By Jeff Mason
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama tooka much-needed rest from their U.S. presidential campaigns onEaster Sunday as their tight race for the Democratic nominationlooked set to drag on for months.
Republican John McCain, who has locked up his party'snomination, returned from an overseas trip where he tried topolish his foreign policy credentials and prepared for afundraising swing through Western states this week.
While McCain concentrated on travel and raising money, theDemocrats, who pulled in record amounts of funds last month,focused on the next prize in the primary race -- Pennsylvania,which holds its nominating contest on April 22.
The contest is crucial for Clinton, who is behind Obama inthe number of accumulated pledged delegates who, at a partyconvention in August, will determine the Democratic nominee forthe November 4 election.
Her campaign said on Saturday that strong fundraisingshowed Democrats were not ready for the Obama-Clinton race toend, but it had to knock down suggestions that she was facingpressure to drop out.
New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, an ambassador and energysecretary under President Bill Clinton, seemed close to callingfor the former first lady to step aside when he endorsed Obamaon Friday.
"My affection and admiration for Hillary Clinton andPresident Bill Clinton will never waver," he said whenannouncing his endorsement.
"It is time, however, for Democrats to stop fightingamongst ourselves and to prepare for the tough fight we willface against John McCain in the fall."
Clinton Communications Director Howard Wolfson said therace had been declared finished before only to find the NewYork senator bounce back with wins in New Hampshire, Ohio andTexas.
"Senator Clinton has been counted out many times in thiscampaign," he told reporters on Saturday. "Each time votersdecided that they were not prepared for the campaign to beover, and they had their say, and the campaign continued."
RESTING UP
The Democratic race is likely to go on until at least June,when the last few nominating contests are held.
So both candidates are resting up for the long haul ahead.
Clinton took Friday through Sunday off from activecampaigning and was scheduled to resume events in Pennsylvaniaon Monday.
Obama, who campaigned in Oregon on Saturday, was taking avacation with his family and would not return to activecampaigning until Wednesday in North Carolina. A spokesmandeclined to say where he was spending his vacation.
One place he did not go for Easter was his Chicago church,Trinity United Church of Christ, which sparked controversy forthe Illinois senator because of inflammatory sermons made bythe pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright.
Obama gave a speech on race in the United States onTuesday, rejecting Wright's racially charged remarks and urgingAmericans to move past their "racial stalemate."
Obama suffered from the controversy last week, slipping innational polls, but a Gallup daily tracking poll issued onSaturday indicated he had made up lost ground, showing 48percent of Democrats favoured him compared to 45 percent whosided with Clinton.
The March 19-21 survey of 1,264 Democratic andDemocratic-leaning voters had a margin of error of plus orminus 3 percentage points. Clinton had a 7 point edge overObama in a similar Gallup poll taken March 14-18.
(Editing by Mohammad Zargham)
