Ralph Nader, as we all know, is something of a painful contradiction. On one hand, he's the father of consumer rights. On the other, he's the monomaniacal, unrepentant enabler of George W. Bush's ascent to the presidency.

In case you missed it, Nader is running for president once more. He'll be in town on Thursday for a rally at which he'll complain about being left out of the debates. If you're inclined to attend, the necessary information can be found here. Nader recently took the time to speak with City Pages by phone, and we thought we'd share the conversation with you, our most gentle readers.

More >>

Hennepin and Ramsey County Sheriff’s departments, along with Minneapolis and St. Paul Police, and the FBI, whew, raided at least six homes this weekend in the lead-up to the Republican National Convention. They busted down doors in full riot gear with semi-automatic weapons in hand, placed folks in handcuffs and seized “protest equipment.” It was show of force that a St. Paul City Council member described as excessive.

More >>

While I was downtown picking up City Pages' RNC credentials today, I happened across the Liberty Parade. Luckily, I had my trusty Flip Video with me to record the spectacle.

More >>

In the wake of a pending national emergency in the Gulf, presumptive Republican nominee John McCain announced Sunday that the Republican National Convention will be delayed. Most of Monday's schedule has been eliminated as attention shifts to Hurricane Gustave.

According to the New York Times:

Convention planners and delegates arriving in St. Paul said it would be politically perilous to hold a four-day party as Americans were evacuating New Orleans and the Gulf Coast in advance of Gustav, a Category 3 hurricane, with winds of up to 125 miles per hour, that is expected to make landfall sometime on Tuesday. The Bush administration’s unsteady response to Hurricane Katrina, which left New Orleans in ruins three years ago, outraged Americans and remains, for many, a stain on Mr. Bush’s record.

President Bush and party leaders are working round the clock to make sure the mistakes of Katrina are not repeated, both for the sake of the nation, and Republican party leadership. President Bush and Vice President Cheney have cancelled their plans to attend the convention on Monday. For his part, McCain called on party members, asking them to "take off our Republican hats and put on our American hats.”

More >>

If you're not arrested for protesting the Republican National Convention, don't worry. You can still spend some time inside a prison cell. Amnesty International is bringing it's full-scale replica of the boxy rooms the US government uses to confine suspected terrorists to St. Paul during the RNC. The room features a small bed, steel toilet, shackles, and a camera and monitor for visitors to record a 30-second message with their thoughts about the prison.

More >>

Apparently there is nothing that makes Republican strategists more nervous than the possibility of being photographed in front of a Nazi flag during the convention. Albeit, even if it is a historic memento and reminder of American servicemen fighting on the right side of what is perhaps one of the more socially justified wars in American history.

Throughout the past week, Republican party planners have made numerous requests to TRACES Center for History and Culture in St. Paul, that it remove a Nazi banner on display at the front of its museum in the Landmark Center, says Museum Executive Director Michael Luick-Thrams.

A RNC party is being planned for inside the building and the flag is visible from the room where the party will be hosted, says Dina Vaynerman, program and marketing manager for Minnesota Landmark, the company commissioned by Ramsey County to manage the building. However, the lights at the museum will be turned off during the event.

Initially staff at Minnesota Landmarks contacted the museum to take down the display, on behalf of a client. "We have lots of events going on during the convention and get a lot of high class demands," says Dina Vaynerman, program and marketing manager at the company. "I don’t think this has been ever asked of us before," she later added.

Vaynerman wont won’t comment on who the client is, but museum staff says they were told it was a large law firm. "It’s a big swastika flag and they were uncomfortable with that," says Vaynerman. "They were afraid someone might see it and get offended."

Luick-Thrams says he was told that the client renting the building next Thursday was worried that "a delegate or some official might inadvertently be photographed" by it.

"Both parties, during both conventions, care about impression management—but this move seems to my staff and me to go too far," said Luick-Thrams in a press release.

The museum is refusing to take down the display.

More >>

Absolutely horrendous news broke this morning: Anderson Cooper might not come to Minnesota. The impeccably moisturized superstar anchor of CNN, whom we featured in our guide to the RNC, is instead preparing himself to do actual journalism. With hurricane Gustav barreling toward Louisiana, the pre-eminent heartthrob of the modern era will once again report from ground zero.

More >>

After months of railing on the need for experience, John McCain has chosen a 44-year-old running mate with two years as a state governor under her belt. Talk about staying on message.

More >>

Heard rumors about the demonstrators here in Denver? Whipsawed with fright about potential disruptions to your life during the Republican National Convention next week? We talked with several protestors who plan to make the trip, and here's what we found: mostly, they want to talk. Talk and feed you.

FOOD NOT BOMBS: LET'S DO LUNCH

Oz, a slender, t-shirt-clad 20-something with a journal he's handwriting in between time serving meals, looks like the activist he is. A student from Vermont, Oz is working with the group Food Not Bombs handing out free sustenance to community members here in Denver.

Like many who have come to protest at the DNC, he's trying to catch a ride to Minneapolis-St. Paul for the Republican National Convention. But if you're expecting to hear overheated political rhetoric about confrontation, you'll have to look elsewhere. Oz talks a mile a minute about issues, and strategy, and most of all dialogue.

Oz trolls for a ride to the RNC with the sign on his back.

"A lot of people go [to the RNC] just to yell at the Republicans -- but we've got to talk and listen to them, too," he says. "We're on different sides of the political spectrum, but we're all Americans."

More >>

Republican Texas Representative Ron Paul apparently won't be hitting up fancy parties and schmooze-fests while in Minneapolis next week. The former presidential long shot has not been asked to speak at the RNC. Instead, Paul and his scrappy band of Paulbots are throwing their own party: The Rally for the Republic at the Target Center which will feature an impressive lineup of offbeat political types including soon-to-be cable TV judge Jesse Ventura and bow-tied pundit Tucker Carlson. While he's in town, Paul is also going to make a few bucks by signing copies of his book, The Revolution: A Manifesto, at Barnes & Noble in Roseville.

More >>