By John Whitesides, Political Correspondent
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democrat Barack Obama turned hisfocus to the five-month general election fight for the WhiteHouse against Republican John McCain on Wednesday as rivalHillary Clinton prepared to back his candidacy and call forparty unity.
Clinton will publicly declare her support for Obama onSaturday, a campaign statement said.
"Senator Clinton will be hosting an event in Washington,D.C. to thank her supporters and express her support forSenator Obama and party unity," the statement said. The eventwas originally scheduled for Friday but the day was switched toallow more of her supporters to attend, the campaign said.
Campaign aides did not confirm reports the New York senatorwould formally suspend her campaign. She spent much of the daytalking to supporters, many of whom urged her to halt hercampaign activities now that Obama has clinched the nomination.
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 unifyinga fractured 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 andsaid he was confident the party would be unified to win thegeneral election.
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.
Democratic leaders urged remaining undecided delegates tothe August convention to make up their minds by Friday.
But House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi declinedto give any timeline for Clinton's to concede. "She's beenthrough a very long and rigorous campaign," she said. "She'sdone beautifully. She has to wind down in her own time."
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, butoffered no signs of when she would end her campaign.
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 clinched the win after a wave of uncommitteddelegates announced their support on Tuesday, pushing his totalwell past the 2,118 needed to win. Clinton, who would have beenthe first female presidential nominee in U.S. politicalhistory, won more than 1,900 delegates.
Obama's achievement drew praise from a 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/)
