Even on his supposed day off, Sen. Barack Obama made the commute Wednesday to his campaign’s Chicago headquarters to dial up the party leaders and elected officials who are ultimately expected to settle the fight for the Democratic presidential nomination.
His latest round of phone calls was made as sentiment among party insiders swung toward the belief that Obama will be the party’s nominee, and as his campaign carefully rolled out several new superdelegate endorsements.
“The race is over, effectively, and I think Barack Obama will be the nominee,” said Tad Devine, a senior strategist for the presidential campaigns of Al Gore in 2000 and John Kerry in 2004. “It’s not a question of if anymore, it’s just a question of how and when.”
While Obama’s campaign cautioned that it does not expect an immediate flood of superdelegates following his strong win Tuesday in North Carolina and narrow defeat in Indiana, it said it does expect the pace of endorsements to pick up.
But Sen. Hillary Clinton signaled her determination by traveling to the next primary state and revealing that she has recently loaned more than $6 million to her struggling presidential campaign.
“I’m staying in this race until there is a nominee,” she said amid a quickly scheduled trip to West Virginia.
Former Sen. George McGovern, meanwhile, switched his support from Clinton to Obama on Wednesday and urged her to drop out of the race. McGovern was the Democratic nominee in 1972.
As Clinton did Wednesday in Washington, Obama was expected to meet with superdelegates there Thursday, wooing some officials in one-on-one sessions and addressing others in small groups. Top supporters have also been asked to reach out to uncommitted superdelegates.
“It will start as a trickle and end up as a flood in June,” said Bill Daley, a former Clinton administration Cabinet member and Obama supporter. “I think there are no more comebacks left for Hillary. It’s very much the beginning of the end for that candidacy.”
As Obama announced four new superdelegates, including a convert from Clinton, there are now more uncommitted superdelegates than pledged delegates to be won. His campaign suggested that an end to the 15-month-old nomination fight is near.
“We can see the finish line,” campaign manager David Plouffe said.
185 delegates needed
According to the latest Associated Press count of both pledged delegates and superdelegates, Obama leads Clinton 1,840 to 1,684 and is only 185 delegates away from the nomination.
Obama is expected to travel to swing states that could be essential in November. Plans call for him to campaign in Oregon, where there is a May 20 primary, on Friday and Saturday, and he will likely stop in West Virginia before Tuesday’s primary.
In a conference call with reporters, his campaign deployed two governors and three U.S. senators to make the case that it is time to end the marathon.
“It’s now time for the superdelegates to begin bringing this process to a close,” Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano said.
However, Obama’s supporters stopped short of demanding that Clinton exit.
“It would be inappropriate and awkward and wrong for any of us to tell Sen. Clinton when it is time for the race to be over,” said Sen. Claire McCaskill of Missouri. “It is her decision and it is only her decision, and we are confident that she is going to do the right thing.”
Clinton’s campaign admitted that its fundraising seriously lags Obama’s. She dipped into her personal wealth as recently as Monday, with other loans to her campaign of $5 million on April 11, $1 million on May 1 and $425,000 on May 5.
Together with an earlier loan, that makes a total of $11.4 million that she has lent her campaign. Aides suggested she would be willing to lend more and that the loans are a reflection of determination, not weakness.
“The loans are a sign of Sen. Clinton’s commitment to the race, commitment to the process and commitment to being competitive with Sen. Obama on TV and in other areas,” said Howard Wolfson, her communications director.
As Clinton hosted a Washington fundraiser Wednesday evening, she sent an e-mail to potential donors saying that there will be “good days and not so good days in the course of this campaign.”
Clinton’s campaign worked hard to present Tuesday’s results — she eked out a 2 percentage point win in Indiana while losing North Carolina by 14 percentage points — in the most positive light.
In Indiana, chief strategist Geoff Garin noted that Obama significantly outspent her, yet she came from behind to defeat him in a state that borders his own. “Sen. Clinton continues to run very strongly among people who are likely to be the swing voters in the November election,” he said.
Caution urged
In announcing superdelegates, Devine suggested that Obama’s campaign should be cautious in not making Clinton feel like she is cornered.
“It would be a mistake to announce 40 [in one day],” he said. “They have to be very sensitive to making sure Hillary Clinton doesn’t feel overwhelmed, or shut out of the process.”
Rep. Robert Wexler (D-Fla.), an Obama supporter acting as a liaison with undeclared superdelegates, said conversations about the campaign shifted dramatically after Tuesday’s primaries.
“The onus and the direction of their questions, the burden, has changed from ‘Can Sen. Obama win?’ to ‘Is there any plan for Sen. Clinton to win?'” said Wexler, who spoke with more than a dozen superdelegates. “They’re giving Sen. Clinton the benefit of having a time — a short time — to make the argument.”
Plouffe said the focus remains on the nomination, but steps are also being taken to pivot toward the general election. “We also don’t want to wake up the morning of June 4 or June 10 or whenever this is going to end and not be prepared,” he said.
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mccormickj@tribune.com
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