Denver shows that Barack Obama is master of the pop-in.

He just made a surprise waltz through an Illinois delegation gathering in Denver, on the afternoon of his big nomination speech. One onlooker told me the delegates went spastic, as we chatted near Obama's mammoth motorcade in downtown Denver. Obama also broke convention decorum to hit the stage with Joe Biden on Wednesday, of course, and made the first telecast pop-in on Monday night after Michelle's patriotic address.

While nominees usually stay away from the convention all week, avoiding delegate run-ins like a bride hiding out before a wedding, Obama has actually taken center stage on three of the four nights. He was absent only on Day Two, for Her Speech. The campaign simply circulated still photos of Obama quietly watching Clinton's speech that night. The idea, one campaign aide told me, was to signal his respect and interest in her speech, but without treading to heavily through a live reaction.

Wednesday's speech from Bill Clinton is also playing well for Obama, as the nation's front pages attest. Blogger Adam Johnson posts today's newspapers on a new blog, How's It Playing? (The link is being circulated by Obama aides, so it may be from a campaign volunteer or staffer.)

Standing on the floor last night, I could feel a huge, spontaneous cheer of relief as the former President delivered his extended, unambiguous endorsement. For the first time, Clinton wrapped his legacy around Obama, linking their mutual quest to beat attacks on experience and a quaint faith in the power of hope. Obama fans have long linked Obama's fast rise to Clinton's position in 1992, and few commentators have missed the prominence of the H-word in Democratic politics. But Bill never went there before, so his Obama embrace really thrilled the crowds. Ever the strategist, though, he also talked about why less partisan Americans should back Obama, and how a Democratic economic agenda beats more of the same Republican plutocracy. "Thanks, but no thanks," was the response he gamely urged voters to give the GOP. On Thursday, Obama's final appearance aims to give voters the rest of the answer -- the economic, diplomatic and moral reasons to not only reject Republican failure, but to embrace his candidacy and platform.

Comments (15)

1. or maybe it's his ego. Can't stand to be out of the limelight very long?

   Posted by lvliberty1 at 08/28/2008 @ 4:04pm

2. Posted by lvliberty1 at 08/28/2008 @ 4:04pm

   If he goes on vacation and gets out of the public spotlight, they attack him.

   If he shows up in the public spotlight, they attack him.

   LOL

   Posted by Maskdelta at 08/28/2008 @ 4:05pm

3. If he goes on vacation and gets out of the public spotlight, they attack him.

   If he shows up in the public spotlight, they attack him.

   LOL

   Posted by Maskdelta at 08/28/2008 @ 4:05pm

   Point out any statement by me attacking him for going on vacation.

   Posted by lvliberty1 at 08/28/2008 @ 4:08pm

4. Posted by lvliberty1 at 08/28/2008 @ 4:08pm

   I said "they". You denying some of your fellow Righties attacked Obama for being on vacation "when Russia was on the move"!?!??!!?

   Posted by Maskdelta at 08/28/2008 @ 4:17pm

5. Posted by frankgrits at 08/28/2008 @ 4:16pm

   Hey, FRANK...wanted to mention I love your new "Plan B"...

   by which, if Obama wins, you credit the Clintons for it.

   Stroke of mediocrity!

   Posted by Maskdelta at 08/28/2008 @ 4:19pm

6. Oh, and we're talking Veeps....

   What would you think of McCain picking Romney?

   Posted by Maskdelta at 08/28/2008 @ 4:20pm

7. Posted by frankgrits at 08/28/2008 @ 4:19pm

   Was that back when you said you agreed with Limbaugh that McCain might be mentally unbalanced?!?!??!

   Posted by Maskdelta at 08/28/2008 @ 4:22pm

8. Wait a tick, Frank... what does what Dubya was doing on the ranch have anything to do with how Obama handled the Russia/Georgia conflict? Last I checked, Obama is a senator, and a candidate... not the president. There's a pretty damned big difference there.

   Posted by jorcheim at 08/28/2008 @ 4:29pm

9. Oh, and Frank... regarding the Clintons' effect on the convention, last I checked, the reason there was such a rupture in the Dems was due to Hillary and Bill poor-mouthing Obama at every turn, and doing everything they could to sow discord at every step of the way.

   So tell me again how the Clintons saved this convention?

   Posted by jorcheim at 08/28/2008 @ 4:31pm

10. Oh, and if the messiah does manage to squeak out a win, he will owe it to the Clintons. They brought him and this convention back from the dead and restored his lead in the polls.----Posted by frankgrits at 08/28/2008 @ 4:23pm

    Yeah, I noted your "Plan B"...also part of your "Don't blame the Clintons, if he loses" (when I got ya skeered about pushing that if Obama loses).

    It's amazing isn't it? Obama wins?...the Clintons did it. Obama loses?...it's HIS fault!

    Now, seriously, that is one deep dark love affair with two people FRANK's engaged in!

    Posted by Maskdelta at 08/28/2008 @ 4:37pm

11. Posted by frankgrits at 08/28/2008 @ 4:38pm

    A double shot....A FRANK "political lecture" AND a "Don't you realize that the Sun won't rise, unless Bill and Hillary ALLOW it to rise" post!

    LOL!

    Posted by Maskdelta at 08/28/2008 @ 4:42pm

12. The "poor bastard" was away from the wheel both mentally and physically as Americans died from Nawlins to Iraq due to neglect and incompetence in his leadership. How does that compare to presidential *candidate* Obama being on vacation while Russia and Georgia traded blows? Please grasp straw and make connection plain for the rest of us...

    Posted by sincere1906 at 08/28/2008 @ 4:46pm

13. Posted by frankgrits at 08/28/2008 @ 4:51pm

    and he gave a response. i didn't agree with it, but he did give one. so what? was he supposed to rush back to Washington, convene a meeting of his senior advisors and start chanting "we're all Georgians now!" then the narrative would be he's being "presumptous" and "uppity" and "overstepping his bounds." Obama's detractors must think he's the messiah, cuz they crucify him no matter what he does.

    Posted by sincere1906 at 08/28/2008 @ 5:02pm

14. Are you fucking kidding me......

    Obama made an appearance at the DEMOCRATIC convention in Denver??

    Holy shit!

    Un-fucking-believeable.

    He really is the greatest president ever!!

    Posted by bleedingheart at 08/28/2008 @ 6:31pm

15. Oh, PLEASE....FRANK won't put me on Ignore.

    That egomaniac couldn't STAND to not know how much fun I'm poking at his cultish obsession!

    He'll "peek"!

    Posted by Maskdelta at 08/28/2008 @ 7:38pm