The Jackson County Democratic Committee is hosting Truman Days 2008, a two day event, in Independence which started this evening.

Jackson County Prosecutor Jim Kanatzar and Alvin Brooks

From 5:00 p.m. through the bulk of the evening a number of organizations hosted hospitality suites. The food and the location were conducive to close quarters interaction among activists, interest groups, organized labor, office holders, and office seekers.

At the beginning of the evening, as everyone waited for the scheduled 6:00 p.m. close of the legislative session, one topic of conversation was the fate of the voter ID bill in Jefferson City. Word of the defeat of the bill passed quickly down the crowded hallway.  

Greater Kansas City DFA President Joe Medley

Quite by chance we first stopped into the hospitality suite of the Greater Kansas City Democracy for America. The good folks at DFA were gracious hosts as we used their suite as a base of operations for our forays into other suites down the hall.

Jackson County Executive Mike Sanders

Candidates for seats in the General Assembly worked their way up and down the hallway, introducing themselves or being introduced to activists and labor representatives. Conversations ranged from the state of the nation to the minutiae of local campaign strategy.

At times, due to the crowd, it was nearly impossible to work your way down the hallway with any efficiency. In several instances I ended up running into political acquaintances I hadn’t seen in years or others I had just visited with last weekend at the state convention in Columbia – our extended conversations in the hall contributing to the gridlock.

The “spread” at the IBEW suite

Tomorrow’s events include a 10:30 a.m. brunch with guest speakers, a 5:30 p.m. reception with Jackson County Executive Mike Sanders, and a 7:00 p.m. Banquet with guest speaker Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr.

Truman Days 2008 is taking place at the Hilton Garden Inn near I-70 and Little Blue Parkway in Independence.