Denver — As Connecticut delegates bit into breakfast on the first day of a historic party convention, some came ready not just to christen Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama, but to call attention to cities and women’s issues.
U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro of New Haven joined the 60 members of the Connecticut delegation for a breakfast Monday morning in a ballroom of the Marriott Denver Tech Center. The hotel, a few miles outside downtown, is serving as the Connecticut headquarters for the Democratic National Committee Convention this week.
Like the other Nutmeggers scooping fresh melon onto white hotel plates, DeLauro had a stack of non-delegate activities planned for the day.
She tapped on the shoulder of John Olsen, president of AFL-CIO of Connecticut, to remind him of her schedule for later that afternoon — a panel on transportation and infrastructure.
She told him the panel was about labor, too: “You can’t have jobs without infrastructure.”
DeLauro is also focusing on women and families, in relation to the economy. “Women are the most economically insecure demographic in the country,” she said. She’ll be participating in forums on energy independence, health care and women’s issues.
Taking a bite of roasted potatoes at one of breakfast tables clad with white linen, Stamford Mayor Dannel Malloy (pictured) took out a stack of paper, his agenda for the week.
Besides mingling with party members (whose connections may prove helpful in his likely 2010 gubernatorial race), Malloy is working to highlight urban issues with the U.S. Conference of Mayors, on which he serves as a trustee. The group is expanding a 10-point plan of to present to both presidential campaigns. Up for today: Announcing the group’s policy position on crime in cities, on which he’s a co-author.
Congressman Chris Murphy won’t be joining delegates in Denver this week, as he’s expecting the birth of his first child.