The anticipation in Bill Thompson's campaign this morning is palpable, because tonight, at a DNC fund-raiser at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Columbus Circle, President Obama is expected to utter the name of the long-shot Democratic mayoral candidate for the first time in public — possibly in a sentence with words indicating some semblance of support or approval, and maybe even without a concurrent reference to the amazing work that Mike Bloomberg has done as mayor. No need to get greedy, though. [City Room/NYT]

Earlier: White House Gives Bill Thompson His Most Tepid Endorsement Yet