As one who followed this event live I can tell you that the crowd thought it up spontaneously a minute or two before they made the request to Governor Johnson to go along with it. He was very comfortable with the audience and complied as you could hear his handlers saying "Gary, don't do it!" then they shouted to the crowd "please don't drop him". Gary Johnson is tough and savvy and this maneuver will end up being an enduring plus for him but it for sure was not staged. I wish he addressed where his campaign money is going because it sure hasn't bought any TV ads yet. The governor did say however that he was timing his thrust so as not to peak too early. I think I might have tried to peak early enough to get into the debates.