Live Chat: Peter Jennings
July 26 -- The Republican Party has promised that this year's convention would break with the past.
It has tried to deliver on the promise of a more diverse convention — the roster of scheduled speakers ranges from retired Gen. Colin Powell to professional wrestler "The Rock," and the party is making a point of addressing hot topics like abortion and affirmative action.
What's going on behind the scenes at the convention? What makes this year's GOP conclave different? Get a newsman's perspective from our live chat with World News Tonight anchor Peter Jennings. You can read a transcript of the chat below.
Moderator:
Welcome, ABCNEWS' Peter Jennings.
Peter Jennings:
I think the interesting thing here is the convention did not address hot topics such as abortion and affirmative action. Those topics were kept quite significantly out of the public debate.
The party has tried hard to impress the audience at home with its self image of inclusiveness. It may have been more successful with the television audiencethan the dot-com audience.
Similarly, this is a more inclusive party than it was at its convention four years ago, and the candidate has a record on this subject, about which he can be examined.
Moderator:
Are the delegates truly enthusiasticabout the Bush-Cheney ticket?
Peter Jennings:
I think the delegates, given that they are activists, want to win. To that end, they must be enthusiastic. At the same time, I was impressed that last night the delegates may have ended up enthusiastically lifting Cheney rather than Cheney necessarily inspiring them.
Moderator:
What have been some of the highlights ofthis year's convention for you?
Peter Jennings:
The most recent highlight is the Cheney speech — a clear direction in which the party intends to campaign. Whether the Republicans will be successful going after Clinton, whether they will be successful tying Gore to Clinton, whether they can prevail with the moral mood in the country as anissue rather than a very strong economy, is yet to be tested.
Steve says: How do you think Dick Cheney will reconcilehis conservative, right-wing political views with his daughter'shomosexuality? What effect do you think this may have on his campaign?
Peter Jennings:
Steve, I think this is an issue that is bubbling through thesurface here at the moment. There are several questions which the Cheneys have not yetanswered satisfactorily for many in the gay movement. I do not think this is an issue of the Cheneys and theirdaughter (who they clearly love), per se, but more an issue of his political positions on gays and lesbiansin the military, and on laws which may affect gays and lesbians in one way oranother.
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