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Democrat John Edwards is endorsing
former rival Barack Obama, fresh signs of the party establishment
embracing the likely nominee even as Hillary Rodham Clinton refuses
to abandon her increasingly long-shot candidacy.


      Edwards was to appear with Obama in Grand Rapids, Mich., as
Obama campaigns in a critical general election battleground state,
the Obama campaign said Wednesday.


      The endorsement comes the day after Clinton defeated Obama by
more than 2-to-1 in West Virginia. The loss highlighted Obama's
work to win over the "Hillary Democrats" - white, working-class
voters who also supported Edwards in large numbers before he exited
the race.


      In response, Clinton campaign chairman Terry McAuliffe said in a
statement, "We respect John Edwards, but as the voters of West
Virginia showed last night, this thing is far from over."


      Edwards, a former North Carolina senator and the 2004 vice
presidential nominee, dropped out of the race in late January.


      Both Obama and Clinton immediately asked Edwards for his
endorsement, but he stayed mum for more than four months. A person
close to Edwards, speaking on condition of anonymity because the
individual wasn't authorized to talk to the media, said the former
lawmaker wanted to get involved now to begin unifying the party.
Obama also signed on to Edwards' anti-poverty initiative, which he
launched Tuesday with the goal of reducing poverty in the United
States by half within 10 years.


      When he made his decision, Edwards didn't even tell many of his
former top advisers because he wanted to make sure that he
personally talked to Clinton to give her the news, said the person
close to him. Edwards' wife, Elizabeth, who has said she thinks
Clinton has the superior health care plan, did not travel with him
to Michigan and is not part of the endorsement.


      David "Mudcat" Saunders, a chief adviser for Edwards on rural
affairs during his presidential campaign, said the timing of the
endorsement couldn't be better given Obama's resounding loss in
West Virginia on Tuesday.


      "For Barack Obama, I think he ought to kiss Johnny Edwards on
the lips to kill this 41-point loss," he added. "The story is not
going to be the 41-point loss. It's going to be Edwards'
endorsement."


      Edwards waged a scrappy underdog campaign for the Democratic
nomination, always outshone by the historic nature of Obama
possibly being the first black nominee and Clinton the first woman.
But Edwards was considered their strongest contender, even as he
balanced the rigors of the campaign with the personal blow of
Elizabeth's returning breast cancer.


      Edwards promoted progressive policy ideas and came in second to
Obama in Iowa before coming in third in the following three
contests and dropping out in New Orleans, the location a reminder
of his attention to poverty.


      Obama has a total of 1,887 delegates, leaving him just 139
delegates short of the 2,026 needed to clinch the nomination.
Clinton has 1,718 delegates, according to the latest tally by The
Associated Press.


      Edwards has 19 pledged delegates won in three states: Iowa, New
Hampshire and South Carolina. Most of the those delegates have
already been selected, meaning they are technically free to support
whomever they choose at the party's national convention, regardless
of Edwards' endorsement.

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Democrat John Edwards is endorsing
former rival Barack Obama, fresh signs of the party establishment
embracing the likely nominee even as Hillary Rodham Clinton refuses
to abandon her increasingly long-shot candidacy.


Edwards backs Obama

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