Lane Harvey, an alternate delegate from Mt. Vernon, Ill., could see the intricate cable configurations and the bright camera lights of the CNN booth. He couldn’t see much else from his bleacher seats at the Republican National Convention.
“If you strained and moved your neck, you could see Wolf Blitzer’s socks,” said Harvey, 54, laughing, at the state delegate breakfast Wednesday. “I don’t watch CNN at home. Why do I have to watch it here?”
Such is the fate of the delegates from Illinois, a state now heavily Democratic, at this GOP gathering. With its second-tier rank comes a less desirable seating position for its 145 delegates.
But delegates were quick to point out that while they are not as front and center on the convention floor as battleground state Ohio, they are not as isolated as “little” North Dakota with its triangular seating at the hall’s edge. And some Illinois delegates said their proximity to Texas could only be a good thing.
“Maybe they want Texas to teach us something,” said Carol Chiligiris, 57, an alternate delegate from Decatur.
Four years ago, Illinois was considered up for grabs. Since then, Republicans have lost control of Illinois, and while several Midwest states are key to both campaigns, the Bush and Kerry stops in Illinois between now and Election Day are expected to be few and far between.
Last year, former Gov. George Ryan, a Republican, was indicted on corruption charges. This summer, GOP Senate candidate Jack Ryan dropped out of the race after portions of his divorce files were unsealed by a California judge. And now, Alan Keyes, the Republican running for U.S. Senate in Illinois, has begun slighting his own party.
So the state’s Republicans find themselves trying to improve their political fortunes–and their seats.
All it took for Harvey to get a better view from the stands was meeting Fred Welch, 73, an alternate delegate from Urbana.
Together, along with Jackie Hollenbeck, an alternate delegate from Marseilles, they were happy to be here, though they coveted better seating. And with Welch–seeking to get as many autographs as possible on index cards he carried in his pocket–the group sneaked into a visitors’ section.
“Well, you look over there and see all these choice empty seats,” Welch said during breakfast. “I don’t think the planners of this convention meant for me to suffer like this . . . that’s when I got aggressive.”
Hollenbeck was with him.
“I came to New York for this?” the 33-year-old joked. “What have we done to deserve this?”
As the delegates spoke, Keyes ate breakfast nearby. Welch walked up and handed him an index card. Keyes wrote: “To Fred: Keep faith and thanks for your encouragement, Alan Keyes.” Welch said he was happy to have what he called “bragging material.”
Soon, Bob Schillerstrom, DuPage County Board chairman, spoke and told Keyes that if he wanted to address the delegation, to keep it short.
But Keyes seemed to give a sermon, his voice rising and falling, as he lashed out at his Democratic rival, Barack Obama, and spoke of taking Illinois back from the Democrats.
When he was done, the delegates spilled out of the breakfast into elevators, then to buses to visit the tomb of Ulysses S. Grant, a Civil War Union general and the 18th president.
Illinois GOP Chairman Judy Baar Topinka campaigned in the 1990s to save the landmark from its dilapidated condition. She stood before it under a blue sky and addressed her delegation.
She spoke of the Civil War and how a country divided was later able, under Grant, to come together.
She hoped to help her party do the same.
