with Patients Over Politics at the Democratic National Convention. Click here to sign their petition telling lawmakers to stop playing politics with patient's lives.

Cancer survivor Kenya Wheeler advocates for patient's rights.

Meet the brothers Atkins, two CA delegates (and amazing bloggers) working the system to make the Democratic party more more progressive! KPCC story here: