On eve of primary, Sanders returns to less-than-capacity crowds in South Carolina

[MADem]

...There were far more empty seats than filled ones in the gym at Claflin University, a historically black school in Orangeburg, and only a modest-sized crowd gathered on the floor in front of the stage. The campaign said local police estimated attendance at 450 people, but counts by several reporters were about half that.

Sanders is widely expected to lose South Carolina to Hillary Clinton, probably by double digits, and he has seemed eager to move on. He arrived back in the Palmetto State after a whirlwind tour of mostly Midwestern states with contests in March, drawing crowds by the thousands.

In a 26-minute speech -- about half the usual length of his remarks -- Sanders made no bold predictions of an upset but instead talked about how far he had come since entering the race nine months ago....After an shaking hands and posing photos, his entourage headed to a nearby oyster roast and fish fry to benefit Orangeburg County Solicitor David Pascoe. Sanders’s bus pulled in just as Clinton was finishing remarks to the same crowd.

Sanders’s last stop of the evening was at a concert and rally here in Columbia, where a boisterous crowd was waiting -- but a crowd that filled only a fraction of the 2,500-seat auditorium the campaign had reserved for the event....

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2016/02/26/on-eve-of-primary-sanders-returns-to-less-than-capacity-crowds-in-south-carolina/

[bunnies]

1. Maybe he should just stick to rich peoples living rooms like Hillary.

Riff Raff trespassers still get through though. Peons! When will they learn?!

[MADem]

4. She does town halls all the time. And she takes questions, she doesn't give

a speech and leave.

[bunnies]

5. Give me a break.

Ive spoken to Senator Sanders many times after events. If you (living in MA) havent, its because you didnt bother to drive an hour north.

[MADem]

7. Gee, they never show you talking to him on TV.

Every town hall I've seen HRC do, it's broadcast on CSPAN, and we actually see regular people asking questions and getting answers. In fact, that's pretty much the way all the events go--a few brief introductory words, and then it's question time.

[bunnies]

8. The first time I saw Bernie was in September of 2014.

At the Strafford (NH) Democrats annual dinner. I have the whole thing recorded on my phone. You really thing CSPAN is scouring local NH discussions for Q&A time? At the same time, there have been no Q&As at any of the times Ive seen Hillary. But what do I know. Presidential candidates NEVER come to NH.

[MADem]

9. You are missing my point.

My point is this--there is no need to "scour" any "discussions" if you're looking for footage of Clinton taking questions from everyday Americans.

That's how Clinton does Every Single Appearance. She does a load of Q and A. It's not canned--it's extemporaneous, every single time.

[MadDAsHell]

2. Wow, what's the point of even estimating crowd size if police and reporters can be that different?

A difference of 100%?

[MADem]

3. The campaign said that the police said....

There's no direct report from the police.

[Gregorian]

6. Friday night on a campus. I'm surprised anyone was there.

[MADem]

11. He's brought them out on a Friday night in other venues.

It's not like he spoke late into the evening, either--you go to the rally as a warm up, then hit the party train. In fact, after he finished his brief remarks there, he had another engagement.

I'm afraid signs point to the fact that that school wasn't feeling the Bern, especially.

[NurseJackie]

10. The writing is on the wall.

[MADem]

12. In SC, it sure looks that way. It's still a long path, though! nt