I just typed a 500 word post about yesterday that I lost because of our hotel's Internet access. This is my attempt to recreate it.

Much of the media attention at a national convention is necessarily devoted to the party's elite. It's easy to watch the news and see nothing beyond the speeches at night and the interviews throughout the day.

But that big picture ignores a lot of good work at the grassroots that is happening this week in Denver.

There have been panels on campaign strategy and round tables to consider public policy. I managed to sit in one one discussion that had been organized by Matt Glazer -- from Burnt Orange Report -- and Jim Walsh -- from Wired for Change -- about wiring local candidates.

With Jim and I sitting in the room, much of the conversation turned on DLCCWeb, and the feedback we received was very, very positive.

This is what Matt wrote about the discussion afterward:

Florida, Alabama, Michigan, D.C. California, Texas, and other states were all represented well represented. ActBlue was there along with the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee and Wired for Change.

We talked about the $40 a month package for state legislative candidates for unlimited e-mail and a new web site. We talked about how ActBlue can be used to raise tens of thousand of dollars for state and federal candidates. We talked about how we can win today and be ready for redistricting in the future.

I began this job believing that future success would depend on working with passionate, plugged-in activists. I'm even more convinced of that today.

Once that panel wrapped up, I headed to a couple meetings before heading over to the Pepsi Center. That was probably a mistake. As you might have heard from the news reports, the convention was packed last night. Eventually, the fire marshals decided that there simply was not room for any more people. Those standing in line were turned away, and those who were in their seats were told that they could not return if they decided to leave.

I made it through security and into the Pepsi Center, but not without waiting in line for an hour.

I'll be headed over MUCH earlier today.

We only have so many chances each year to see our lawmakers in person. The National Conference of State Legislatures organizes a week of policy discussions at their annual meeting, and obviously, that's one opportunity. We also try to set up our own events -- chances for our elected officials to meet with each other and our staff.

This week gives us a chance to do that on a scale that is hard to match.

Yesterday afternoon, we held our first event of the National Convention -- a luncheon to celebrate our majorities. For two hours, several hundred legislators joined us as the Downtown Aquarium in Denver for a tour of the exhibits and an opportunity to connect with each other. Some people brought their families, others brought friends, and everyone seemed to have a good time.

After we packed up, we almost immediately headed to the Pepsi Center. Given that this was the first day, no one knew how long it would take to walk there or get through security. We knew that we had been given a cloakroom for meetings during the convention but not where it was or how the room was laid out.

As it turned out, many of our fears weren't necessary. The walk was easy (and there were many transportation for those who needed it). The security process was efficient and quick (and kind of fascinating -- convention staffers had some sort of hand-held scanners to test the authenticity of the credentials worn by all of those headed inside). And our room was great -- a perfect place for legislators to pop inside for a snack and a couple moments of conversation.

The convention opened with an invocation from former Colorado state Sen. Polly Baca. The Pepsi Center was full and energetic, and the stage looked great.

I'll be back with Tuesday highlights tomorrow.

We're here in Colorado for the Democratic National Convention. So far, the weather has been lovely, folks have been excited, and the atmosphere has been great.

I want to try to give you as much flavor for this week as possible. My plan is to recap, briefly, the previous day's activities each morning.

If there's anything in particular that you want to hear about, or if you're in Denver and want to say hello, I hope you'll shoot me an email or leave a comment here on the blog.

Democrats in New York only need to win two more seats to gain control of the state senate for the first time in almost 70 years. This week, Newsday takes a look at the election:

Voter turnout is expected to be high and to favor Democrats because of their party's historic presidential candidate Barack Obama, together with angst about the economy and anger at President George W. Bush over the war in Iraq.

However, Republican senators still enjoy a fundraising advantage and GOP presidential candidate John McCain is predicted to do well in rural areas such as the north country, where his party hopes to win back a seat lost in February to Darrel Aubertine of Watertown.

Things are so bad that the new GOP leader, Sen. Dean Skelos, has taken to arguing voters will side with his party to keep balance in government:

"If the Senate were to flip, you would have every branch of government controlled by the Democrats, which I think is dangerous in terms of checks and balances. I believe people want balance and we, the Republican majority in the Senate, provide that."

In my experience, that's a losing argument. Polling seems to back me up:

Fifty-two percent of the voters surveyed by Quinnipiac University from July 31 to Aug. 4 backed a Democratic takeover of the Senate. Only 32 percent supported the status quo.

Perhaps it's worth noting at this point that Skelos got the job because his predecessor -- Sen. Joseph Bruno -- resigned mid-session. I'm not alone in believing that Bruno retired because he had no interest serving in the minority.

It wasn't very long ago when it was hard for any legislative campaign to have a website. Unless you were willing to pay a consulting firm an absurd amount of money or knew a very talented kid, your options were pretty limited. Now, that's all changing (in part because of resources like DLCCWeb), and it's a good thing.

In this cycle, we're starting to see some really creative uses of the web. I've already talked about some of the things that activists are doing in Texas. But the folks in the Pennsylvania House Democratic Campaign Committee have some pretty good ideas for using the Internet as well.

This is one of them. Todd Stephens is a Republican candidate for state representative in District 151. He's also an assistant district attorney who is making a slew of questionable decisions:

[R]ather than uphold a strict code of ethics and put our community first, Todd is busy lining his campaign coffers with cash. Todd’s accepted over $5,000 in political contributions from defense attorneys and law firms. And Todd has taken cash from attorneys defending at least five clients—four DUI offenders and one accused sexual predator—with cases pending before his office.

That’s a minimum of five documented conflicts of interests.

Yes, you still try to get folks in the traditional media to write stories about this kind of thing. Yes, you still put facts like these in traditional advertising and mail. But a creative website that allows you to present all the information you have about a candidate costs very little and allows you to attract a lot of new eyeballs. That's exactly what PAHDC has done here.

And it's effective.

Freshman State Rep. Dianne Primavera’s story is an inspirational one. Not only has she dealt with serious health issues on a very personal level through her own battles with cancer, but, she has also fought hard to improve health care for all of Colorado’s families. Even before her election to the Colorado House, she worked in the health care field, and throughout her career, she has received numerous awards-– including the Governor’s Peak Performance Award for Citizen Satisfaction. It is difficult to cover all of the health care bills that Representative Primavera has sponsored. Here are just a few.

She sponsored 2 of 11 key bills signed by the governor this June as part of his “Building Blocks to Health Care Reform” plan. HB 1385 creates a guide on the website of the Colorado Division of Insurance in order for residents to compare available health plans in a standardized, systematic way to make the best possible decision when they purchase insurance.

Primavera was also a sponsor of HB 1372, a groundbreaking bill which creates the Colorado Stem Cells Cure Fund. It creates a check-off option on the state income tax form in order to contribute to the fund. The bill enables Colorado’s new mothers the chance to donate the stem cells found in umbilical cord blood after birth – which could help research on treatment for adult diseases such as Alzheimer’s. You can read her editorial on HB 1372 in the Rocky Mountain News. Click here and here for more information on both of these bills.

Rep. Primavera is also helping uninsured Colorado children through her co-sponsorship SB 161, which will simplify the difficult application process for children’s health insurance under Medicaid and the Child Health Plan Plus.

I have written previously about Democratic efforts around the country to require health-insurance coverage for autism and bills addressing autism by legislators such as Chris Edwards of Oregon. Rep. Primavera is also working to help families that are grappling with autism. She was a co-sponsor of SB 163 to streamline, simplify, and unify services for those with autism.

Primavera was also a sponsor of HB 1301, an important bill to set aside $1.5 million from the state's tobacco settlement to pay for cervical cancer vaccinations for girls who don't have health insurance. You can read about this bill in the Rocky Mountain News. She has also sponsored a tax check-off bill for cancer education.

Rep. Primavera has been described as a “tireless” healthcare advocate. But in this case, that adjective is inadequate in describing the incredible, heroic efforts of this Colorado legislator.

Democrats in New Hampshire hold a 14-10 majority in the Senate and a 235-158 majority in the House, and they feel good about their chances in the fall.

That's at least in part because they've also made a steady effort to improve the party's position in the state since 2002. Over the last six years, party leaders estimate that Democrats have gained around 84,000 new voters. They've quadrupled the state party budget, opened 28 new local offices, and now employ more than 50 full-time staffers overall.

Another big part of the reason for Democratic confidence in this election is that legislators have done a remarkable job passing effective legislation and governing. Senate President Sylvia Larsen outlines those accomplishments here.

Pennsylvania is home to the largest full-time legislature in the country, and that's supposed to be an important responsibility. An assumption that the job will require some sacrifices is part of the reason why citizens of the state provide legislators with a salary of $73,000 a year. But that's apparently not enough money for Republican State Representative Kate Harper:

[In addition to the legislature] the Montgomery County attorney also serves, in a paid capacity, as Upper Moreland Solicitor, Hatfield Borough Council Solicitor and the Milford Township Zoning Board Solicitor.

As you'd expect, the result of all this "service" is that Rep. Harper ends up cutting corners. For instance:

Harper chose to attend various local municipal meetings in her role as Solicitor and skipped her duties in the State House of Representatives on February 11, April 7, May 21, and July 2 just this year.

As the Pennsylvania Progressive tracks down, Rep. Harper didn't bother voting on legislation for mortgage reform or prison reform. She skipped important votes for expanding health care. As the solicitor for a local zoning board, you'd expect her to take an interest in zoning regulations, but she even skipped a vote on that.

It seems pretty clear that Rep. Harper would rather be spending time in her district. Perhaps her Democratic opponent -- Frank Custer -- will give her just that opportunity in November.

It's not a good time to be a Republican in Nevada.

A year ago, the state was tied in terms of voter registration. Now, the GOP is staring at a 60,000 person deficit.

Democrats in the state have outraised them for the cycle, and the GOP governor has been plagued with scandal.

On top of all that, conservative activists are mounting primary challenges against long-time Republican establishment figures like Senate Majority Leader Bill Raggio:

Raggio, 81, won a six-point victory on Tuesday after being forced to campaign actively for the first time since his initial race in 1972. His opponent is a hero of Nevada's hard-core fiscal and social conservatives angered by Raggio's compromises on such things as a large 2003 tax increase.

"Obviously there has been creeping disunity within the party," Raggio said. "I have not had a very serious, tough election up until this primary."

That's heartening news for us. We're looking at the Nevada Senate as one of our top targets for the cycle.

Earlier this year, I wrote about how Democrats in Wisconsin and Oklahoma are fighting for insurance coverage for autism.

In the Oregon House, Democratic Rep. Chris Edwards, a freshman, is also working hard on this issue. Edwards, whose young son has autism, has been chosen to lead an autism project work group in preparation for the 2009 session.

He was also a sponsor of a key health coverage bill during the 2007 session, HB 2918. This legislation prohibits a health plan from denying various therapies to children under 18 solely because of a developmental disorder like autism. The governor signed the bill on July 31, 2007.

The Eugene legislator is a member of the House’s Five Under 35 group which has established an ambitious legislative agenda that includes support for such key bills as the Family and Medical Leave measure (HB 2575) and the Protecting Children from Online Predators bill (HB 3515).

Edwards is a great example of how young Democratic lawmakers are energized and fighting for a strong legislative agenda for working families.