Sep 3, 2008 7:25 pm US/Central
Twin Cities Bustling With RNC Guests, Security
ST. PAUL (WCCO) ―
The Twin Cities have been overrun by delegates, visitors, media and security in town for the Republican National Convention.
All the activity has caused some residents from the surrounding area to avoid the cities at all costs, so WCCO set out to see what Minnesota's guests have been up to.
"I'm really dressed down today actually," said a woman dressed in a red-white-and-blue sequined vest.
Nancy Otstot is a delegate to the National Republican Convention from Pennsylvania. From the elephants on her belt to the flags painted on her fingernails, Otstot's outfit is a tipoff to her delegate status. She's amazed how warm the welcome's been in the Twin Cities.
"It's wonderful. Almost everybody we talk to says, the first thing they say is, 'Welcome.' I don't know, did you have a lesson on that?"
In addition to dressed-up delegates, there are thousands of members of the media in town. Many were camped outside the Minneapolis Hilton Wednesday hoping for a glimpse of Senator McCain.
Bon Fleming is from Georgia, but he works for a Japanese TV station.
"We don't know what side he's gonna be coming in on," he said. "So we're just rolling the dice to see what happens."
Across the street from the Hilton, some regular-looking guys were really Secret Service agents. Others really were regular guys, like Tim Nelson. He said the biggest change he's noticed in downtown Minneapolis is the amount of security.
In both downtown Minneapolis and St. Paul, there are a lot of police, some from faraway. St. Paul felt pretty relaxed Wednesday. Some police were even spotting posing for pictures with Segway-riding people dressed as an elephant and a donkey.
"I usually get done at 4:30," said Knopff. "And I was only scheduled until 1 o'clock today. We couldn't get people to come past then."
For bank manager Cindy Shiely, the RNC has done the impossible. She said it's made quiet St. Paul even quieter.
"We had hoped that this was gonna be a great celebration and bring a lot of traffic to the downtown area." So far, she says, that hasn't happened. "We just still aren't seeing it. We're waiting, we're hoping."
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