ABC's Jake Tapper To David Axelrod: Are Voters Less Enthusiastic About Obama This Time Around?

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There's been a lot of talk about the 'enthusiasm gap' between President Obama and his Republican rival Mitt Romney. Conventional wisdom says that Obama can get voters excited and inspired in ways that Romney simply can't. But does the president have his own enthusiasm gap to deal with? On ABC's This Week today, Jake Tapper asked David Axelrod if Obama is still capable of drawing the same large crowds he did back in 2008.

RELATED: Bob Schieffer To Ron Paul: Minus Your People, I Don't See Much Enthusiasm With The GOP Field

Tapper brought up a recent event Obama held where the 18,000 seat arena was not filled to capacity and over 4,000 seats were vacant. He asked Axelrod if this was a sign that 'fewer people are excited for the president' in this election cycle. Axelrod said that at other campaign stops, they still have events that end up going over capacity. He also claimed that 14,000 people was the kind of crowd Romney could only wish he had at his campaign events.

Axelrod posited that Romney's negative attack strategy in the race so far is what's kept him from getting the kind of enthusiasm behind him that Obama does.

'His speeches now are entirely negative attacks on the president. He doesn't talk about his own record, doesn't really talk about his vision. That is not going to create enthusiasm.'

Watch the video below, courtesy of ABC:

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• The new york times referred to him as an 'aging rock star'.  Maybe that's the job he should be doing, cause he sucks as president.

• 'ABC's Jake Tapper To David Axelrod: Are Voters Less Enthusiastic About Obama This Time Around?'

  Yes, Jake, you'll get an honest answer from Obama's Brain ( Axelrod).

  Now for an opposing view, we bring on Chuck Schumer, Little Debbie and Jehmu Greene.

• The Schottenheim Center's own website states that for concert events the arena can seat  20k
  so unfilled seats more like 6k

• That's BS, Big Petty. The Panel included the insufferable, mouth-breathing, constantly interrupting Greta O'Van Susteren and the whiney, sniveling Bay Buchanan, both reading straight from RNC Talking Points. Methinks that thou didn't watch the show.

• Obama unfortunately this time around has lost his sheen.  He was the 'vote for change' but failed to do anything effectively after he was elected ' granted he had an up hill battle against an enormous debt left over by Bush administration and a minority in congress ' but he was like a race horse who tripped out of the starting gate with Healthcare being his main issue which was probably a tip of the hat to Hilliary fans who he almost lost the primary.  Big mistake coupled with many others and a failure to embrace the people who elected him in the first place ' not reforming things like Pack money'. lost this Independant's vote this time around.  We need jobs in this country

• Yes, and wash it down with a bit of Maher and the cherry on top will be silly little Chrissie ' old tingle boy himself.  

  p.s. fair shot, shake ' Axelrod is losing it! Even his hair refuses to obey. lol

• don't you think he could be a back up singer for Al Green?  Or, perhaps he's ready for the senior tour, except those guys are all republicans.  They figured out that without the work and effort there is no paycheck.  What a concept!