On the Ground With Romney: "The Most Excitement We've Ever Seen in Our Life"

We're just out of the Morrisville, PA Mitt Romney rally. To say the least, the Mitt Romney campaign is utterly energized.  I was impressed and now fully believe that Pennsylvania is completely in play.

We set sail early in the morning, before nine in the morning.  We drove for over four hours from New York, through New Jersey, and on to Pennsylvania.  Before going straight to the rally, we headed to a local victory campaign center and were given some campaign fliers.  We then proceeded to go to a local mall and distributed several hundred palm cards.

The organization in Pennslyvania was better than I expected, though at times the Romney signs were lacking. What certainly was not lacking was the rally we attended and the palpable enthusiasm for Mr. Romney.

The event was to start at 5:30, but we decided to go a few hours early at 2:30.  10,000 people were expected, but already several thousand people were there when we arrived.  We parked on a large, grass lot and were bused over to the main site.  On arrival, we had to stand in line for about two hours.  The going was, to say the least, a slog.  There were thousands of people standing in line in sub-freezing temperatures just to get in.

We bought a few pins along the way.  We saw maybe a dozen people selling merchandise, from shirts, to pins, to a book depicting the 2012 campaign as the Cat in the Hat (we didn't buy, it was much too expensive).  Here's a picture on the outskirts of the rally:

So we go through long lines and go through metal detectors run by the TSA (yes, that TSA).  Here's a pic once we arrived to the stage that they were getting ready:

Thousands of people crowded towards the stage.  The stands were packed, the ground was packed.  It was standing room only times five.  As videos were played on the big screen or pre-Romney speakers took the stage, the massive rally cried out in deafening applause, shouts, or boos depending on the situation.

It took a while for Romney to arrive.  Speakers spoke for a bit longer, drawing out their excoriations of President Obama, while at times directly making light of the wait.  But eventually Mr. Romney took the stage to uproarious applause.  I've never seen a crowd of people hang on every word of a man before.  And that "10,000" number that was expected?  I do not think it was a stretch to say that the rally drew tens of thousands more than that.  I'd estimate the size at somewhere around 30,000 strong.

Romney Takes the Stage

It was a tremendous gathering.  We came about 20 feet from Governor Romney, who spent a dozen minutes shaking hands and talking to people.

As we left, we struck up a conversation with a local couple who attended the rally.  When asked about what they think will happen in Pennsylvania on election day, they stated bluntly, "We don't trust the polls.  Talking to people, seeing the signs... this is the most excitement we've ever seen for a candidate in our life."

After it was over, and we took twenty minutes getting out of the parking lot, we put up several signs around town.  We also treated ourselves to some pizza and frozen yogurt.

It was a tremendous day.  Pennsylvania is in play big time.  Support is at its zenith.  Go out and go vote.

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