Politics and parties mix at DNC

By James Paton, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published August 26, 2008 at 8:26 p.m.
Updated August 26, 2008 at 8:26 p.m.

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Randy Swisher grabbed the microphone with a message to deliver just before the Denver band the Flobots took the stage at the Wynkoop Brewery in LoDo.

"Wind. Energy. Now," he said.

Swisher is the director of the American Wind Energy Association, the lobbying group that's trying to extend tax credits for developers of wind farms.

A campaign by the wind energy association and others to spread the word about wind power amid high oil prices is sweeping through Denver this week during the Democratic National Convention.

The association has plenty of company.

A host of industries and causes are courting lawmakers and power brokers with parties and perks. The same thing will go on next week at the Republican nominating convention in Minneapolis-St. Paul. New ethics rules prevent lawmakers from accepting gifts, but a number of exceptions allow the schmooze fests to continue.

At the Beta nightclub, the Distilled Spirits Council had a separate entrance Monday for "elected officials" and served top-shelf scotch, bourbon and "Prohibition style cocktails." Obama staffers, Iowa Sen. Tom Harkin and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer of Maryland attended.

At the Wynkoop, guests sampled pints of "Mayor John's Windpower Wheat" and enjoyed a spread of elk, lamb and pheasant appetizers. It was a light hearted gathering with a serious purpose.

The tax credits, seen as critical incentives for wind-energy production, expire at the end of 2008. So the lobbying group is aggressively trying to influence the energy debate on Capitol Hill and persuade lawmakers to expand the breaks to make development more attractive.

The organization also contributed money to the host committees for the DNC as well as the Republican convention, realizing it needs allies on both sides of the aisle.

There's plenty riding on the outcome for Colorado. Gov. Bill Ritter wants the state to become a hub for research, manufacturing and production of alternative energy. Earlier this month, Vestas, the Danish wind energy company, announced it is making a more than $600 million investment in Colorado and creating 2,500 jobs.

On Tuesday Ritter and Colorado congressmen Mark Udall and Ed Perlmutter joined Vestas Vice President of Government Relations Roby Roberts at a news conference to talk about the sector. The event, appropriately, was held in front of a 130-foot wind turbine blade on the Speer Boulevard side of the Colorado Convention Center.

"Colorado should be a model," said Ritter. "But we still have work to do."

Wind power accounts for just 1 percent of U.S. electricity use. But it is growing quickly. The American Wind Energy Association said that over the past 18 months, the U.S. has seen 41 new or expanded manufacturing operations.

"That's jobs for America's future," Swisher said.

Udall discussed a recent trip to Lamar for a packed town hall meeting with Texas billionaire T. Boone Pickens, who advocates a plan to boost use of wind and natural gas for U.S. energy needs.

The last time so many people gathered for an event in Lamar "the bingo pot was at $9,000," Udall joked in his brief address.

For its part, Vestas has launched a significant marketing effort, with newspaper, Web site and television advertising, as the country debates energy policy.

"We are astounded by how little people know about wind. We want to people to understand and we are committed to getting the word out," Vestas' Roberts said.

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