Lackluster: Obama Fundraising Event in Chicago Sparsely Attended

Lackluster: Obama Fundraising Event in Chicago Sparsely Attended
Tony Lee

The Obama campaign cannot win reelection if his base is not excited. At a fundraiser for young professionals in his hometown of Chicago on Sunday, reports indicated that the attendance was less than impressive.

New York Times reporter Jodi Kantor tweeted that admission to the event was “only $51” but the room was just “half full.” Her tweet got splashed on the Drudge Report, and the Obama campaign scrambled to respond. Kantor subsequently tweeted that just some of the tickets were $51, and that the campaign told her the event was actually sold out. Kantor then tweeted that even though the campaign claimed the event was sold out, the room was just half full. 

Kantor tweeted: “Hmmm.” 

Kantor was denied access by the Obama administration when writing a book about Barack and Michelle Obama’s marriage, and the Obama administration attacked the book before the book hit the bookshelves. Perhaps this has made Kantor into more of an objective reporter. Or perhaps the Obama campaign will say that they purposely limited access to this event, which is the excuse they have been making for their small crowd sizes.

Mitt Romney, after picking Paul Ryan as his running mate, has seen record crowds this weekend and the campaign raised $3.5 million in the first 24 hours after Ryan was selected. These numbers are similar to the enthusiasm Sarah Palin saw, when she helped John McCain raise $7 million in the first 24 hours after her selection. Ryan will help move Romney towards the campaign’s fundraising goals sooner. The Romney campaign is on pace to have more money in the bank than a sitting president during the last two months of the campaign. Kantor’s series of tweets can be seen below. 

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