Democrats Postpone Convention Announcement Until Early January

Translation--the Democrats, including Howard Dean, want a convention in Denver, and the frequent delays are merely stalling tactics to allow Denver to put all of its fundraising and (now) labor squabbles behind them:

Democrats are putting off an announcement on choosing a 2008 national convention site until early January.

Democratic Party officials said Tuesday they are hard-pressed to pick between Denver and New York.

Party officials have been negotiating for months with host committees for New York and Denver. A series of problems with Denver's bid and a significant cooling of interest from New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg led Democratic Party Chairman Howard Dean to seek more time to make a decision.

"Chairman Dean is going to make the best decision for the party based on the merits of each city's bid. ... Because of the holiday week, and at the request of both cities, we will announce the convention city in early January," DNC press secretary Stacie Paxton said in a statement.

Clearly, if New York had been the clear-cut favorite over the last few months the site would already have been chosen. Democrats are allowing Denver to buy time to make the bid look less like a foregone conclusion while allowing the city's committee to square away some lingering issues so that a Denver convention doesn't get off to a rocky start.

The Rocky Mountain News has more on Denver's critical reprieve and the union squabble that threatens to derail the convention bid.