Party Time in Dallas

The Republicans attend a coronation while the Democrats falter

The throat-clearing chore of drafting a platform was complete, and the rafter-reaching speeches were about to begin. Inside the cavernous Dallas Convention Center, workmen folded down the last bright red cushion of the hall's 17,000 seats, providing a telegenic color complement to the acres of blue carpeting. VIPS began slipping into town, ferried between meetings in stretch limousines, some with real Texas longhorns protruding from their hoods. The blast-furnace August climate was performing on cue, with temperatures reaching the 100° mark. But the Big D's...

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