Courting The Heartland

They may not possess the continental panache of those 200,000 Berliners who shouted their worshipful adoration for The Chosen One two weeks ago, but these guys and gals - though less cultured - vote:

Party On, McCain: Senator Campaigns at Sturgis Motorcycle Rally
By Elizabeth Holmes, The Wall Street Journal

On a scale of one to out-of-control, Republican rallies tend to fall somewhere around a three. They hold events in the middle of the day in the middle of a town and attract a crowd with plenty of white hair and khaki pants.

But not Monday. John McCain appeared yesterday evening with bikini-clad women donning leather chaps and roaming an open field littered with beer cans. Men wearing tank tops, ripped jeans and biker boots stood next to their Harleys and revved their engines—literally—when they saw something they liked.

The Republican presidential candidate went to the Buffalo Chips campground, part of the eight-day Sturgis Motorcycle Rally located about an hour outside of Rapid City on the far western border of the state.

McCain yelled. “As you may know, not long ago a couple a hundred thousand Berliners made a lot of noise for my opponent. I’ll take the roar of 50,000 Harleys any day! Any day, my friend!” The rowdy crowd went wild, cheering their support for the candidate. (link)

Whether that rowdy crowd will turn out in November and vote is a question to be answered. Still, a Toby Keith moment plays well here in fly-over country. Good move.