Big Bird vs. Boehner in NH [VIDEO]

About 45 minutes before House Speaker John Boehner, R-OH, spoke on behalf of presidential candidate Mitt Romney in Derry, the Obama campaign sent in a familiar yellow bird to protest the appearance.

The popular Sesame Street character Big Bird attracted all sorts of attention outside the Romney Victory office on West Broadway.

While the replica Muppet was not much for words, OFA-NH representative Holly Shulman spoke on behalf of the protest.

"The president is thinking of balanced approaches – he is investing in education, he is investing in what matters," Shulman said. "While Mitt Romney wants to give $5 trillion in tax cuts skewed toward wealthiest Americans, while voucherizing Medicare, while getting rid of Planned Parenthood and firing Big Bird."

The protest served as a visual statement just five days after Romney said during the first presidential debate he would cut subsidies for PBS. Along with the statement, he mentioned that he "loves Big Bird."

A congested crowd of Romney supporters listened to Boehner inside as he told those in attendance how important the 2012 election is to their future.

"The American people can't handle four more years of Barack Obama's economic policies," he said. "His policies have failed, they've actually made things worse."

Boehner slammed Obama's "inaccuracies" during last week's debate, praising Romney for his performance.

"It's pretty clear to me that (Romney) worked hard during his practice rounds to make sure that he was on the ball," he said.

Boehner also cited a recent Gallup poll saying that 73 percent of those who watched the first debate thought that Romney won.

"And how about this, how about 63 percent of the Democrats who watched the debate thought that Romney won," he said to loud cheers from the crowd.

Before exiting the stage to meet supporters, Boehner also leveled with the audience, calling himself a "regular guy with a big job" who has 11 brothers and sisters.

"I like all of you grew up in America, a country where you can be anything you want to be and do what you want to do," he said. "I got involved because I thought it was time for people from the real world to take a more active interest in their government," Boehner added.

Boehner spoke for just over five minutes, and didn't leave without mentioning House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi.

"Even though we won 65 seats from the Democrats over the last two years, (Nancy Pelosi) only has to win 25 seats to get my job back," he said. "I'm going to tell you what. The only way she's going to get that gavel is to pry it out of my cold, stone hands."

Introducing Boehner to the stage wer U.S. Rep. Frank Guinta, NH-1, and state Sen. Jim Rausch, R-Derry.