“It kinda sucks, but what can you do?” shrugged Faith Sleeper, a senior at American University, as she stood beside a group of security guards. Sleeper spent Election Night watching returns and munching on elephant-shaped cookies with other Republicans on her campus. Following Bush’s remarks, Secretary of State Colin Powell, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and other high-ranking Republican officials walked through a row of cheering onlookers as they exited the building.

“Bush says what he means and means what he says. I love the man and what he represents,” said one enthused guest, boxing promoter Don King.

Clad in a pinstripe suit with checkered sneakers and an “America’s First Family” pin, King described himself as a “personal friend” of Republican National Committee chairman Ed Gillespie. But what was the maestro behind Mike Tyson doing at a political event?

“Boxing is an inherent part of those who can participate in freedom,” King told The Crimson. He added, “Those who supported George Walker Bush spoke out loud and clear in a very mandate type of voice.”

—Staff writer Michael M. Grynbaum can be reached at grynbaum@fas.harvard.edu.