Obama Launches Campaign In Nearly Empty Arena

Barack Obama launched his campaign in unspectacular vogue today at Ohio State University, the largest college in the important swing state. A photograph 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 Dispatchreports 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.

---

Sources and more information:

• Lackluster crowds for Obama campaign events

Saturday was the first official day of campaign speeches for President Obama. He spoke to Ohio State University students before traveling to Virginia for an event. One of the things that made his 2008 campaign so successful was the enormity of each crowd he spoke to. If today is an indication, those attendance numbers will drop significantly this…

• Hump Day Report: Alert the Media! Obama Begins Campaign

• Remember those huge crowds Obama drew in 2008?

• Obama Shifts To Campaign Mode