In between buzzing about Hillary Clinton's 10-point victory over Barack Obama in Pennsylvania and wondering if it was because Pennsylvanians were racist or because Hillary was mean and desperate and whether the popular vote is a fair metric and whether winning big vs. small states matters and why she can't win mathematically and why Obama couldn't finish her off even outspending her 3 to 1 and how the hell she raised a whopping $10 million in 24 hours whether she should get out of the race because, hey, if it's Wednesday, then people are saying that Hillary Clinton should get out of the race — well, in between buzzing about all that, people are wondering the same thing: Who the hell are the Abercrombie & Fitch guys?
If you were watching Obama's concession speech last night then you saw them: Three guys standing two rows behind the candidate in what is usually a carefully-selected backdrop of loyal sign-waving supporters, each sporting t-shirts clearly bearing the logos of Abercrombie & Fitch. During Obama's speech, they waved their signs dutifully but also clearly communicated with each other; at one point, one of them blackberried. Obama's speech was great as usual (and nice line to slip in there about 4-or-8 years!) but it was distracting to see that huge "FITCH" in the background and see the trio of average-looking dudes bobbing behind his head. Who were they and what were they doing there?
Alas, there are no answers, other than from the Obama campaign (not a secret fundraising scheme) or Abercrombie (please, as if their models wear clothes). USA Today's Mark Mermott wants answers, dammit, asking for tipsters to sell out their trendy friends; Jeff Jarvis thinks it's hilarious that the Obama campaign actually embodies its own "demographic cliche"; Gawker thinks it was a secret pander to the gays; AdRants thinks it's too coincidental to be a coincidence; Queerty thinks Abercrombie & Fitch is the opiate of the masses; Matt Cooper thinks the guys in the shirts were just "meatheads" (though maybe that title goes to whoever is supposed to carefully arrange the crowd behind the candidate).
Who were these guys and do they wear the same brand because they're unimaginative or because they're secret plants or because they thought it would be hilarious to do on live TV or because they're roommates and one of them cooks, one of them cleans and one of them does the shopping? The secret will out eventually — it's the YouTube generation, after all — and no doubt we'll see these three guys on cable sometime soon. But probably they won't get an Abercrombie contract. Well, maybe the one on the right.
p.s. Alternate title for this post: "Shirts You Can Believe In!"