Out of Hope, Ready for Change': Obama Falls a 'Little Flat' at Pricey Denver Fundraiser Where 150 Failed to Show

On Wednesday, President Obama visited Denver to speak to the graduating class at the Air Force Academy and attend a fundraiser. His appearance at the latter could explain why he needs to wow at the former. What do I mean? According to a pool report, the fundraiser was "a little flat," meaning Obama may need to rely on his ability to reach college students to secure victory in the fall.

"The crowd was obviously supportive and glad to see him, though the room at times felt a little flat and Potus seemed a little tired after a long day that’s not even close to being over," pool reporter Peter Baker of the New York Times wrote, according to The Weekly Standard.

On top of being "a little flat," the fundraiser was also a little sparse, at least according to expectations. The Weekly Standard explains:

Moreover, the campaign announced that the president "[would] headline a reception for 700 at the Hyatt Regency Denver at the Colorado Convention Center. General admission tickets started at $500 apiece, though a selected number of Gen44 and Grassroots tickets were available for $250."

The campaign now says, according to the pooler, that only 550 people showed up

And that's all in addition to the protesters who showed up with signs such as “Out of Hope, Ready for Change,” “Debt Slavery,” “Obama’s Blvd. of Broken Promises” and “Bye Bye on Nov. 6th.” The pool report doesn't say if the protesters were disenchanted former Obama supporters or longtime Obama detractors.

The Denver Post, however, quotes a state Republican operative outside the fundraiser. That operative outside was frowning upon what Obama said inside:

"(Romney's) working assumption is (if) CEOs and wealthy investors like him get rich, then the rest of us automatically will too," Obama told the crowd of about 550 people gathered at the Hyatt Regency Denver at Colorado Convention Center. "What Gov. Romney doesn't seem to get is that a healthy economy doesn't just mean a few folks maximizing their profits through massive layoffs or busting unions."

By the way, you can check out portions of Obama's speech at the Academy and see how he did (and celebrate the men and women who are serving our country):