…at the Liberty Memorial in Kansas City, Missouri. March 7, 2020.

A very different time. Just a month ago.

Previously:

Former Vice President Joe Biden (D) – campaign rally at the Liberty Memorial – Kansas City – March 7, 2020 (March 8, 2020)

Joe Biden (D) – Missouri Presidential Preference Primary (March 11, 2020)

Blue Girl, RBH and I met at a central location and took a bus to the northwest corner of the Liberty Memorial. As the two of them can attest, I complained incessantly about the long climb up the steps. Having attended the John Kerry rally at Union Station (nearby) in 2004 I wasn’t quite sure about what to expect when it came to the logistics of getting a large crowd to the site – and taking care of them once they were there waiting.

At around 2:00 p.m. we follow people up the steps.

The memorial from the north side.

The (relatively) early people in line. Looking toward Main Street.

While we waited for the press entrance to open we wandered over to the line of people waiting to get in.

The crowd was filled with people happy to be there.

I asked, “Why are you here?” “Because we’re voting for Obama.” “Obama’s the only one talking about education.” Obama said health care is a right. McCain said it was a privilege.” “I came all the way from Los Angeles – I’m UAW, retired.”

Just as the crowd started to enter.

It’s starting to fill in.

The faces of people waiting. I saw a few who sat down on the ground, and a few others who brought books to read while they waited.

People engaged in conversations with those around them while they waited.

A reporter from the local ABC affiliate interviewed people standing next to the press area. I believe he also got a few sound bites from RBH.

The space is getting filled.

A reporter from Brazil conducts an interview. Earlier, when we were standing on the “cut riser” (allowing photographers a side view of the speaker) the crowd was chanting “Yes we can!” She asked what they were saying. I pointed to the back of a t-shirt of someone in the crowd emblazoned with “Si, se puede!” The reporter nodded and smiled.

One of the large pallets of bottled water. A large number of volunteers aggressively distributed the water to the crowd.

It became apparent relatively earlier that there was a very large number of people waiting to get into the event. There were three of us in the press area (and already through security) from Show Me Progress. One of us needed to go back out and document the crowd. I drew the short straw (not really, due to a schedule conflict we all knew that I would be leaving before Obama spoke to the crowd).

Still in line.

As I got past the southern entrance I saw these massive lines of people still waiting patiently and in good humor. I called Blue Girl on her cell and described what I saw, liberally sprinkling in a “holy shit” here and there.

The line went up the hill…and back down the hill.

At the top of the hill I found the turn around point in the line. You can get a perspective on the distance by looking at the tower (to the right, beneath the tree).

On the way home I was stopped at the traffic signal at Linwood and Main. A police car pulled into the intersection and stopped traffic. I grabbed my camera and started taking pictures. As the motorcade passed through the intersection there was a cacophonous chorus of car horns from the vehicles stopped in traffic exuberantly greeting Obama.