Less than two years into his presidency and just 6 years after his first appearance on the national stage, President Barack Obama has obviously lost his rock-star status. Gone are the days of tens of thousands of cheering fans in front of a stage adorned with regal Greek columns. In their place, the recreation center at Cuyahoga Community College near Cleveland, Ohio where students had to be recruited at the last minute to fill empty seats in the audience.

Continued...

According to a report in the Cleveland Plain Dealer, with less than an hour before President Obama's scheduled speech on the economy, 75 seats remained empty so organizers went around campus and recruited more students to fill the seats. (source)

Aside from the students provided as last minute props, the small audience was comprised mainly of Obama supporters such as Jim Meeker, his wife and two small children. Mr. Meeker, a 39 year old sociology student at Cleveland State University was active in Obama's campaign and has volunteered more than 500 hours for the Cuyahoga County Democratic Party thus earning him, his wife and their two small children the right to sit in the bleachers behind the president during his speech. (source)

Last minute seat fillers and campaign volunteers and their families; hardly a cross section of the American public and a far cry from the throngs who fell for the all that hope and change rhetoric in 2008.