Rocco Frievalt felt proud of the swift coordination efforts that brought Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich to the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh Friday, March 30.
In less than 24 hours, all of the logistics were coordinated to make the Gingrich appearance a reality, said Frievalt, chair of the UW Oshkosh College Republicans, who sponsored the visit.
“I’m very excited,” Frievalt said. “An on a personal level, what I get out of this the most is that I get to make a personal connection. I get to shake his hand and walk him in, and that’s pretty cool. Plus, we get to have him here in our town, in our backyard.”
Frievalt was not alone in supporting Gingrich at Kolf Sports Center Friday. About 200 people – faculty, staff, students and community members – came to hear the Republican hopeful. Gingrich touched on issues including the national debt, innovation in politics and the modernizing of Medicare and Medicaid.
“I think it’s especially important to have a candidate come to the University so you can learn what’s going on,” said Erin Clark, a junior studying journalism and political science.
Much of Gingrich’s speech centered on rising gas prices, something close to home for college students, as Frievalt acknowledged in his opening remarks. Gingrich asked for the students’ vote during his remarks and made a pledge that, if elected, he’d enact policies to ensure $2.50 per gallon gas prices.
Rebecca Olson, a sophomore nursing student, said she came to be better informed before Tuesday’s Wisconsin primary election.
“I thought I’d give him a chance to give his opinions before Tuesday,” Olson said.
Other students simply came for the experience.
“I’ve never been to a political rally before,” said Eryn Stefano, a sophomore studying nursing and Spanish.
“It’s nice to experience it and hear things I agree with,” said Stefano, before rushing off get in line to shake Gingrich’s hand following his speech.
Alumnus Robert Kircher, of Oshkosh, attended Friday’s rally and said he came to campus to see what Gingrich was all about.
“You can be manipulated and used if you aren’t familiar with the stats on the issues,” he said. “It’s good to be informed; knowledge is power.”
Kircher said he was also on-site for then-presidential-hopeful Barack Obama’s appearance at UW Oshkosh in 2008. He said he was happy to see how many students turned out for the Gingrich appearance but acknowledged the turnout was significantly smaller for Gingrich than for Obama.
After leaving UW Oshkosh on Friday, Gingrich headed to another rally in Green Bay.
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