From Buzzfeed (article by McKay Coppins):
The plan was for supporters to bring hurricane relief supplies to the event, and then deliver the bags of canned goods, packages of diapers, and cases of water bottles to the candidate, who would be perched behind a table along with a slew of volunteers and his Ohio right-hand man, Senator Rob Portman. To complete the project and photo-op, Romney would lead his crew in carrying the goods out of the gymnasium and into the Penske rental truck parked outside.
But the last-minute nature of the call for donations left some in the campaign concerned that they would end up with an empty truck. So the night before the event, campaign aides went to a local Wal Mart and spent $5,000 on granola bars, canned food, and diapers to put on display while they waited for donations to come in, according to one staffer. (The campaign confirmed that it "did donate supplies to the relief effort," but would not specify how much it spent.)
(...)
As supporters lined up to greet the candidate, a young volunteer in a Romney/Ryan t-shirt stood near the tables, his hands cupped around his mouth, shouting, "You need a donation to get in line!"
Empty-handed supporters pled for entrance, with one woman asking, "What if we dropped off our donations up front?"
The volunteer gestured toward a pile of groceries conveniently stacked near the candidate. "Just grab something," he said.
http://www.buzzfeed.com/...
h/t to evale72 for the tweet: https://twitter.com/...
For some reason I am reminded of Sarah Palin's wardrobe spending spree. The stench of desperation is overwhelming.
Update 1:
The Atlantic now has this story, too:
http://www.theatlanticwire.com/...
Update 2:
Photos of Romney supporters staging the Wal-Mart goods -- h/t 904Dem (PHOTO BY LISA POWELL):
.....(STAFF PHOTO BY CHRIS STEWART)
.....
.....