Dems boo Arizona's GOP rock stars

Editor's note: National political reporter Dan Nowicki arrived in Charlotte, N.C., on Sept. 2 to cover the Democratic National Convention. He spent the week before in Florida, reporting on the Republican National Convention.

At the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer and Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio were treated like rock stars everywhere they went. Media lined up for interviews, delegates begged for autographs, people asked them to pose for pictures.

But in Charlotte, where tens of thousands of Democrats gathered last week to nominate President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden for a second term, just the mere mention of the two generated a thunderous round of boos from the floor of Time Warner Cable Arena.

Delegates booed to express their disapproval of the pair's immigration policies, which are in sharp contrast to the plank approved by the Democratic National Committee that supports comprehensive immigration reform.

That's not to say Arizona didn't have its stars in Charlotte, even if its 80 delegates and six alternates were tucked away in the rafters of the arena (taken by some as a sign that national Democrats don't think the state is "in play" for Obama), rather than given a prime spot on the floor near the stage, as the state's 29 delegates were in Tampa.

Former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords came close to stealing the show with her heart-tugging rendition of the Pledge of Allegiance on the closing night of the convention. It was her highest-profile public appearance since a would-be assassin shot her in the head nearly two years ago. According to Twitter, Giffords' brief on-stage role in the proceedings generated 3,278 tweets per minute.

And while her appearance came late, after all the speeches of the night and during the little-watched roll call of the states, CC Goldwater -- the granddaughter of the late Republican Sen. and 1964 GOP presidential nominee Barry Goldwater -- generated quite a buzz online and in the social-media realm when she cast Arizona's votes for Obama, saying, "My grandfather wouldn't recognize the Republican Party of today."

She also backed Obama in 2008 over Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.

Arizona's delegation also got a surprise treat Wednesday when their section was visited by Kevin Johnson, the former Phoenix Suns star who is now the mayor of Sacramento.

Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton said he was impressed by the keynote address delivered Tuesday by another mayor, Julian Castro, who like Stanton hails from a major Southwestern city that shares many of Phoenix's challenges. Stanton jokingly complained that Castro's San Antonio has been "picking off all our best people." San Antonio City Manager Sheryl Sculley came from Phoenix, as did Gloria Hurtado, its human services director, he said.

"I am a little envious of the mayor of San Antonio: He's younger, he's better looking and after last night it's obvious that he gives a better speech than I do," Stanton said Wednesday. "It's a little humbling."

There's always the 2016 Democratic National Convention for Stanton to shine.

Nowicki is The Republic's national political reporter. His column will return Sept. 23.

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