California Delegates Squeezed At Pricey Philly Hotel During Democratic Convention
PHILADELPHIA (KCBS) -- While politics makes strange bedfellows, at times economic necessity does, too.
The Philadelphia hotel where the California delegation to the Democratic National Convention is so expensive, delegates are doubling, tripling, even quadrupling up, and sometimes they're forced to share with someone from a rival camp.
"I'm actually roommates with a Bernie Sanders delegate from the Bay Area," says Jerome Pandell of Danville, a Hillary Clinton delegate who says he couldn't afford the $780 a night the Marriott is charging this week. "That's the one step toward party unity that's happening on a small scale, I guess."
Pandell says the rooming rivals are getting along just fine, despite their bitter differences over which candidate the party should nominate for president.
"We've argued quite a bit about Tim Kaine. I've met him and like him a lot, but my roomie thinks he was a terrible choice for vice president."
Mark Maloof, a Sanders delegate from Sonoma, says the close quarters at the Marriott are bringing everyone together. He's decided to vote for Hillary Clinton in November.
"I do believe that Bernie or Bust is a dead end strategy," he says. "Falling in line sometimes is necessary, because the main goal here, is electing a Democrat. Electing any Democrat is sure as hell better than a Donald Trump presidency."
Pandell says bunking with a Sanders diehard has turned out to be a positive thing. "We have good conversations, we meet each other's friends who are delegates for the other side. They're all good people. In the end, we're all on the same side."
