Hillary

(Newser) - Hillary Clinton today ended her 16-month campaign for the presidency and threw her "full support" behind Barack Obama, the New York Times reports. She urged her supporters to unite behind him. Clinton vowed to continue working on her key issues, in particular to shatter the glass ceiling for women. Next time, she said, "It will be unremarkable to think that a woman could be president. And that is truly remarkable, my friends." More »

(Newser) - Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton were laughing together after a private hourlong meeting at a Senate colleague's home, reports the AP. California Sen. Dianne Feinstein said the pair chatted away in her living room late Thursday in a "positive" head-to-head, their first since Obama clinched the nomination. Clinton is expected to pledge her strong support to her former rival in a speech this afternoon. More »

(Newser) - The Obama and Clinton campaigns have been working to merge their fundraising machines as Clinton prepares her swan song today, the Wall Street Journal reports. Clinton made a call to her top 50 fundraisers, urging them to get behind Obama and promising a private meeting with the presumed nominee. The combined operation could create a juggernaut capable of dwarfing the contents of John McCain's offers. More »

(Newser) - John McCain sees his path to the White House lined with Hillary Clinton supporters. Up to 28% of Clinton backers have told pollsters they’ll defect to the GOP now that Barack Obama has clinched the nomination, the Washington Post reports, so McCain is targeting them, calling Clinton a “friend” who inspired his daughters. It’s a long shot, but, hey, it worked for Ronald Reagan. More »

(Newser) - Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton met face to face tonight in a private meeting, NBC news reports. No immediate word surfaced about their discussion. Obama delayed his departure from Washington and instead went to Clinton's home in DC. Earlier in the day, both sought to temper speculation that Obama should make Clinton his vice president. She plans to suspend her campaign Saturday and endorse him. More »

(Newser) - Team Clinton tempered speculation that she was bargaining for the No. 2 spot today, deeming the VP choice “Senator Obama’s and his alone.” One day after Hillary Clinton told New York’s congressional delegation that she was open to being a running mate, the New York Times reports, a rep said “she is not seeking the vice presidency, and no one speaks for her but her.” More »

(Newser) - Republicans not used to worrying about money are sweating pennies, given John McCain's relatively inept fundraising in the face of an unprecedented Democratic war chest. Barack Obama, by conservative estimates, will have $300 million to McCain’s federal cap of $85 million for the general-election campaign, Politico reports—and with that kind of money, Obama could force McCain to play defense in traditionally red states. More »

(Newser) - Hillary Clinton’s campaign was happiest, and picked up the most steam, late in the game, as divisive staffers departed, the blue-collar vote moved into her column and the candidate found her comfort zone. The Washington Post examines the Democrat's final months, noting its rejuvenation after Texas and Ohio victories, and the marked resignation after North Carolina and Indiana results went bad. More »

(Newser) - Barack Obama might ask his supporters to help Hillary Clinton pay off her campaign debt, Bloomberg reports. Clinton has accrued more than $20 million, $11.4 million of which she personally contributed. Under a campaign-finance law (co-sponsored by John McCain) she has until August's Democratic convention to raise money to settle the debt, after which she can only recoup $250,000. More »

(Newser) - The champagne was barely uncorked at Barack Obama victory parties before Hillary Clinton's backers were pushing for her as veep choice, the Wall Street Journal reports, but the so-called "dream ticket" is looking unlikely. Dems on both sides point to a host of complications that could arise—especially when Bill Clinton and his undisclosed business dealings are thrown into the equation. More »

(Newser) - Barack Obama's former Chicago church is in turmoil over a battle to retain power by firebrand preacher Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Time reports. A rift has opened between Wright, who was supposed to retire from the church he nurtured for 36 years, and his hand-picked successor, whose qualifications he's now questioning. More »

(Newser) - Hillary Clinton has told supporters she will end her campaign Saturday and endorse Barack Obama, Reuters reports. A letter from the New York senator to her backers released today said she would make good on her promise to "strongly support" Obama if he won the Democratic nomination. She pledged to work for party unity as the 16-month race ends. More »

(Newser) - Barack Obama today named Caroline Kennedy and two Washington insiders to lead the search for his running mate, the AP reports. The others are former Fannie Mae CEO Jim Johnson and Eric Holder, who was Bill Clinton’s No. 2 at the Justice Department. Kennedy and her uncle Ted endorsed Obama at a critical juncture in late January. The news comes as Hillary backers step up the push to put her on the ticket. More »

(Newser) - Mark Halperin runs down what Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton aren’t counting on the day after the nomination was secured: For Obama: How intensely Clintonites feel about Hillary. Delaying his VP pick will only exacerbate the Obama-Clinton scrutiny. The sensitivity of the former first couple. The intense scrutiny he'll now face. How much distaste Camp McCain has for him. How the GOP has been waiting for this moment. How November will be about challenges facing the next prez. More »

(Newser) - Mere hours after Barack Obama secured the Dem nomination, key Clinton insiders stepped up lobbying for a VP slot for her. Former White House staffer Lanny Davis started a petition drive—without campaign coordination, he insists—at Womenforfairpolitics.com, the Los Angeles Times reports. “We must field the strongest possible ticket,” the letter to Obama on the site reads. Clinton “would be, by far the most qualified and strongest candidate to be your running mate.” More »

(Newser) - It wasn’t easy, but a bruised Barack Obama has finally wrapped up the Democratic nomination. The Guardian ’s Michael Tomasky knows what he needs to do next:   Redefine himself. Obama has a lot of time now to remind us why he inspired people in the first place. Define John McCain. The honeymoon should be over for the GOP nominee; Obama can attack him pointedly on Bush, Iraq, and his growing array of flip-flops. More »

(Newser) - "What does Hillary want?" Hillary Clinton asked rhetorically last night at her rally in New York. Still a good question, writes Maureen Dowd, since apparently she's not going away anytime soon. Having given her surrogates the green light to push for an Obama-Clinton ticket, the New York Times columnist asks why Hillary is promoting herself for the vice-pre