WASHINGTON — Presidential conventions have morphed into four-day infomercials for the nominee, but this time around Barack Obama may have to cede some camera time to the rival he vanquished in the Democratic primary, Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Clinton's allies are negotiating with the Obama campaign over a delicate question: whether to set aside time to celebrate a political figure whose historic campaign brought her closer than any other woman to clinching the party's nomination.
So far, the only settled issue is that both Clinton and her husband will speak at the convention -- she on Aug. 26 and he the next day. But some of Clinton's fundraisers and supporters think that is not enough.
They want to stage a march through the hall, a tribute with music and balloons, or some other display to mark her achievement. And the best time for that, they say, might be the night she addresses the delegates.
The Clinton camp warns that if Obama resists, Democrats who preferred her in the primary may feel snubbed, polarizing the party and diminishing Obama's chances of defeating Republican John McCain.
Clinton herself said her supporters needed "a catharsis" at the convention. She told some gathered at a Palo Alto home last month that her delegates should have a chance to "yell and scream and have their opportunity . . . because then everybody can go, 'OK, great. Now let's go out and win.' "
Alan Kessler, a major Clinton fundraiser, said Friday that her supporters needed a way to express their enthusiasm for her.
"If you don't do that, that emotion will continue to be pent up," he said. "The perfect opportunity would be before she speaks to have some opportunity for a celebration."
Obama aides downplayed any suggestion that there was friction over Clinton's role at the Denver convention. The two sides are working together, an Obama aide said, including discussing the wording on Clinton signs.
"We're basically saying, 'What do you want?' That's what the discussion is," said the aide, who was not authorized to speak on the record and so requested anonymity. "We want to make sure that Sen. Clinton's supporters have the opportunity to express their enthusiasm for her when she speaks."
