Frank Church Banquet Weekend  

I previously wrote about the blogger's breakfast, which was awesome, but rushed, as a few of us headed to the training provided by the State Party. The training was spectacular! Without giving it all away, let's just say that David Domke and Crispin Thurlow were fantastic and I think everyone that attended was pleased with the training. Lest I appear way too vague, let me share with you one of the most memorable things we learned. As Democrats we sit under a wide tent. There are many types of Democrats and one doesn't have to agree with every aspect of the party platform to be a Democrat. However, even though we claim to be a party that resides under a big tent, many Democrats, myself included, have often focused on the differences between Democrats, rather than the similarities. I think most Democrats would agree on a few core issues, but when it comes to gay marriage and abortion, we tend to find a lot of differences in how we believe. However, Domke and Thurlow reminded us that we are still, depsite our differences, 80% allies. This is something I will have to repeat to myself constantly if Hillary Clinton gets the nomination!

After the training, we had a few hours before the banquet. So the College Dems went and visited some of the hospitality suites. Potential future candidate, Rand Lewis, had a suite, as well as Larry LaRocco, the IBEW, and the Idaho Democratic Women's Caucus-I think I am leaving someone out...the suites were fun and I was suprised to see Jana Jones, my favorite Idaho Democrat. Jana was there with her husband, former campaign manager and Marilyn Howard, one of the most amazing women we have here in Idaho.

So the banquet started and we took our seats and had some awesome food and great entertainment. However, it was a bit long and a lot of people left before Congressman Inslee spoke. Congressman Inslee gave a relatively short speech and soon after the banquet was over. Also during the banquet, the State Party showed some videos which I thought was a fantastic addition to the night.

Overall, I was pretty happy with the weekend and I want to say thank you to the UTU for buying the College Democrats a table!