Sanders drowned out at speech with campaign’s own noisemakers

By Megan Messerly

Thursday, Jan. 7, 2016 | 3:31 p.m.

The Battle Born/Battleground Dinner hosted by Nevada Democrats at the MGM Grand on Wednesday night appeared to be a bit of a struggle for Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, caught between appreciation for his boisterous supporters and struggling to be heard over them.

The problem? While former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s camp played to the eyes with neon blue glow sticks, Sanders’ campaign went for the ears, passing out red air horns and yellow vuvuzelas. (The horns earned international infamy during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.)

The problem for Sanders was that not only did supporters eagerly use their noisemakers before — and during — the event but also in the middle of the Democratic presidential candidate's speech.

When Sanders took the stage, there was a chorus of high-pitched squeals from the air horns mixed with deep blasts from the vuvuzelas — a cacophony that continued for several moments as Sanders tried to begin his speech.

“Let me begin, let me begin,” Sanders started over the din of his supporters.

Where typical stump speeches are accented by choruses of applause and cheers, Sanders’ talk was peppered with the blasts from the noisemakers that often continued even when he tried to start talking again.

First, he tried deadpan, telling his supporters, “That music is really beautiful.”

When they didn’t get his sarcasm, he held up the palm of his hand at them — one, twice, three times. No luck.

By the end of the speech, an audibly hoarse Sanders put his finger to his lips and went “shhh” — with little impact.

After the event, Sanders’ supporters seemed oblivious at the trouble they caused and thought they did a good job of showing their support.

Three members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers tooted their horns in support of Sanders. One of them, Brian Craig, acknowledged that the noise made it a little difficult for Sanders to get through his speech.

“I get it. He doesn’t really want us to make noise. He wants to get his information out there,” Craig said, adding that he thought Sanders “holds what’s true for the American man and the American people.”

Brandon Willis, another supporter wearing a “Bernie 2016” sticker on his shirt and holding a red air horn, thought Sanders putting up his hand to quiet the crowd was a fun routine.

“It was basically him telling us to quiet down. It would take one second or two once he put his hand down,” Willis said. “It was really easy.”