Here is Shafer’s blog. Here is Shafer. Here is a selection from the first post:
bq. What observers at home are less able to judge for themselves is the vast array of other politics, that is, electoral politicking not directly involving the presidential candidates, along with the vast array of interest group argument and intended policy innovation that are also normally part and parcel of national party conventions. With tens of thousands of politically interested and politically active individuals concentrated in a small space, political careers are inevitably fostered (or not) and policy proposals inevitably furthered (or not) in a manner largely independent of what central convention strategists are doing.