Authorities are citing crowding concerns for their decision to briefly prevent some tightly packed crowds from entering.

Fire Marshal Rob Kinniburgh says the building was not closed but entrance was delayed because of safety concerns. He tells the AP that 1,000 people will be let in “and then we’ll reassess.”

The Washington Free Beacon has breaking news that the real American hero behind this massive traffic jam is a registered Republican. According to the North Carolina State Board of Elections, Deputy Chief and Fire Marshal Rob Kinniburgh has been a registered Republican since 1980.

Kinniburgh’s decision led to pandemonium among reporters. The Washington Post’s Dana Milbank tweeted “Mayhem at #dnc2012.” The Times Of London’s Matt Spence said “Complete nightmare for the DNC … #DNCFAIL.” Nico Hines, also of The Times Of London, tweeted “Democratic convention descending into farce. After ‘booing God’ debacle, delegates, and media locked out of the convention by fire marshals.”

“His campaign strategy is to smash America apart and then try to cobble together 51 percent of the pieces,” Romney said earlier this month.

And Obama has repeatedly over the past several months used his executive authority to reward certain key constituencies, a process sometimes referred to as “vote buying.”

Here are five prominent examples:

1. $12 million in transportation funding for Ohio

AP

Several days before a scheduled campaign event in Ohio last week, the Obama administration announced the release of more than $450 million in unspent high funds to various states as part of the widely mocked “We Can’t Wait” campaign.

Ohio is set to receive more than $12 million for transportation and infrastructure projects.

The White House also announced the launch of a “public-private institute for manufacturing innovation” in Youngstown, Ohio, less than a week before the president’s visit to the state.

2. $170 million in federal aid to Iowa farmers

AP

Obama told supporters in the critical swing state earlier this month that the federal government would purchase $170 million worth of meat and fish from local ranchers for use in federal food assistance programs.

The president also falsely accused Romney’s running mate, Rep. Paul Ryan (R., Wis.), of blocking a $500 billion farm bill that would provide disaster assistance to livestock producers and other farmers.

3. $70 million in military aid to Israel

AP

Obama preempted Romney’s visit to the Jewish state in June by announcing $70 million in new military aid to support Israel’s short-range rocket defense system.

During the televised announcement, the president exaggerated the size of the aid package, saying it was “$70 billion.”

Obama, who claims to know more about Judaism than any other president, has seen his support among Jewish voters decline in recent months, and has faced criticism for refusing to visit Israel since taking office.

4. Work permits for young illegal immigrants

AP

Looking to shore up his support among Hispanic voters—a crucial constituency for the president if he hopes to win in November—Obama announced a radical shift in federal immigration policy in June, bypassing Congress on the controversial issue.

Under the new policy, which has already taken effect, the administration is offering work permits to young illegal immigrants who meet a certain set of criteria. As many as 800,000 illegal immigrants could be eligible for the program, which the Department of Homeland Security estimates could cost as much as $585 million.

5. Free birth control

President Obama, Sandra Fluke / AP

The president sought to shore up his support among young, single women in January with the announcement of a controversial new rule that would force all employers to offer free birth control coverage in their health insurance plans, with no exemption for religious organizations.

Key Democratic strategist Sandra Fluke said the new rule would save her more than $1,000 per year.

SANDRA FLUKE: Well, I’ll sorry I’m not familiar with the particular case so I don’t want to comment on that. I would just say generally I think women need to have access to comprehensive quality health care, regardless where they work or go to school.

REPORTER: Miss Dunn, I’m America’s Morning News. I wanted to ask you: What role did the White House play in having Sandra Fluke appear before Congress?

ANITA DUNN: Good morning, how are you?

REPORTER: I’m doing great, how are you?

DUNN: Good. You know, I’m not actually sure I [unclear] talk to America’s Morning News. You can call my office, if you’d like to get an interview, but right now I have to go into CNN.

REPORTER: How offended are you, as a woman, that Bill Maher referred to Sarah Palin as the c-word.

DUNN: You may call my office to schedule an interview, which is what legitimate news organizations generally do.

REPORTER: Did you urge the president to call the governor after Bill Maher called Gov. Palin the c-word?

DUNN: You can call my office for an interview, which what legitimate news organizations do. I understand your news organization doesn’t behave that way, but I will tell you right now that I think you should call my office and we’ll be happy to discuss whether or not we would like to schedule an interview with you. But this is not the way things get done with legitimate news organizations as opposed to partisan political operations—

REPORTER: I’m not a political operation, I’m just doing this for radio.

DUNN: Well, I have to be honest with you. You may call my office for interview, I’d be happy—I see you have a whole list of questions—

REPORTER: Yeah, just a bunch of questions.

DUNN: But I’m supposed to be at CNN right now, and I didn’t have anything scheduled with you—

REPORTER: Did you urge the president to call Laura Ingraham after MSNBC’s Ed Schultz called her a right-wing slut?

DUNN: Listen, you can call my office for an interview, but I’m not going to talk to you.

REPORTER: Thank you for your time, ma’am. Have a good day.

According to the Daily Caller:

O’Reilly went on to reveal that SKDKnickerbocker, a PR agency whose managing director is former White House Communications Director Anita Dunn, is now representing Fluke. Dunn is perhaps best known for her attack on Fox News and for naming Chinese revolutionary and Communist leader Mao Tse Tung as one of her favorite political philosophers back in 2009.

On February 14, the Free Beacon reported that Dunn was being touted as a P.R. consultant for an initiative aimed at improving the public image of hedge funds in America. Dunn previously criticized hedge funds during her tenure in the Obama administration.

“I’ve said this quite a few times—and even on the air—that it’s ultimately a free-market decision,” Bishop said. “We have Rush because there’s an audience for it, and we have advertisers who want to advertise on it.”

Despite drawing only seven people to their rally, protesters told the Journal Star that their “message was heard.”

Austan Goolsbee attacked comedian and top Obama supporter Bill Maher for past comments about women made by the HBO host.

Goolsbee compared Maher to Rush Limbaugh, who has recently come under fire for comments made about Sandra Fluke, the Georgetown law student and women’s rights activist.

Politico reports:

Conservatives have alleged that a double standard exists between conservative commentators and liberal comedians after Limbaugh was forced to apologize for calling a Georgetown law student a “slut” and a “prostitute” in an incident that has since become a national imbroglio. Maher, a top donor to President Obama’s super PAC, has in the past publicly called Sarah Palin a ”a dumb twat” and several other not-so-nice names.

“Pres. Obama says he called Sandra Fluke because of his daughters,” Palin wrote on Facebook Tuesday. “For the sake of everyone’s daughter, why doesn’t his super PAC return the $1 million he got from a rabid misogynist?”

Obama did not comment on Maher’s remarks when asked during his Tuesday press conference. Maher recently announced he would donate $1 million to Priorities USA, the Obama Super PAC.

COOPER: It’s unusual for the president of United States to reach out to an individual like this. Are you saying politics had nothing to do with it?

AXELROD: It’s also unusual for someone with a large audience to vilify an American, a young American speaking out as she did. So there’s a lot about this that was unusual. I thought it was unusual that so many leaders on the other side of this debate, in terms of the political debate, took a pass on this whole thing, a powder on this whole thing. Everyone should have stood up and said this was inappropriate as apparently many of Rush’s advertisers now have said it was inappropriate. I was kind of shocked, Anderson, when Gov. Romney, all he had to say about the thing is that’s not language I would have used. What about the spirit of what was said? I thought that was a cowardly answer and a test of leadership and one that he failed.

Limbaugh described contraception activist Sandra Fluke on his radio show last week in terms that have outraged mainstream media outlets and Fluke’s fellow activists. Axelrod insists that he is not politicizing the issue for the benefit of the Obama campaign. According to The Hill:

Axelrod also responded to Limbaugh’s claims on his show Monday that Democrats were using the issue to boost the president’s approval numbers among female voters, calling the suggestion “ridiculous.”

President Obama called Fluke last Friday and told her he condemned the “personal attacks” directed against her.