We all know how carefully staged and scripted Bush campaign events have become. Even the boneheaded mainstream media folks have picked up the obvious news that Bush staffers don't allow just
anyone into Bush rallies (see, for example, USA Today's
Bush's 'talk show' always has appreciative audience.
And then I heard a very interesting audio clip on NPR the other day....
The intent of the Don Gonyea piece,
Tickets to See Bush Rest on Loyalty, was more of the same, i.e. that folks who get to go to the rallies are carefully screened and ticketed:
Gonyea: If you want to see the President of the United States out on the campaign trail this year, don't expect to just show up to the event a few hours in advance, walk thru the metal detectors and get right in.
[unnamed event organizer]: All right, please come forward with your ticket and ID out.
Gonyea: That's right, you will absolutely need a ticket. This is Davenport, Iowa, last week.
Gonyea interviews, for example, a Democrat who was denied entrance because he would not state that he supported Bush's policies.
By far, though, the most interesting part of the clip starts at about time index 0.36 (36 seconds into the 3:56 clip):
[unnamed crowd warmer upper]: On the count of three. One, two, three.
[crowd, practicing in unison]: Four more years.
[unnamed crowd warmer upper]: Come on...
[crowd, practicing again]: Four more years!
[unnamed crowd warmer upper]: A little faster...
[crowd, faster]: Four more years!
[unnamed crowd warmer upper]: All right!
Gonyea doesn't comment on this audio clip, but to me it was by far the most powerful part of the whole story.
Good GOD. I have been to a few political rallies in my time. I have never been directed to practice chanting before the arrival of the political figure whom I am supposed to be spontaneously supporting. What's next, applause signs? (Hell, they might already have 'em. I'll never know; you can bet I'll never get a ticket to one of these events.)
If Dems could get video feed of such crowd practice, wouldn't this be a powerful media image? I mean, for God's sake, the man is the President, and his supporters have to practice chanting before he arrives, so that they will sound good enough, fast enough, enthusiastic enough, for the 4-second clip on the news.