It's taken Vice President Al Gore forever to pen his nomination acceptance speech, but he's finally finished. "I've been pushing for weeks to get it done," says campaign boss Bill Daley. "He always takes a lot of time," he offered during an interview between chomps on granola and chocolate chip cookies. It's a weird process, says Daley: Gore, who likes to do most of his own writing, starts with an outline and then fills it in with 12,000 words–way too many. Then it's up to his team to trim. Along the way, he calls pals and asks for tips. Later, he calls others and reads them sections to get their take; sometimes he e-mails passages to Daley for his thoughts. But so far, few have read the whole text. When did he wrap up? Late Sunday night.
Girl watching
Scandal never seems to be far from President Clinton, and neither do the Clinton women. We've had both in Los Angeles during the Democratic convention. Our sources tell us that Paula Jones, who nixed the president's alleged sexual advances while he was Arkansas's guv, and Jane Doe No. 2, an Arkansas judge linked to Clinton, have both been spotted around town. Jones avoided Clinton, but Jane Doe, identified as Beth Coulson, is staying with the Arkansas convention delegation, reports our Suzi Parker. In fact, she asked the delegation for a pass to sit in its convention floor section to watch Clinton give his valedictory Monday night. Both Clinton and Coulson have denied any romantic link.
Rippers
There are tons of cops, groups of black-suited SWAT teams with high-powered rifles, and hundreds of Secret Service protecting the Staples Center, site of the Democratic convention. But police tell Whispers that they are expecting some protests or disruptions–even shouting–inside the convention. The feds tell us that kids are assaulting delegates and press walking to the Staples Center and stealing their paper convention passes. "Beware, because we've got lots of reports of rippers stealing the passes," said one security boss. And the cops don't think the thugs are stealing them for souvenirs. They fear that the passes are being handed off to anarchists and protesters eager to bust up the scripted show.
Picture this
Delegates were a wee bit worried that a tall, bald man in a blue suit, who looked and sounded suspiciously like Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura, might be an impostor. (Political lookalikes have been haunting the convention.) Until, that is, the guv turned on his own special brand of crass charm, reports our West Coast reporter Betsy Streisand. "Where can a guy get a beer around here?" he bellowed, before posing for a couple of photos and heading to the john. When he was asked for another shot, the big guy sneered: "You'll have to follow me into the can." Lovely.
Sex doesn't sell
Emmy-nominated TV star Sarah Jessica Parker of "Sex and the City" rules Hollywood, but don't tell that to the East Coast financial media firm Bloomberg. The serious biz has spent gazillions to win the best-party title by throwing glitzy invitation-only fetes, first in Washington during the White House correspondents spring dinner, then at the Republican National Convention in Philadelphia. And it was no different in L.A., where it threw a must-go affair Monday night. But when Parker RSVP'd with a request for extra tickets for her entourage, she was told to stuff it.
Cheap date
Four years ago, a cup of coffee with Bill Clinton cost $50,000, but the price is dropping now that he's a lame duck. For example, at the Democratic convention, the price tag's a mere $1,000–and that includes some schmooze time with his cabinet, reports our Sheila Kaplan. The fundraiser took place Sunday morning at the swanky Casa Del Mar on the beach in Santa Monica. Donors representing Microsoft and Greenburg, Traurig, the law and lobby firm, sipped cafe with Clinton & Co.
Divided camp
They haven't come to blows yet, but the Clinton and Gore camps are growing increasingly irritated with each other. At issue: whether President Clinton is overshadowing his sidekick. Team Clinton says that the Gore guys are whining too much and that the press is making too much of the grumbling. In fact, chief of staff John Podesta tells us that Clinton stands ready to take campaign orders from his No. 2. But the veep's teammates insist that Clinton is hogging the limelight and money. So, as you can imagine, they were none too pleased, to say the least, that the farewell movie about the Clinton-Gore years shown at the Democratic convention Monday night featured nary a picture of Big Al.
Embarrassing moment
Sen. Bob Kerrey, the former Navy SEAL who lost a leg in Vietnam, was entering the Staples Center to watch President Clinton's speech Monday night when his artificial leg set off a security alarm. The cops should have just sent him through. I mean, don't they know he was on Al Gore's short list for running mates? But the police didn't recognize him. Kerrey's female escort whispered in the guard's ear: "He's got an artificial leg." The guard asked to see it. Said Kerrey: "No, I'm not going to do that."
E-fundraising
Dot.com riches might be just a myth if we consider the story of Democratic National Convention delegate Andrew Lachman. He's the 30-year-old corporate counsel for Homestore.com, operator of the popular Realtor.com site. Big money, you say? So then why is he begging for $2,000 over the Internet to attend this week's Los Angeles convention? He's asked fellow American University alums to help him by buying online from e-commerce sites that have agreed to kick back a "small referral fee." One wonders what he's up to, considering he lives "just outside L.A." His explanation: He fears traffic will be bad and, anyway, "it really does make sense to stay with the rest of the delegation." Nice try.
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