DENVER — North Carolina's Democratic delegates moved through a morning buffet line this week, enjoying a free breakfast courtesy of AT&T. All, that is, except a handful of state legislators and staffers.

They paid $22 for the same plate of bacon, eggs and fruit.

"It gets to be absurd," says state Rep. Dan Blue of Raleigh. "I don't mind paying for breakfast, and I don't mind paying twice what the breakfast was worth. But you have to wonder why."

The reason is a "gift ban" included in a 2006 state ethics law that governs what legislators can accept from outside parties. It's similar to new federal restrictions on members of Congress. The laws offer a confusing thicket of regulations just as opportunities for gifts, free meals and entertainment abound at the national conventions. The nonprofit Sunlight Foundation has tracked more than 400 parties at both the Democratic and Republican conventions.

The Democrats finished their convention Thursday night in Denver with a speech by presidential nominee Barack Obama. The Republicans start their convention Monday in Minneapolis-St. Paul. Republican nominee John McCain is expected to announce his nominee for vice president today.

This week in Denver, Gerry Cohen, a legislative employee who is the top bill-drafter and is a member of the Democratic Party's platform committee, has also had to comply with the new state laws. He compares it with his experience as a student caught up in protests at the 1968 Chicago convention.

"Dealing with the tear gas was easier than trying to figure out the ethics laws," he says. (Char-O)

DENVER - The North Carolina delegation to the Democratic National Convention gathered Sunday night for the first time at an ice cream social -- although there was an open bar as well.

The gathering was in the lobby of the Doubletree Denver Tech Hotel, which is located miles from downtown in an office park off an interstate in suburb of Greenwood Village. The town, by the way, is so manicured and sterile that it makes Cary look like Greenwich Village by comparison, reports Rob Christensen.

The event attracted both newcomers such as Durham County commissioner Ellen Reckhow and 18-year-old Jared Hagemann of Camden as well as political veterans such as Secretary of State Elaine Marshall, former House Speaker Dan Blue of Raleigh and Raleigh attorney Ed Turlington.

Some people had been in Denver for days. Kevin Monroe, the state Obama political director, has been working on security. Gerry Cohen, a top staffer at the state legislature, has been serving on the convention credentials committee.

State Rep. Dan Blue and U.S. Rep. G.K. Butterfield know how many homes they own.

The two Democrats held a news conference Thursday at Barack Obama's Raleigh office to criticize John McCain. The presumptive Republican nominee for president had expressed confusion about how many homes he and his wife Cindy own.

"Senator McCain is not in touch with the American people," Butterfield said.

"If you own so many that you can't keep up with them," Blue said, "then you ought to make an effort to see what regular people are going through."

So how many do Blue and Butterfield, both of whom are lawyers, own?

For Blue: one, in Raleigh. For Butterfield: two, a one-bedroom in Washington and a house in Wilson.

And, Butterfield added, the Washington home cost him more.

UPDATE: Linda Daves, chair of the N.C. Republican Party, released a statement in response to Blue and Butterfield. She accused Obama of being out of touch with average North Carolinians, citing his recent vacation to Hawaii and the millions he has made from writing two books.

"No, when it comes to being an out of touch celebrity, Barack Obama has no equal," Daves said. "The only thing Obama and his friends proved today is that they are more interested in raising taxes than in raising the level of debate."

Fay did not prevent Barack Obama from his event this evening in Raleigh.

Obama, who had trouble getting out of Florida earlier in the day because of the weather, has arrived at the N.C. State Fairgrounds for a "town hall" meeting, reports Lynn Bonner.

Several state and local politicos - from former House Speaker Dan Blue of Raleigh to state Rep. Pricey Harrison of Greensboro - were among those in the crowd.

Gov. Mike Easley, who initially endorsed Hillary Clinton in the presidential primary, was also seen working the room. Former Gov. Jim Hunt is there, as is state Democratic Party Chairman Jerry Meek.

Former state Democratic chairman Wade Smith raised big bucks for Barack Obama this week.

Smith, a leading Raleigh defense attorney, hosted a fund raiser at his home, featuring Obama senior advisor Valerie Jarrett. She was introduced by Democratic Gov. Mike Easley, Rob Christensen reports.

Among those attending were former Gov. Jim Hunt.

Smith said it was one of the largest and most enthusiastic fund raisers he has ever held with well over 100 people jammed into house. But he was not certain how much was raised.

The event was organized by John Crumpler, a Raleigh businessman, long active in Democratic politics.

Admission was $1,000 per person. But to be a host a person had either give or agree to raise $10,000 for the Obama Victory Fund.

After the jump, a list of the hosts.

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The last big battle between the House and Senate this session may well be how to bail out the N.C. State Health Plan.

The House passed legislation that would provide $100 million from the rainy day fund to cover deficits in the plan, which legislative leaders say could be steep by early next year, Dan Kane reports.

But Senate leaders say they are considering raising co-payments or deductibles for the roughly 650,000 teachers, state employees, retirees and their families to cover deficits.

"I'm sorry that we have to be tweaking this right now, but we have to be prudent so we don't crash the system," said state Sen. Linda Garrou, a Winston-Salem Democrat and chief budget writer.

House leaders say they don't want to hit those on the plan with an increase at a time when gas and food prices are rising.

"It seems to me that this is the only choice among difficult choices," said Rep. Dan Blue, a Raleigh Democrat, after the House rolled out its plan.

More after the jump.

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State legislators and Gov. Mike Easley said Tuesday they've come up with a plan that could keep as many as 25,000 homeowners out of foreclosure in the next few years.

At a news conference, they promoted legislation that would give some borrowers more time to work with lenders before the foreclosure process begins, David Ingram reports. The legislation would require lenders to notify the N.C. Banking Commission before beginning foreclosure, allowing the commission to help arrange counseling, negotiations and legal advice.

"In a foreclosure, the one thing you can say is everybody loses," Easley said.

A House committee held a hearing on the legislation Tuesday morning. A limited number of borrowers would be eligible for the program, depending on the date that the loan began and other factors.

"They have to be owner-occupied homes," said state Rep. Dan Blue, a Raleigh Democrat and the sponsor of the legislation. "This program is not aimed at speculators."

Industry representatives, consumer advocates and state regulators attended the news conference.

Banking Commissioner Joseph Smith said the program could be in effect by November. He said about 20 commission staff members will work on the program, using current funding.

Barack Obama will give a speech on the economy at the N.C. State Fairgrounds today.

Dome is at the event, where doors opened about a half hour ago.

So far, we've spotted a few of the usual suspects: U.S. Rep. G.K. Butterfield, state Sen. Floyd McKissick, state Reps. Dan Blue and Ty Harrell, former lieutenant governor candidate Hampton Dellinger, former Raleigh City Councilman Brad Thompson and Capstrat founder Ken Eudy.

The campaign of Sen. Janet Cowell, who is running for state treasurer and lives nearby, is handing out fliers at the front of the Exposition Center building.

Update: Also in the crowd: Secretary of State Elaine Marshall, House Speaker Joe Hackney, Senate Majority Leader Tony Rand, superdelegate David Parker, former state Auditor Ralph Campbell, state Reps. Linda Coleman and Jennifer Weiss, and Raleigh businessman John Crumpler.

State Treasurer Richard Moore just wandered through the press section by mistake and Dome asked what he was doing in our less illustrious section of the room.

"I don't know, but I'm going to do my best to get out of here," he said. 

They are the N.C. Truth Squad.

Their mission? To "make sure that the truth is shared with North Carolinians."

Their outfits? Capes, with a large purple "T" and a lightening bolt.

Okay, we made that last one up.

But it is true that Barack Obama announced today the creation of a N.C. Truth Squad whose job it is, according to Obama state director Craig Schirmer, is to "make sure that the truth is shared with North Carolinians."

Of course, that would be the truth as seen from the Obama camp. The squad is supposed to set the record straight on the candidate's records and, according to Schirmer, respond to "misleading messages from any corner - especialliy those that the Clinton campaign has tried here in North Carolina and in other states."

So, who are the members of the N.C. Truth Squad?

They are: U.S. Reps. David Price, Mel Watt and G.K. Butterfield, former state House Speaker Dan Blue and state Reps. Pricey Harrison and Ty Harrell.

Richard Moore, a Democratic candidate for governor, has a new tv ad questioning whether Beverly Perdue can be trusted because of a vote she cast in the legislature in 1987, Mark Johnson reports.

What the ad says: “Some decisions say a lot about character. Like the time Bev Perdue voted against tougher laws to investigate hate groups like the Ku Klux Klan. It’s true. Perdue was one of only two Democrats to vote against Dan Blue’s law that gave the SBI more powers to investigate the KKK. A law supported by most Republicans and the entire black legislative caucus. Is Bev Perdue a Democrat we can trust?”

The background: As a member of the N.C. House of Representatives, Perdue voted against a bill that authorized the State Bureau of Investigation to investigate possible hate crimes without being called into the case by local law enforcement. Before the bill became law, the SBI entered such a case only at the request of police or sheriffs’ departments.

Perdue was one of two Democrats in the legislature to oppose the bill. It passed the Senate unanimously. In the House, there were seven no votes: five Republicans, Perdue and Rep. Gerald Anderson, another Democrat.

Perdue’s campaign said she did not recall the vote and that, given the context of other votes she cast, it must be a “misvote.” She would have been voting against her party leadership, which would have been unusual for a freshman. Legislators who push the wrong button when voting can, and often do, ask to have their vote corrected afterward.

Perdue spokesman David Kochman said other votes at the same time better reflect her record on civil rights, such as voting in favor of making Martin Luther King Day a paid state holiday.

Otherwise, the campaign contends, she would not have gained the endorsements she has received from black leaders such as former Charlotte Mayor Harvey Gantt.

Is the ad accurate? Yes.