What was amazing to me was the size of the crowd that showed up to see this. Bender holds about 6,000 for an event like this, and I'd guess that at least twice that many people were left standing in line when Bender reached capacity. Here are some pictures of the people who never made it inside.
There were a lot of young people, to be sure, but it was really a very diverse group. I saw many older people who were playing hooky from work as well as children who were being kept out of school for a chance to see Obama. Obama and Kennedy came out to talk briefly to those who didn't make it inside. We had front row seats outside, even if we were a bit chilly.
Given that this contest should go on for quite some time, I'd guess that the Washington, DC area will be a popular destination for Democratic and Republican candidates alike in the week following February 5th (Maryland, Virginia, and D.C. all hold their primaries on February 12th).
CORRECTION: The Washington Post is reporting that only about 3,500 were allowed in Bender, as it was not set up for a capacity crowd.
UPDATE: I just used Google maps to calculate that the line to get into the Obama event was over a half mile long.
2 comments:
I've been cursing my new, "real" job all day - of course, the minute I leave AU, Obama comes to campus. I'm sure it was a fun day at CCPS.
Brian,
Your blog is terrific. Thanks.
Jim Thurber
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