Thousands attend Obama rally in Lima

LIMA, OHIO (WANE) - President Barack Obama made a campaign stop in Lima, Ohio on Friday afternoon. The stop was one of three in Ohio

The rally was held at Lima Senior High School. President Obama took the stage shortly after 4:00 p.m.

Our sister station WANE 's crew was there to cover the event and hundreds of people were already in line by noon.

An estimated 3,800 people attended the rally.

The President opened the rally with remarks about the response to Superstorm Sandy.

"We will not stop until we have rebuilt," Obama said.

He said while devastating, tragedies like Sandy are also inspiring.

"Seeing neighbors helping neighbors and leaders of different political parties working to fix what's broken," he said.

But, after lost time campaigning while dealing with Sandy's aftermath, the president quickly changed the conversation in Lima to jobs and the economy. He had extra emphasis on the auto industry.

"When I made the decision to rescue the auto industry, it wasn't popular, even in Ohio. But, I knew it was the right thing to do. Betting on American workers was the right thing to do," Obama said.

He didn't leave out any campaign issues, touching on healthcare, education and foreign policy. One of the loudest cheers of the afternoon came after he said he "got Osama bin Laden."

After the speech, which lasted nearly 30 minutes, Obama took his time leaving. He spent time giving hugs, handshakes and plenty of fist bumps to people in the front of the crowd. He even held and kissed a baby.

For supporters who came to see him, Obama didn't disappoint.

"Amazing. I couldn't expect anything more from him. He gave a rousing speech and hit on every topic," Dylan Demellweek, 19, of Bluffton, Ohio, said. "He told us everything he's going to do."

This is Demellweek's first election to vote, and he was going to make the most of his first time seeing the president.

"I'm going to try to shake his hand," he told NewsChannel 15 when he was waiting in line outside the high school.

The long wait to be up front, and the tenacity of a teenager, paid off.

"I got up there and I got it," Demellweek grinned.

Jerome Crockett also got to shake Obama's hand.

"He showed a lot of love to a small town," Crockett said. "It's a good thing he helped the auto industry instead of abandoning it. We're just happy we got him with us."

Glenda Cowan was also pleased with his speech.

"He talked about everything I wanted to hear about," Cowan said. "I admire him for sticking up for senior citizens, people who are on Medicare, people on Social Security, disabled people because we need him."

Even the young were inspired.

"Any kids who didn't come missed a great opportunity to see the president. I think kids should know what's behind a president and what they do and how they do it," Kevontae Watts, 12, who wants to be president someday, said.