How many teabaggers packed into the Milwaukee lakefront yesterday? The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says several thousand. As noted yesterday, Dad29 pegs it at at least 3,000 to 5,000. National treasure and insubordinate ex-cop Glenn Frankovis, channeling AFP honcho Mark Block allegedly channeling the Sheriff's Department, puts it higher (via Badger Blogger):
I just received word from Mark Block (AFP) that the Sheriff’s Dept. estimated the crowd size at 15,000. Not too shabby.
Haven't seen this number publicly reported (may have missed it). Interesting, if true. Was David Clarke, who spoke at the event, giving the estimate?
As mentioned yesterday, the Brawler left the festivities just as they kicked off yesterday. This was the shot of the crowd I took from the Mason Street ramp off Lincoln Memorial at approximately 2:40.
I'd believe that this crowd, which I inexactly estimated as high as north of 1,000 (an inexact but in line with Dad29) grew over the course of the event. But did it grow ten times in size? Anyway, we can trust Charlie Sykes will say the number was MORE THAN 15,000. Or maybe he'll go with Illusory Tenant's estimate of 2 million.
JUST IN! AFP doubles down on more than 15,000! TMJ reports that organizers estimate attendance at 3,000 to 10,000! Close enough for wingnut math!
This guy pegs the crowd at 10,000, citing this picture:
That's not 10,000 people.
If the words "15,000 at tea party" sound familiar, they should. That was the number cited by organizers of an Atlanta tea party, a number picked up by the media and widely reported -- and then determined to be physically impossible.
As noted in the Galloway article, a man typically takes up 4 square feet, women a bit more because they on average have wider hips. A good number of people at the rally brought chairs, meaning they would take up even more space. So a crowd of 10,000 would take up more than 40,000 feet; a crowd of 15,000 would fill up more than 60,000 square feet. Unless the AFP can demonstrate how they did that -- what was the allotted space, anyway -- I think the estimate of 3,000 to 5,000 (i.e. several thousand) sounds about right.
JUST IN! Obama attracted a crowd of 15,000 when he spoke at the Minneapolis Target Center. Here's a sense of what a crowd that size looks like (and obviously the photo doesn't capture the full crowd).
(h/t Minnesota Prairie Roots)
I didn't see a crowd approaching this size or density when I left, as the festivities began with people reading the Bill of Rights. Maybe the AFP parachuted them in after I left. A crowd of several thousand people is nothing to be unhappy about. No, it doesn't suggest that there's any sort of mass uprising against Obama. I don't see the point in the AFP trying to delude people.
JUST IN! Hilarious. AFP says more than 15,000 ... MacIver claims more than 10,000!
MacIver claims it could not find a high enough vantage point to capture the entire crowd ... which causes the Brawler to question their thinking ability, given even he was able to do it (see above). MacIver did provide photos shot at areas of high density. This looks like a huge crowd, right?
Compare to a pic the Brawler took when while the front was relatively dense, there was plenty of elbow room in the rear.
JUST IN! At a rally that counted County Exec Scott Walker and Sheriff David Clarke as speakers, the Sheriff's Department estimates the crowd at 8,000 to 10,000. So some 7,000 to 8,000 people showed up fashionably late. Then who told AFP's Mark Block it was 15,000?
Great minds....
Posted by: dad29 | September 20, 2009 at 09:25 AM
Who told Mark Block? The voices.
Posted by: John Foust | September 21, 2009 at 11:35 AM