Members of President Barack Obama’s crack security staff like Colombian hookers – a lot — but they proved on Wednesday they are afraid of a few College Republicans.
At a recreation center at the University of Central Missouri, security personnel refused to admit 10 members of the College Republicans to a speech by the president on economic policy, The College Fix reports.
All 10 students reportedly had tickets to the event.
Staffers told Courtney Scott, the group’s state treasurer, and the rest of the College Republicans that the decision somehow wasn’t about the group’s political views, but about the president’s security.
The problem seemed to be that some of the students were wearing shirts emblazoned with tea party slogans, Republican symbols and even patriotic motifs. They had also had done the protest thing earlier in the day with some signs. The group members said they had long put away their signs by the time they were at the gate for Obama’s 5:30 p.m.
Nevertheless, the contingent of the Show-Me State’s College Republicans was prevented from seeing the president speak — but not for their political views, you understand.
“It just didn’t make any sense,” Scott told The Fix. “A lot of us traveled several hours to watch the speech. We were very disappointed not to be able to attend.”
Some 2,500 other people who were not deemed security threats were allowed to see Obama’s latest speech about the perpetually sluggish economy.
The earlier protest had been part of a larger, completely standard demonstration in a “public speech area” on the Warrensburg campus. It was far enough from the rec center that no one waiting in line could see or hear it. Signs included messages endorsing capitalism and lamenting the growing problem of student-loan debt.