Today on the presidential campaign trail

[Ron Burgundy]

AP - IN THE HEADLINES

Clinton presses ahead, urges supporters to ignore calls for her to abandon presidential race ... Cindy McCain says she won't release her tax returns even if her husband wins the White House ... Florida Dems talking with Obama, Clinton campaigns about seating delegation in August ... Corzine says Clinton needs exceptional run in remaining primaries ... Former Edwards campaign manager David Bonior endorses Obama

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Clinton presses on, urges supporters to ignore calls to quit

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — Her voice raspy, her tone determined, Hillary Rodham Clinton urged her supporters on Thursday to ignore the political pundits who have declared her toast.

The former first lady raced into a long West Virginia-to-the-West Coast campaign day, declaring she would move forward with her presidential effort and insisting anew that she, not rival Barack Obama, would be the stronger Democratic candidate to face Republican John McCain in November.

At a rally under the dome of the West Virginia Capitol, Clinton dismissed calls for her to drop out as "deja vu all over again." She said she had faced similar pressure before going on to win in New Hampshire, Ohio, Texas and Pennsylvania.

She made her case for pressing on, even as she thanked her supporters for doing the same.

"A lot of you have stuck with me; you've been through all the ups and downs in this campaign, the biggest victories and toughest moments," Clinton said. "I think it is because you understand that you've got to have a president who gets up every day and fights for you, who never gives up on you."

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Cindy McCain says she'll never release her tax returns

WASHINGTON (AP) — Cindy McCain says she will never make her tax returns public even if her husband wins the White House and she becomes the first lady.

"You know, my husband and I have been married 28 years and we have filed separate tax returns for 28 years. This is a privacy issue. My husband is the candidate," Cindy McCain, wife of Republican presidential nominee-in-waiting John McCain, said in an interview aired on NBC's "Today" on Thursday.

Asked if she would release her tax returns if she was first lady, Cindy McCain said: "No."

The Arizona senator released his tax return last month, reporting he had a total income of $405,409 in 2007 and paid $84,460 in federal income taxes. He files his return separately from his wife, an heiress to a Phoenix-based beer distributing company whose fortune is in the $100 million range.

Sen. McCain is routinely is ranked among the richest lawmakers in Congress, but he and his wife have kept their finances separate throughout their marriage. A prenuptial agreement left much of the family's assets in Cindy McCain's name.

Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean said Cindy McCain's refusal to release her tax returns gives the appearance of a double standard on the part of her husband.

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Florida Dems: We're closing in on deal to seat delegation

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida Democrats say they're on the verge of finishing a plan to have the state's delegates counted toward the party's presidential nomination.

Thursday's news comes after Michigan Democrats came up with their own plan. The Democratic National Committee stripped both states of their convention delegates for holding their primaries too early in violation of party rules.

State party spokesman Mark Bubriski told The Associated Press that Florida officials have been talking with campaign representatives of Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton about recognizing all, or part, of Florida's 211 delegates.

Clinton is trailing Obama in the race for the nomination and is seeking to close the gap with delegates from Florida and Michigan.

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Corzine says Clinton needs big wins ahead

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — New Jersey Gov. Jon S. Corzine isn't among those urging Hillary Rodham Clinton to drop her presidential bid, but he said Thursday she has a tough task ahead.

"It's a steep hill," Corzine said on WOR radio. "I don't want to put the spin on it that it's going to be an easy ride."

Corzine has endorsed Clinton and campaigned for her in several states, but Clinton trails Barack Obama in delegates with just a few primaries left.

"She's going to have to have an exceptional run in the remaining primaries, and particularly with the popular vote," Corzine said.

The governor is among nearly 800 superdelegates — party activists and elected officials who aren't bound by any vote — who likely will enable one of the two candidates to get the 2,025 delegates needed to win the nomination.

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Former Edwards campaign manager endorses Obama

WASHINGTON (AP) — David Bonior, a former Michigan congressman who managed John Edwards' campaign, endorsed Democrat Barack Obama for president, saying he can fight for working people and take on Washington lobbyists.

Bonior pointed to Obama's background as a community organizer in Chicago.

"That kind of passion and that kind of experience and that kind of dedication to change is really a very important part of my support for Barack Obama today," Bonior said Thursday in a conference call with reporters.

Bonior said he waited to endorse because he wanted the Illinois senator to prove he could take on Republican nominee-in-waiting, John McCain, in the general election.

He said the last few weeks were some of Obama's toughest in the campaign. "He's shown great skill, great poise and great determination and spirit. And I was looking for that fight and spirit, and it was there."

Bonior, served in the House for 26 years, was minority whip — the second-ranking Democrat in the House — during most of former President Clinton's administration. A strong advocate of organized labor, Bonior led the opposition in the House to the North American Free Trade Agreement, which Clinton supported.

Bonior didn't seek re-election in 2002, instead running for governor of Michigan. He lost in the Democratic primary to then-Attorney General Jennifer Granholm, who won the general election.

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THE DELEGATE BREAKDOWN

Barack Obama: 1,846.5

Hillary Rodham Clinton: 1,696

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THE DEMOCRATS

Hillary Rodham Clinton stops in West Virginia, South Dakota and Oregon. Barack Obama is in Washington.

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THE REPUBLICANS

John McCain holds an afternoon fundraiser in New Jersey.

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QUOTE OF THE DAY:

"Why should Hillary Clinton — until there's a nominee with the number of necessary delegates — why should she get out? We've never asked any other potential contender to get out before someone has the magic number. Why is Hillary Clinton different?" — Clinton campaign chairman Terry McAuliffe on NBC's "Today" show.

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STAT OF THE DAY:

There are roughly 154,000 voters in the West Virginia with no party affiliation, compared to more than 660,000 Democrats and about 348,000 Republicans. Since the 2006 elections, roughly 19,000 people have registered as independents, double the number of new Democrats and triple the number of new Republicans.

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Compiled by Ann Sanner.

source: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080508/ap_on_el_pr/2008_race_rundown [link]