PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania (CNN) – Joining wife Hillary Clinton at a campaign rally on the eve of the Pennsylvania primary, former President Bill Clinton argued that if Democratic candidates were awarded delegates the same way as Republicans, his wife would be beating Barack Obama in the race for the 2,025 delegates needed to secure the Democratic nomination.
“If we were under the Republican system, which is more like the Electoral College, she'd have a 300 delegate lead here,” Clinton told the Washington Post. “I mean, Senator McCain is already the nominee because they chose a system to produce that result, and we don't have a nominee here, because the Democrats chose a system that prevents that result.”
Overall, Obama leads Hillary Clinton by 144 delegates - 1,648 to 1,504 - according to CNN's delegate count. However, Clinton still has 24 more superdelegates than Obama, leading 254 to 230.
Many states in the Republican primary race award delegates on a winner-take-all basis, whereas every state on the Democratic side uses a proportional system.
The former president has been shuttling back and forth between eastern and western Pennsylvania over the past few days, shoring up votes for his wife in this crucial primary contest.
(CNN) - Elizabeth Edwards, wife of former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards, is tangling with John McCain’s campaign again – this time in a war of words with the candidate himself.
In an interview on ABC’s This Week on Sunday, the presumptive Republican nominee told George Stephanopoulos that Elizabeth Edwards had taken a “cheap shot” at him by saying that he had enjoyed government healthcare for his entire life – and that all Americans should be able to choose from the same insurance options available to members of Congress and military personnel.
“It’s a cheap shot but I did have a period of time where I didn’t have very good healthcare, I had it from another government,” said McCain, referring to the years he spent as a prisoner of war. “Look, I know what it’s like not to have healthcare.”
And when laying out his policy disputes with Democrats over the issue, he added, “in all due respect to Elizabeth Edwards.”
Edwards – now a Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress –responded Monday in a post on the Wonk Room blog.
[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2008/images/04/21/art.tonysnow1.gi.jpg caption="The former White House spokesman joins CNN Monday night.]WASHINGTON (CNN) - Former White House press secretary Tony Snow will join CNN as a conservative commentator beginning Monday.
CNN president Jon Klein announced that Snow, a long-time political observer with a longstanding news background, will contribute to CNN as the network continues to broadcast winning political coverage.
Snow most recently served as press secretary to President Bush. For 10 years, beginning in 1996, he appeared on Fox News Channel as the host of Fox News Sunday, Weekend Live with Tony Snow and other programs. Before joining Fox, Snow served as a substitute "From the Right" co-host for CNN's Crossfire.
Snow has also been a newspaper writer, radio host and columnist, and a speechwriter in the administration of the first President Bush.
[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2008/images/04/21/art.cindy.cnn.jpg caption="Cindy McCain appeared on The View Monday."](CNN)— Cindy McCain on Monday beat back accusations her husband is known to have a bad temper, saying it’s often mistaken for his passion for the issues.
“He is passionate about the future of this country,” Mrs. McCain, wife of presumptive Republican Presidential nominee John McCain , said while serving as a co-host on ABC’s “The View.” “Some people mistake that for temper.” Mrs. McCain also insisted the issue is one of the biggest misconceptions people have of her husband.
The Arizona senator defended the claims again Sunday after The Washington Post devoted a portion of its front page to a lengthy investigation into McCain’s past.
Earlier this month McCain told CNN’s Dana Bash voters should expect him to get angry sometimes.
"When I see corruption in Washington, when I see wasting needlessly of their tax dollars, when I see people behaving badly—they expect me to get angry, and I will get angry," he said. "Because I won’t stand for corruption, and I won’t stand for waste of their tax dollars and I will demand that people serve their country first and the special interests second."
Speaking on Monday, Cindy McCain also said while she is reserved about her place in politics, she is excited about having being part of “American history.”
FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
Money talks, and these days John McCain is getting an earful. And it's not good.
McCain raised $15.4 million in March. Barack Obama raised more than $41 million in March, and Hillary Clinton raised $20 million in March.
Overall, McCain has raised one third of the $240 million Obama has raised and less than half of Clinton's total. The Los Angeles Times reports that Obama has raised more in small donations than what McCain has raised in his entire campaign.
McCain's advisers and some Republicans insist he'll have enough money to run a competitive race in the general election, but not everyone is convinced.
One thing working in McCain's favor is the Republican National Committee, which is overwhelmingly outraising the Democratic National Committee.
The Republicans have about $31 million in the bank, compared to $5 million for the DNC.
To read more and contribute to the Cafferty File discussion click here
[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2008/images/03/13/art.blitzer.jpg caption="CNN Anchor Wolf Blitzer"] (CNN) - Pennsylvania voters must now decide who will be a stronger Democratic presidential nominee in the general election against John McCain. The latest polls show Hillary Clinton ahead of Barack Obama - but those same polls show about 7 percent of the likely Democratic voters remain undecided. They could certainly tip the balance.
State officials also say that hundreds of thousands of new voters have registered – many of them about to vote for the first time. They represent a new element of the political equation, and they, too, could tip the balance. They represent a surprise factor.
In other words, we could be in for a long night tomorrow as the results come in. I will be anchoring our coverage from the CNN Election Center, beginning with The Situation Room at 4 p.m. ET.
If Clinton wins, even by a narrow margin, we will then gear up for the May 6 primaries in North Carolina and Indiana. I don’t think she would drop out. If she loses, however, her campaign would have to make a very tough decision.
[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2008/images/04/21/art.wwe.cnn.jpg caption="The candidates will appear on WWE Monday."](CNN) - The road to the White House apparently runs through WWE Monday Night Raw.
All three presidential candidates are scheduled to make taped appearances on tonight's episode, hoping to tap into the show's approximately 5 million weekly viewers. The messages will also come on the eve of the crucial Democratic presidential primary in Pennsylvania.
WWE says the appearances follow an invitation both Clinton and Obama to appear live on the show to settle the prolonged Democratic presidential race in the wrestling ring. This is not the first time the WWE has waded into politics: it unsuccessfully challenged Al Gore and George Bush to agree to an arm wrestling match in 2000. It has also launched a voter registration drive called Smackdown Your Vote.
Read what Clinton, aka "Hill-Rod," and Obama will say tonight after the jump. (The McCain campaigns have not released their scripts.)
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