The john had the larger crowd. President Bush spoke at the fieldhouse which was filled at 4000. Today, there were twice that many at the outdoor downtown event. The GOP might consider more outdoor events but security might be an issue.
The Ford Fieldhouse at Grand Rapids Community College can hold more than 4000 people. If President Bush was staged at the north or south side, they could easily fit about 7000-10,000 people inside Ford Fieldhouse with the bleachers set up for the basketball games as well as everyone on the floor.
The place where they could hold the largest capacity would either be at Van Andel Arena or Houseman Field. Houseman though has a parking problem.