Jim Leach, a 30 year Republican Congressman from Iowa, just spoke at the Convention.  While, I’m outside the Pepsi Center at the Big Tent, there was a little bit of outrage that MSNBC didn’t bother to play the speech. Yeah, could you imagine the outrage if they chose not to play the JoMentum speech at the RNC.  Jim Leach was an effective Congressman, despite being a Republican, and a powerful one at that. It’s ridiculous that Lieberman gets all of this attention after he was ejected from the Democratic Party, yet MSNBC can’t be bothered to air it.

As for the speech itself, it went back and forth between the applause, and the uncomfortable silence.  When he praised his party, there was a quiet in the audience; when he spoke about how Barack Obama would make a “trascendent candidate” there was a roar.

Leach spoke loudly about a cooperative multi-lateral foreign policy, for working with our allies, and for returning to a workable relationship around the world. And to a loud round of applause, he spoke of bringing our troops home as “heroes that they are.”

If you missed the speech, which you probably did if you were watching on one of the cable news networks, check it out on YouTube when the DNCC folks post it on the webz.