Four years ago today, 'hundreds of thousands' of Glenn Beck fans met in Washington, D.C., for 'Restoring Honor

It was a monumental undertaking.

Nobody knew if it was going to be a huge success or a massive failure.

The event was Glenn Beck's "Restoring Honor" rally on the mall in Washington, D.C., on August 28, 2010.

As you can tell by the photograph below, the entire area surrounding the reflecting pool between the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial was packed with people.

Image: George Lange/Lange Studio

The mainstream media could not agree on just how many people were there. One of the very first posts on TheBlaze.com highlighted the mass media's inability to agree on how big of a crowd had assembled.

Newspapers across the country were also confused about how to report the size of the crowd.

Image: TheBlaze.com

In the end, CBS News "low-balled" the number, stating that they estimated the crowd to be under 80,000. ABC News frequently referred to the size of the crowd using the term "hundreds of thousands."

How big was the rally? It was large enough for NBC's Brian Williams to ask President Obama about it (Spoiler alert - he did not watch it):

The Huffington Post covered "Restoring Honor" by mocking the attendees and calling those wearing flag motifs, "ridiculous."

Typically, gigantic events in Washington, D.C., require more than a year to plan and execute. This one was put together in just under eight months time. In other words, it was conceived, developed, scheduled and executed at a pace that had everyone's nerves frazzled.

Image: George Lange/Lange StudioGlenn Beck with the Black Robe Regiment standing arm-in-arm

In addition to the planning, the park permitting process, securing the needed technology -- from video screens to port-a-potties -- and getting virtually every Beck employee to Washington to help run the operation, there was still one element that was out of everyone's control -- the weather.

Fortunately, August 28, 2010, was a glorious, sun-filled day. "Restoring Honor" was a success in terms of attendance and the execution of the program. There were also associated fundraising events that helped wounded vets.

And when the rally was finished and the last person left the mall, it was said by park rangers that the space was left cleaner than when we arrived.

This writer attended the "Restoring Honor" rally on 8-28-2010. At the time, I was unemployed and still six months away from working for TheBlaze. 

Hosting today's "Pat and Stu Show" on TheBlaze TV gave me the opportunity to relive some of the many powerful moments from 8-28, as well as speak with a few of the friends who called into the show to share their memories.

Watch the segment from today's episode of "The Pat and Stu Show," courtesy of TheBlaze TV:

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