Pubdate: Sun, 13 Aug 2000 Source: San Luis Obispo County Tribune (CA) Copyright: 2000 The Tribune Contact: P.O. Box 112, San Luis Obispo, CA 93406-0112 Fax: 805.781.7905 Website: http://www.thetribunenews.com/ GARY HART TO SPEAK AT SHADOW CONVENTION DENVER (AP) - Coloradan and onetime Democratic presidential candidate Gary Hart will speak at a shadow convention to be held in Los Angeles at the same time as the Democratic national convention. Hart, who dropped out of the 1988 Democratic race for the nomination for president following a sex scandal, is slated to give the opening address Sunday at an alternative to the Democratic event nearby. Hart has said for some time that both parties are too corrupt to fix society's problems, a complaint that fits neatly with the group sponsoring the alternative event. "We had been looking for a keynote speaker who would be able to put what's happening in our democracy today in some sort of historical perspective," said syndicated columnist Arianna Huffington, who invited Hart. "He seemed uniquely able to do that." A similar gathering was held in Philadelphia during the GOP's national convention. The shadow conventions are being put on by Huffington, campaign finance watchdog Common Cause and other groups. Hart's 15-minute address is expected to dwell on the corrupting influence of money on politics, the failures of the war on drugs and the growing gap in America between rich and poor. The roots of Hart's appearance are in an interview he did with Huffington earlier. - --- MAP posted-by: Jo-D