Clinton to end bid and back Obama

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Hillary Clinton will end her WhiteHouse bid and declare her support for Barack Obama, aides saidon Wednesday, drawing the curtain on a gruelling 16-monthnominating fight that badly split the Democratic Party.

Clinton will publicly back Obama on Saturday and pledge towork for party unity in the general-election race againstRepublican John McCain.

"Senator Clinton will be hosting an event in Washington,D.C. to thank her supporters and express her support forSenator Obama and party unity," a campaign statement said.

The event was originally planned for Friday but the day wasswitched to allow more supporters to attend. The New Yorksenator has not decided whether to officially close thecampaign or suspend it, allowing her to keep control of herdelegates to the nominating convention, aides said.

Clinton spent much of the day talking to supporters, manyof whom urged her to halt her bid now that Obama has clinchedthe nomination. Obama attended two fundraising events in NewYork City on Wednesday night and acknowledged her decision.

"Your junior senator from New York engaged in anextraordinary campaign," he told attendees at one fundraiser."Now that the interfamily squabble is done, all of us can focuson what needs to be done in November."

Obama, the first black candidate to lead a major U.S. partyinto a White House race, announced a three-member team to headhis search for a running mate as he began the task of unifyingthe party the day after clinching the nomination.

McCain proposed that Obama join him for a series of jointsummer town-hall meetings across the country. Obama's campaignmanager called the idea "appealing" but proposed format changesand made no immediate commitment.

Caroline Kennedy, daughter of the late President JohnKennedy, will vet prospective Obama running mates along withformer Deputy Attorney General Eric Holder and Jim Johnson,former chief executive of the mortgage lender Fannie Mae, whoperformed the same task for Democrats John Kerry in 2004 andWalter Mondale in 1984.

Near the top of their agenda will be questions about apossible teaming with Clinton, who has indicated interest inthe job after her presidential bid fell short.

"We're going to be having a conversation in coming weeks,"Obama told reporters when asked about the former first lady. Hesaid he was confident the party would be unified to win thegeneral election.

After news of Clinton's decision broke, Obama adviser LindaDouglass told reporters she ran a great race.

"Her supporters have every reason to gather and celebratethat and we're confident the party will be united with herhelp," she said.

Obama returned to Capitol Hill to a hero's welcome fromDemocrats who swarmed to shake his hand and hug him.

"Our focus now is on victory in November and on givingBarack Obama every ounce of our support," eight previouslyuncommitted Democratic senators said in a statement.

OBAMA AIMS AT MCCAIN

Obama took aim at McCain for his staunch support of theIraq war during a speech to a pro-Israel lobbying group inWashington, saying the Arizona senator "refuses to understandor acknowledge the failure of the policy that he wouldcontinue."

"He criticizes my willingness to use strong diplomacy, butoffers only an alternate reality -- one where the war in Iraqhas somehow put Iran on its heels," he said. "Senator McCainoffers a false choice: stay the course in Iraq, or cede theregion to Iran."

In the same speech, Obama tried to smooth relations withClinton after their long and sometimes bitter nominating fight,calling her an "extraordinary candidate and extraordinarypublic servant."

Clinton, in a later speech to the same group, complimentedObama and said she knew he would be a friend to Israel.

Clinton's supporters turned up the pressure for the NewYork senator to be named as Obama's vice presidentialcandidate. Robert Johnson, founder of Black EntertainmentTelevision, said he wrote to the Congressional Black Caucusurging members to push Obama to choose Clinton.

Obama's campaign said the search was just beginning.

"Senator Obama is pleased to have three talented anddedicated individuals managing this rigorous process,"spokesman Bill Burton said. "He will work closely with them inthe coming weeks but ultimately this will be his decision andhis alone."

The victory by Obama, son of a black Kenyan father andwhite mother from Kansas, marked a milestone in U.S. history.It came 45 years after the height of the civil rights movementand followed one of the closest and longest nomination fightsin recent U.S. political history.

Obama's achievement drew praise from Republican Secretaryof State Condoleezza Rice, the highest-ranking black inPresident George W. Bush's Cabinet.

"It's a country that has overcome many, many, now years,decades of, actually a couple of centuries, of trying to makegood on its principles," Rice said.

"And I think that what we're seeing is, an extraordinaryexpression of the fact that 'we the people,' is beginning tomean all of us," Rice said, a reference to the opening line ofthe U.S. Constitution.

(Additional reporting by Donna Smith, Caren Bohan, ThomasFerraro, Ellen Wulfhorst and JoAnne Allen; Editing by PatriciaZengerle and Peter Cooney)

(To read more about the U.S. political campaign, visitReuters "Tales from the Trail: 2008" online athttp://blogs.reuters.com/trail08/)