America wakes up to Boca Raton
by Palm Beach Post Staff | October 22nd, 2012By Eliot Kleinberg, Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
BOCA RATON — America woke up to Mizner Park.
Or, at least, viewers of “Morning Joe,” the popular MSNBC news and talk program featuring former U.S. Congressman Joe Scarborough.
Monday morning’s show, at Rack’s Tavern, lit the darkened shopping center with its big lights — all except the part of the center already lit, at the north end, where thousands are expected tonight for a watch party, to view a giant screen showing the fourth and final presidential debate, live from Boca’s Lynn University.
Lous Biello of Boynton Beach and Shellee Trossman of Davie — both “avid fans of the show,” Lois said — said they were thrilled that the eyes of America are on Boca Raton for tonight’s climactic faceoff.
People watch as MSNBC's "Morning Joe" tapes from Rack's Tavern in Mizner Park in Boca Raton.
Biello, coincidentally, is a graduate of Hofstra University, the Long Island school that hosted last week’s debate.
While many in the crowd shouted, “Obama, Obama,” — Scarborough’s Republican but the rest of the network’s talk shows lean left — Fran O’Keefe of Boynton Beach stood quietly, his “Romney” T-shirt speaking for him.
“I watch every time,” O’Keefe said, “He was actually my favorite Congressman, but he aggravates the hell out of me sometimes when he doesn’t push back hard enough.”
There were the usual people with signs — in this case folks complaining that none of the debates so far mentioned the plight of the homeless or people with HIV.
“Make HIV an issue! Say something on the show!” one man shouted as Scarborough and co-host Mika Brzezinski worked the crowd during a break.
Jim and Donna McGreal of Hamilton, Ontario, who winter in Fort Myers, were watching the whole thing like Yankees fans at a Marlins-Braves game.
“In Canada, signs are popular,” Jim said. “You have mostly TV advertisements.”
He bemoaned the nastiness of the U.S. campaign but said with almost a sigh that it’s sometimes nasty north of the border as well.
Phyllis Martini of Delray Beach peeks through the windows of Rack's Tavern at Mizner Park during a live broadcast of the MSNBC program "Morning Joe." (Eliot Kleinberg)
“There just seems to be so much disrespect for the individual,” he said. “Anybody that runs for public office should be honored. Not ridiculed.”
Florida, always a make-or-break state in presidential elections, “has been the center of politics for a long time,” NBC political analyst Mark Halperin said as he walked through the tables. “It’s nice to see people engaged.”
Palm Beach County Commissioner Steve Abrams was running for Boca Raton mayor in November 2000, the last time Palm Beach County was the center of the political universe — for all the wrong reasons.
He says he still bristles at the jokes about dumb Floridians following the monthlong presidential recount; ridicule he says was completely unfounded. He had visited Lynn Monday morning and declared the debate venue flawlessly prepared.
“If there’s going to be a gaffe tonight,” he said. “It’s going to have to be one of the candidates.”
October 22nd, 2012 at 8:59 am
Watch the movie 2016!
October 22nd, 2012 at 9:42 am
Can’t wait for latinos to overtake the condos in Broward and Palm Beach County.
It’s lack of reproduction that is the demise of the jewish community.
October 22nd, 2012 at 10:01 am
Did the PBSO ever solve those Boca Mall Murders?
Of course not.
Too busy gunning down unarmed property owners.
October 22nd, 2012 at 10:11 am
Right, Maximus, watch 2016………..It is the best piece of propaganda since the 1940s. The Nazis would be proud.
October 22nd, 2012 at 10:23 am
Wow V, comparing Barack to Adolf Hitler, very interesting, but remember, you said it!
October 22nd, 2012 at 11:48 am
If by some miracle you were in charge of the State Department and the 9/11 anniversary was approaching and you had personnel placed in dangerous countries in an unstable region of the world,
WOULDN’T YOU MAKE SURE THE SECURITY WAS HEIGHTENED?
and especially if in prior weeks attacks and bombings were taking place.
WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE DONE DURING THE 9/11 ANNIVERSARY?
October 22nd, 2012 at 12:17 pm
Maximus – Looks like either 1- you need a lesson in reading comprehension or 2-You need to look up the word “propaganda” and apply it properly.
Just for clarification, since you may not be able to do either of my suggestions due to your limited mental capacity, the comparison was you to a brown shirted Nazi thig. Not Obama to Hitler.
But, then again, you fit the tea-thuglican profile prfectly. Not too brigt, not to knowlegeable and gullible to the extreme.
October 27th, 2012 at 11:24 pm
This past week, Trump offered to give $5 million to a charity of Obama’s choice if he releases his college and passport records. Obama responded by telling his own joke about him and Trump fighting while growing up in Kenya. http://www.bit.ly/WRFiT5