David Holt from the Republican Convention NewsOK.com Blogging Community

This afternoon at the Landmark Center, a block from the Xcel Center, Mayor Cornett, who serves as President of Republican Mayors and Local Officials (RMLO), joined the U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM), the National Association of County Officials (NACO) and the National League of Cities (NLC) in hosting members from all those organizations for a reception.   Additionally, Mayor Cornett invited the Oklahoma delegation to be his guests at the reception, and they were probably half the people there, whoopin’ and hollerin’ when Mayor Cornett was introduced. 

Mayor Elizabeth Kautz of Burnsville, MN, representing the USCM, made very complimentary remarks regarding the Mayor and mentioned how excited she was to attend the 2010 U.S. Conference of Mayors Annual Meeting in Oklahoma City.

Former Texas Congressman Henry Bonilla made some remarks on behalf of the McCain campaign.

Apparently, some attendees experienced delays getting in because of a suspicious package on the street, but it didn’t affect the proceedings inside.

Afterwards, most members of the Oklahoma delegation headed over to a reception for Oklahomans hosted by BNSF at the Hill Library.

As reported by Michael McNutt, two of the four Oklahomans are now off the program.  Oh well, we waited 12 years for one speaker, I guess four at once was just too much to ask for.

This morning, we had breakfast again at the hotel.  We had two speakers, Ron Kessler and Congressman Tom Cole.

Ron came at my invitation.  He’s a friend of mine who has authored numerous bestselling books and is a featured writer for Newsmax Magazine.  He spoke about how effectively President Bush has kept America safe since 9/11, and he talked about the contrasting approaches McCain and Obama have towards the War on Terror.

Tom delivered wide-ranging remarks in his usual eloquence, and echoed some of Ron’s statements about the value of the President’s leadership in the War on Terror.  He kicked up the red meat a notch, pointing out that if Obama is qualified to be President after being a state senator just four years ago that a sitting governor is certainly OVERqualified to be Vice President.

The delegation, hospitable as always, greeted both speakers with standing ovations. 

Ron arranged for everyone to receive a complimentary copy of the latest edition of Newsmax. 

Today, the delegates are wearing their blue blazers with an Oklahoma patch, khaki pants and white shirts.

The delegates are now off to various different functions, including a Vets for Freedom event this afternoon in St. Paul featuring newly-elected Oklahoma State Senator Steve Russell.  The event is at 1:30 p.m. at the St. Paul Union Depot.

This afternoon at 3:30 p.m., most of the delegates will also be off to a party hosted by Mayor Cornett for American mayors and local officials at the Landmark Center in St. Paul.

And finally, RNC leaders just announced that the show will go on tonight, with slight adjustments. 

Debbie House is an Alternate Delegate representing the Third Congressional District.

Debbie lives in Stillwater and serves as Chairman of the Payne County Republican Party and the Payne County Republican Women.  She atttended the RNC in 2004 as a Delegate.  She got seriously involved in the GOP nine years ago when her daughters graduated from high school. 

She runs a beauty shop, her husband is a photographer, and she is a HUGE OSU fan.

Cheryl Demarest is an Alternate Delegate representing Oklahoma’s Second Congressional District.

Cheryl lives in Talihina, a town about 60 miles east of McAlester.  Her husband, Robert, is a Delegate from the Second District. 

The Demarests moved from Long Island, NY to Talihina in 1999.  They had no connection to the town or the state, but just wanted a place that was friendly to home schooling.  They discovered Talihina while checking out Poteau.  They were amazed that everyone in Talihina waved as they drove by.

Robert is a printing consultant and Cheryl is starting a real estate firm.   And when they discovered they couldn’t get reliable and affordable Internet access in Talihina, they didn’t call the government and complain, they just started their own Internet Service Provider.

 They have two sons, Robert and Bryon.

A subdued Convention was gaveled open today by RNC Chair Mike Duncan.

This is the view from where the Oklahoma Alternate Delegates sit, when they’re not using their Delegate’s pass to sit on the floor (traditionally, the Delegates and Alternates swap passes back and forth).

Here’s the view from the Oklahoma section.  Back row, stage right.  Lest we be too offended by our location, Alaska is right next to us.

The Oklahoma delegation is arriving in force now.  We are staying at the Four Points Sheraton in Minneapolis, a suburban-style hotel.   We’re here with the Colorado delegation. 

When they arrive, everyone is heading to the 7th floor to get their credentials.  Delegates are given credentials for the week which they will have to wear around their neck whenever they are in the Xcel Center. 

Delegates from OK are everywhere, and mostly everyone is just milling around and getting settled. 

On the media side of things, just spoke to Michael McNutt, with NewsOK, who arrived yesterday.  Jim Myers is also here from the Tulsa World, and Michael Cross with KOSU. 

I think I just passed William Bennett in the hall.

As mentioned earlier, the RNC has some committees, and members of the Oklahoma delegation are serving on some of them:

Resolutions: Lynn Windel and Bunny Chambers

Credentials: Bob Cleveland and Pam Pollard

Rules: Gary Jones and Mary Rumph

Permanent Organization: Steve Fair and Phyllis Gorman

Several of Oklahoma’s delegates have already arrived in Minneapolis-St. Paul.  Some of them are involved in committee work. 

Some of the delegates are making a vacation of it, and are driving up.  Most, especially those flying (including this author), will arrive Sunday. 

The convention festivities kick off with a party for all delegates and alternates Sunday night.  The first session at the Xcel Center in St. Paul is Monday afternoon.