The Democrats’ “memorial service” for

The Democrats’ “memorial service” for Paul Wellstone is in progress now, being televised on every Twin Cities station. I watched only the first few minutes; it was a pep rally, not a memorial service. It is at Williams Arena, home of the Minnesota Gophers basketball team, and as it began, a parade of celebrities entered the arena to wild applause and raucous pop music. Bill and Hillary are there, Ted Kennedy, most Democratic Senators and some Republicans. One person who isn’t there is Dick Cheney, who was disinvited by the Wellstone family on a flimsy pretext. I turned it off, so I don’t know whether it later resembled a memorial service more than a rock concert. Whether any votes will be swayed by this extravaganza remains to be seen. The tastelessness and open partisanship of the part I saw will certainly turn off some voters.