"Portland, you have done it better than anyone else," Sanders said at the speech of his one-hour (!) speech, according to the Oregonian.

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But, 28,000 people! In August! Of an off year! I mean, that is a lot. A LOT.

Ask yourself this: If Hillary Clinton announced a rally next weekend in, say, Seattle, could she get 28,000 people to show up? Maybe. But it's far from a sure thing that she could.

Now, Portland is Portland. And Oregon isn't going to be a decided factor in the Democratic presidential primary process. (The primary will be May 17 and, yes, I had to look that up.) And, most polling -- with the exception of New Hampshire -- suggests Clinton has very little to worry about in a Democratic primary.

But, crowds are at some level an indicator of organic energy -- it is after all how it became clear in 2006 and 2007 that something major was happening with Obama. And, one of Clinton's biggest problems is -- you guessed it! -- the perception that her candidacy lacks energy.

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