05/17/2008

By BRAD CAIN and JULIA SILVERMAN  / Associated Press

Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton made her final in-person pitch to Oregon voters Friday, one day before her chief rival, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama is due to criss-cross the state for a series of high-profile rallies and town halls.

Clinton began the day on the outskirts of Eugene, touring a subdivision dotted with empty lots and unsold homes that are unlikely to be sold until the economy improves and the credit crunch eases.

Later, she spent an hour fielding questions from undecided voters for a town hall meeting that was televised statewide, a sort of consolation prize for the Oregon debates to which she had challenged Obama, invitations that he declined.

It was a valedictory tour for Clinton, whose campaign had hoped for a come-from-behind victory in Oregon, but has been confronted with polls suggesting that Obama holds a near-insurmountable lead in the state.

Clinton began the day in Junction City, where homeowners Marv and Sandy Mehlbrech, who are retired, talked about the housing slump, the high number of foreclosures and surging gas prices during an hour-long sitdown with Clinton in the family's living room.

Sandy Mehlbrech at the end urged Clinton to remain in the race against Obama, despite his lead in pledged Democratic delegates.

"Please stay in the race," she told Clinton. "I know there are so many people that believe in you."

Mehlbrech later told reporters she had already voted for Clinton in the Oregon primary, the only state to conduct all its elections exclusively by mail.

"I don't want her to give up, even though people keep saying that it's time," Mehlbrech said.

Her husband said he admires Clinton for refusing to end her candidacy at this point, even though "the odds are really against her."

"She's not a quitter," Marv Mehlbrech said. "She's still at home plate swinging away. This is her final splash."

Later that day in Portland, Clinton fielded questions on everything from alternative energy to education policy in front of about 100 voters, who gave her a standing ovation at the end of the appearance.

She told them she had been infuriated by President Bush's comments earlier this week suggesting that Democrats want to "appease" terrorists during a speech to Israel's Knesset, and called instead for diplomatic efforts like those that helped bring an end to the Cold War.

And in response to a question about what core values motivate her, she told the audience that she falls back on her religious faith, adding ruefully, "If you've lived my life, you need faith."

Clinton said she'd been "declared dead" ever since losing the Iowa caucuses back in January, but that she's still determined to stay in the race, adding "the more people who vote, the better chance we have to determine who is the stronger candidate against John McCain."

But a new poll issued this past week by Portland pollster Tim Hibbitts showed Obama leading Clinton 55 percent to 35 percent among Oregon voters surveyed.

Emily Nazarov, an audience member who said she'd already voted for Clinton, said she didn't feel her vote was in vain, though polls show Obama with a huge lead over Clinton in Oregon.

"This primary vote is my dream card," she said. "I'm taking my chance to vote for my dream."

Clinton canceled her planned Saturday appearances in Oregon, but former President Bill Clinton and daughter Chelsea will campaign for her on Saturday and Sunday.

Also on Friday, the Obama campaign announced the Illinois senator will be accompanied at least on some stops by his wife, Michelle, in her first trip to Oregon of the campaign cycle.

In a conference call with Oregon reporters, Obama campaign manager David Plouffe said campaign officials consider Oregon "a critical contest," and believe that a win in the state will give them the national majority of pledged delegates, who unlike superdelegates are bound to vote for a particular candidate.

He added that the campaign considers Oregon and Washington battleground states for the general election, and said the weeks spent campaigning for the primary have allowed Obama's staff to build strong ties in the state and get familiar with its unique vote-by-mail system.

"We want to be active in all the battleground states in June," Plouffe said. "There is not going to be much of an interruption here. We are going to turn right to the general election in Oregon."

The state has a high percentage of nonaffiliated voters who could not participate in Oregon's closed primaries, Plouffe noted, and the campaign will be reaching out to them, as well as former Clinton supporters.

Political analyst Jim Moore said Hillary Clinton is facing an uphill battle in Oregon, where Obama has energized Democrats and attracted independent voters to the party, even getting some crossover support from Republican voters.

"It's part of a national trend of enthusiasm for Obama," Moore said. "I'm actually kind of surprised she came back."

It's not yet clear whether Obama will be in Oregon on Tuesday, primary day, though he is scheduled to be in Florida early Wednesday morning.

He's scheduled to make a stop in Roseburg Saturday morning. On Sunday, he will speak to seniors at an invitation-only forum in Gresham and headline a rally at Portland's Waterfront Park before heading to an evening town hall in Pendleton.