Not All Democrats Are Thrilled With the Idea of Being at Invesco Field

Now some fresh pickings from the Political Grapevine:

Dramatic Effect

Some Democrats are expressing serious concerns over the political risks posed by the theatrical nature of Barack Obama's acceptance speech Thursday night at Invesco Field. The Politico newspaper reports the party members say the elaborate staging may work against Obama's goal of connecting with average Americans.

Tennessee Democratic Governor Phil Bredesen says, "We already know he is a rock star, we already know he can bring 85,000 people together in a stadium... he needs to talk to people who haven't made up their minds yet."

And one elected Democrat who spoke on the condition of anonymity says, "It's likely that the campaign would do it differently — if it had to do it again — because the decision was made before the European trip."

Betting on Barack

Ireland's largest bookmaker is offering a wide range of betting opportunities on Senator Obama's performance Thursday tonight. The Irish gambling syndicate known as Paddy Power is offering betting on which cliché he will use first.

"Time for change" is the five-to-one favorite. The lines "defining moment," "I'd like to thank my wife" and "undamental belief" are given 12-to-one odds. There is a 16-to-one chance that Obama will first say "I have a dream" or "I'm fired up."

Less-favorable odds — 250-to-one — are given to "Let's get ready to rumble" and "Life is like a box of chocolates."

Polling Problems

One major presidential poll indicates that Senator Obama is losing traction with some key middle-of-the-road voters. Gallup's weekly demographic poll shows his support among conservative Democrats has slipped nine percentage points since last month.

Back on July 27, Obama was backed by 72 percent of conservative Democrats. Now that number has dropped to 63 percent.

The Illinois senator has also been losing self-described moderate and liberal Republicans. At the same time in July, Obama was supported by 21 percent of those voters. That number is now down to just 13 percent.

Not-So-Green Machines

Democrats have been making a huge push at the convention to make it the most environmentally friendly ever. But the Washington Times Online reports that most of the golf carts being used to ferry volunteers and delegates around the convention site are not electric but gasoline powered.

One convention volunteer who said she was disappointed with the fuel powered carts explained "they had to go out and get extra carts that they weren't anticipating."

And one convention vendor added "they were the only golf carts available. They ran out of the green ones."

— FOX News Channel's Zachary Kenworthy contributed to this report.