Last updated on February 8th, 2013 at 01:51 am
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While President Obama was mobilizing a large and loud crowd of thousands of supporters in Wisconsin, Mitt Romney was fundraising off of a crowd of 650 in California.
Here is how Fox 11 described the Obama rally in Wisconsin last night, “Then the President continued his attack on the GOP ticket in front of an estimated 18,000 people at the Summerfest grounds along the lakeshore.”
While Obama was rocking the crowd in Wisconsin, Mitt Romney was off trying to raise money for his cash poor campaign. According to the AP, “Speaking to roughly 650 supporters gathered at Grand Del Mar, a luxury hotel north of San Diego, Romney said his campaign schedule has been hectic. I’m not even going to be able to go home today,” he said of his second home in nearby La Jolla. “We’re just coming to town to see you and keep the campaign going. It’s nonstop.”
Obama spent his day talking to tens of thousands of supporters, while Romney was complaining about not being able to visit his second home at a fundraiser. The right is outraged and claiming that there is no way that 18,000 people came out to hear Obama. They are accusing the media of pushing Obama propaganda. They believe that the real attendance at the event was 5,000. They offer no proof to back up their claims, but for the sake of argument, let’s assume Obama’s attendance was 5,000-10,000. Does it really make a difference?
Instead of Romney being outdrawn 30 to 1 on Saturday, he would have been only drawn only by maybe 10 or 20 to 1. Those still aren’t good numbers. If this pattern occurred on Election Day, Romney would lose in landslide.
Video taken by those who attended the rally suggests that the Obama event was large, and very loud.
The right wing talking point that nobody is showing up for Obama events is a part of their broader election strategy. The whole point is to make Obama appear to be as unpopular as Romney. Everyone knows Mitt Romney can’t draw a crowd. Romney was speaking to crowds in the hundreds when he was campaigning for the nomination, and he is still speaking to hundreds of supporters as the Republican nominee. The Romney campaign has been holding their events in smaller and smaller venues in order to create the appearance of a packed house. The truth is that the Romney campaign has tried everything including giving things away in order to entice people to see him speak.
In contrast, Democrats have been coming out in big numbers for Obama’s rallies. Polling shows that Democrats are more enthusiastic than Republicans, and the data passes the eyeball test when one observes the difference in the two campaigns’ live events. Republicans have been reduced to denying reality, so it is time for a little straight talk.
Before Saturday the Republican talking point was that Obama was worried about Wisconsin, but this is the same strategy that Obama used on McCain in 2008. If Republicans want to ignore the polls and waste time campaign in Wisconsin, Obama will be happy to spend his time campaigning in Virginia, Florida, and North Carolina. Wisconsin is fool’s gold for the Romney/Ryan ticket. Seventeen percent of those who voted against recalling Scott Walker plan to support Obama in November.
All you really need to know about the state of this contest as it currently stands is that while Romney is out begging for cash, Obama is concentrating on getting his base out. If all people who are attending Obama’s rallies show up at the polls, the president will win a second term.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
