Obama Launches Campaign in 70% full Arena

Barack Obama launched his campaign in unspectacular fashion today at Ohio State University, the largest college in the crucial swing state. A photo posted to twitter by Mitt Romney's campaign spokesman Ryan Williams reveals sparse attendance. The above image, according to Williams, was taken during the President's first official campaign speech.

During the speech, Obama ripped into the presumptive GOP nominee and discussed nation building at home, but the most newsworthy item of the day was not the talking points Obama delivered: it was the crowd... or lack thereof. According to ABC News, the Obama campaign had expected an "overflow" of people. Instead, the arena looked half-empty. The Columbus Dispatch reports that Obama organizers even had people move from the seats to the floor of the gym in order to project a larger crowd on television.

www.breitbart.com...

But the event fell short of the 20,000 supporters the campaign had forecast as organizers moved people from seats to the arena floor in front of the dais to project fullness to television audiences. Obama volunteers had worked feverishly over the last week to gin up a crowd, making multiple calls to residents believed to be supportive of the president.

www.dispatch.com...

Related Article

Biden Left Out of Top Campaign Meetings

On Sunday evenings, President Obama meets with his top ten campaign officials to "gather for a confidential briefing on his re-election," according to the New York Times. Present at these meetings, which, we learn, usually take place after the president's Sunday golf outings, are a slew of White House and campaign officials.

But there is one person conspicuously missing: Vice President Joe Biden. (Hillary Clinton and the rest of the cabinet are also absent.) "Instead, the room is filled with a group of trusted confidants who were at his side during the last campaign," writes the Times, suggesting that Biden is not indeed a 'trusted confidant.

www.weeklystandard.com...

This is interesting after all the hype about how everyone just loves Obama that was an epic fail of campaign planning. Oh and launched on Karl Marx's birthday no less.

A lot of errors have been made lately by the Democrats is that house of cards really falling down?

Supposedly everyone loves the Great Savior of the Republic a 20,000 person short fall to see the greatest Potus who ever lived?

That's hilarious what's even more hilarious is Biden being left out of the campaign planning.

Seems a possible shakeup is coming

I'll just bet you that future venues have free or cheap food...lots of shiny baubles to buy at bargain rates and generally look like a little tourist trap for having other junk to attract the locals. Heck, I wouldn't put it past them to begin just paying some people out of day labor places....but I predict we don't see a half empty arena like this again. No matter what they have to do...I can't see them allowing it again.

This wasn't just embarrassing....This is a real reality check for a nation that is no longer amused, let alone in love.

A few more of these and his own party may start really grumbling.... This isn't off to a good start at all. I wonder how Carney spins it tomorrow?

That's because they were;
a) Out looking for work
b) Gas costs too much to drive out
c) Didn't get te news because tv was reposessed
d) Everyone has become racist
e) He's a fascist dictator who lies.
f) All of the above.

reply to post by Wrabbit2000


Half empty?

14,000 people in a place that can hold 18,300 doesn't sound like half to me...

Originally posted by Chadwickus
reply to post by Wrabbit2000

 

Half empty?

14,000 people in a place that can hold 18,300 doesn't sound like half to me...

Well, the OP and I weren't there....but the media is reporting this and this pic leads the top slot of the Drudge Report at the moment with the headline of the thread here..... Don't shoot the messenger...and the story this pic is sourced to says the crowd was 70% of capacity to the venue. I dunno... I wasn't there personally, of course.

Source

According to the Toledo Blade, the venue for Obama's rally seats 20,000 but "there were a lot of empty seats." Comparatively, Obama drew a crowd of 35,000 at Ohio State when he campaigned for former Governor Ted Strickland in 2010. The official Barack Obama Tumblr boasts a figure from ThinkProgress that 14,000 attended the event--70% of the stadium's seating capacity.

I know Breitbart sites aren't exactly pushing for Obama's re-election or anything, but the name they had for the pic of the area is "obamafail.png". If you right click the image on the link, it's right there. A little toss of humor thrown in by someone in their offices...

At the same time, he acknowledged the pain that still exists more than three years into his presidency. Two years ago, when campaigning on the Ohio State campus for former Gov. Ted Strickland, he drew some 35,000 people. There were a lot of empty seats today in the Schottenstein, which seats 20,000.

www.toledoblade.com...

Same place that drew 35,000 people in 2008 now what's 14,000 from 35,000 ?

21,000 people.

Quite a bit of difference.

To give some contrast...I dug this out of my files for Dr. Paul in Springfield. Since I took these, I hate to miss an appropriate moment to make use of one.



Without getting into a whole side line down this path, they were down the railings, and out the door, packing the place in my little corner of Missouri. One can even see folks willing to fill the seats behind him they hadn't intended to have open at all. Far more people showed up than they planned for. Make what you will of it...but public enthusiasm is there or it isn't. There sure isn't a way of faking or spinning that little detail.

Forward isn't off to a real quick jump.. err.. yeah. Maybe they need that reset button back from Putin? (tries to keep straight face...must not laugh...)

Mitt Romney at Ford Field:


He wishes he had 14,000 like Obama did at Ohio Stadium. Obama didn't fill the stadium bleachers, but 14,000 is a big crowd for a political rally.

(eidt - accidently posted rally photos from 2010, not 2012)

Breitbart.comm is just living in utter denial, desperately hoping no one will actual look at the attendance figures of the Ohio rallies, but all they're doing is highlighting just how pathetic Romney is in comparison to him. At least Ron Paul can hold his own, and he would certainly be the best GOP challenger for Obama in 2012. Romney? Won't even come close, unless the mainstream GOPpers (Rove, et.al.) resort to their usual bag of tricks.

reply to post by Blackmarketeer

Ummmm... Mitt Romney isn't the sitting U.S President. The man in the seat is expected to carry a certain baseline of support purely as the President in title. Err... He seems to have come up a little short for even that much.


(you'll also never hear me ..or many others..say they voted for old Mittens there. Personally, I'd prefer Daffy Duck to come out of August...at least I'd know the quack was sincere..)

reply to post by Blackmarketeer


LMAO... Romney knows how to pack them in.

It is still early in the season, but packed stadium or not, Obama will beat a washed up Romney.

reply to post by Wrabbit2000


So it's acceptable to take what the media says at face value as long as it agrees with a particular perspective now?

Yes it seems the Obama campaign didn't get the numbers they were after but "empty" and "half" doesn't fit the description either.

reply to post by Wrabbit2000


I don't know that an incumbent really draws the big crowds though, since they and their base know who they'll be voting for. Romney is the one who should be drawing the crowds and he isn't - in fact his crowds are looking very sparse for a challenger.

So the dispatch,the toledo blade and abc are right wing news sources?

Alrightie

reply to post by neo96


When they take their cues from bogus and misleading headlines like this one from Braitbart: "Obama Launches Campaign in Empty Arena"

Hmm, since when does 14,000 people make for an "empty stadium"?

reply to post by Blackmarketeer


If someone bothered to read the op those articles were linked the Columbus Dispatch and the Toledo Blade have nothing to do with Breibart other than being linked.

After all they are located in Ohio.

reply to post by Chadwickus


You seem to be putting a real effort into looking at this in the best possible light. I mean, back breaking effort. I'm not trying to say Romney's little pow-wow was a Rally. It's kinda sad...actually. Obama's was equally sad though when you consider the very different levels the two men exist at. One is a contender and luke warm at best...the other is a man even I'd go see if he came to town. It's not the man, it's the Office when it comes down to that....and even the Office couldn't pack 'em in on a weekend in Ohio?

C'mon... I admire how hard some people are working...but this really has nothing to do with Romney or anyone else. That's all red hearings in the end. It's got to do with the fact the President of the United States couldn't beat around 70% capacity on a Saturday night, right at the start when people aren't burned out from months of it yet. I don't care if it was Bush, Clinton or Carter ....70% for a sitting President is just sad under the circumstances.

@Neo

Mine was a Breitbart site. It's what the screaming headline mast on Drudge Report is linking to for the photo I wanted to share and properly source, They seem to think mine coming from a real hard right wing source makes all those other outlets secondary or something. I dunno....

reply to post by Wrabbit2000


Working hard?

Your insinuations are silly when you realise I'm not even American and have no bias either way here.

If adding a bit of impartiality is an issue for you, I apologise.

If it's any consolidation, I'm struggling to see how he managed 14,000 myself, he's certainly lost a LOT of support during his term.

reply to post by Wrabbit2000


Yeah i saw the drudge to and they are content with 14,000 people even tho Beck drew half a million

Turns out this "empty stadium" is yet another lie from Brietbart.com. The photos were taken before the rally began. Photos and video taken DURING the rally show a much fuller stadium.

LIE Of The Day By Drudge & Breitbart

Originally posted by Blackmarketeer
Mitt Romney at Ford Field:

He wishes he had 14,000 like Obama did at Ohio Stadium. Obama didn't fill the stadium bleachers, but 14,000 is a big crowd for a political rally.

(eidt - accidently posted rally photos from 2010, not 2012)

Breitbart.comm is just living in utter denial, desperately hoping no one will actual look at the attendance figures of the Ohio rallies, but all they're doing is highlighting just how pathetic Romney is in comparison to him. At least Ron Paul can hold his own, and he would certainly be the best GOP challenger for Obama in 2012. Romney? Won't even come close, unless the mainstream GOPpers (Rove, et.al.) resort to their usual bag of tricks.

edit on 6-5-2012 by Blackmarketeer because: (no reason given)

Ford Field is in Detroit.

Who in Detroit would go to a Romney event