By Ben Westhoff

There are a lot of media celebrities on the floor of the RNC. But none of them would talk to me. John Oliver Jason Jones, from The Daily Show, said he “wasn’t allowed.” Whatever! So, I did the next best thing and filmed him while he was rehearsing a bit for the program. It involved CNN’s Dana Bash, for some reason.

This was all so much fun I figured I’d stalk Bret Baier from CNN, and film him while he was having an imaginary conversation with Shepard Smith.

By Ben Westhoff

Rest assured protesters aren’t getting anywhere near the convention. Giant gates cordon off downtown St. Paul from a half mile away or so in some places. Approaching from the west, no one without credentials can get much past the Cathedral of St. Paul. This morning, there were even a row of mostly unmarked police cars surrounding the perimeter. It’s fair to say some of St. Paul’s finest ride in a little more style than others.

By Ben Westhoff

Think all protesters are smelly, humorless, overzealous, granola crunchers? Think again! All kinds of rabble rousers descended on St. Paul Monday. Though most of them claimed to be unenthused with John McCain’s politics, at least one found him alluring in a sexual sense. Welcome to the freedom cage!

Bradley Campbell writes about protesters getting maced here. He also captured it on video:

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.