Counting Supporters

by Dick Mac

Senator Bernie Sanders and Secretary Hillary Clinton are battling for the Democratic nomination to run for President in 2016.

There are complaints from the Sanders camp that the mainstream media very much diminishes his campaign.  Clinton supporters insist that this has never been true.

I think Sanders supporters are correct, but I have never heard or read anything that would definitively point to this.

Until this morning.

WNYC aired a story that discussed the day-after events of the two Democratic candidates.

Clinton's day was described as including a rally at the Javits Center that attracted "thousands of supporters," and a benefit at Radio City Music Hall, starring Elton John, that attracted 6,000.

Sanders Michigan rally was described as being held in a "college basketball arena" and no numbers were proffered.

The report successfully made it sound as if Clinton had many, many thousands of people at her event; and that Sanders had a room full of college students.

Then you can do the math.

The college basketball arena at which the Sanders rally was held is the Breslin Student Events Center that holds 16,280 people.  It was full.

Clinton had a guaranteed 6,000 at Radio City to see Elton John, but it seems her "thousands" of supporters at Javits Center were really (according to her campaign) 5,000.  One can safely assume that the number was inflated and she probably had about 2,500 people at that rally.  Crowd estimate mathematics as a science is always used to fabricate a number that suits the purpose of the announcer.  Another interesting fact is that at least one union leader promised comp time to any member who attended the Clinton rally, ostensibly paying tradesmen to attend.

If we use her "officially" announced numbers, this puts Clinton's followers at two events totaling (generously) about 11,000 in her "home state."

Sanders attendance had no official announcement, but multiple reports state that the Breslin Center was filled and that puts the count of supporters at 16,000.

Clinton (and Elton John) attracted thousands of supporters, while little was said about the Sanders event at the quaint little student basketball arena.

This is exactly what Sanders people mean when they say the mainstream media does not cover the Sanders campaign.

On a closing note, in his speech at the Clinton event, Democrat-for-hire, Governor Andrew Cuomo, did a wonderful, mocking impersonation of Donald Trump (he's still political detritus, but this is funny):