Protesters Promise to Create Circus Atmosphere at Ringling Rally

Hours before Gov. Mitt Romney arrived at the Ringling Museum for a rally for his bid for president, the protesters were lining up at U.S. 41 and the entrance of the Museum.

The protesters ranged from New College Students, Occupy Sarasota, Obama Supporters and members of MoveOn.Org. Their mascot, a huge Mitt Romney puppet dubbed RMoney, King of the 1%.

As the Romney supporters lined up in front of the Ringling Museum, the protesters came marching toward them with the RMoney puppet in the lead. They shouted to the Romney supporters "Bow to Your King!"

Romney supporters sang God Bless America and America the Beautiful as protesters shouted that Romney only represents the rich.

The protesters were fueled by Romney's recent comments in Palm Beach that he was interested in trying to court the 47 percent of voters who don't pay taxes.

MoveOn.Org paid for a plane that flew overhead at the Ringling Museum with a banner that read "Romney See Any 47 percent victims at the Ritz?" referring to his scheduled fundraiser at Sarasota's Ritz-Carlton before the free rally.

Obama Supporters sent out a press release calling for Romney's apology and promising to protest en masse. The press release went on to say:

...as Mitt Romney arrives in Sarasota, local residents will speak out against Romney’s insulting comments to explain why he isn’t fit to be President and his hopeless Medicare voucher plan just won’t cut it. 

It’s hard to be president of all the people when you write off half of them. The vast majority of these Americans pay a significant percentage of their income in taxes, and they pay an even a higher share of their income in these taxes than wealthier families like Mitt Romney’s. Well over half – 61 percent – are workers who actually pay federal payroll taxes, which can include military families, cops, firefighters and teachers. And in 2011, these families included nearly 20 million seniors, more than half of all seniors in America.

A group calling themselves Concerned Members of the 99% said:

Mitt Romney has shown time and again that, if elected, he would represent the 1% and big corporations over the working class people in the 99%. He would give more tax breaks to millionaires and billionaires while cutting services for everyone else. He would gut corporate regulations and cut corporate tax rates, allowing corporations to profit even more at the expense of the rest of us.

While protesters began gathering before noon, they planned to roll out a red carpet and bring out RMoney at 1 p.m. The protesters planned to stick close to U.S. 41 where they planned to wave signs along the heavily trafficked road.