TRAIL MIX: Newspaper Blogs Consider Obama/McCain Race

By: Emily Vaughan If John McCain faces Barack Obama in the general election (a scenario that's looking more and more likely) he'll have to do so without Mark McKinnon, one of his senior campaign advisors, Mark Silva reports on the Chicago Tribune's The Swamp. McKinnon, who also worked on President Bush's campaign, told Michele Norris on National Public Radio's All Things Considered that, while he backs McCain 100 percent, he would be uncomfortable being part of a campaign that would attack Obama.

Hillary Clinton made a stink about NBC anchor David Schuster's comment that her campaign was "pimping out" her daughter, but it turns out there wasn't much muscle behind it. Despite threats of dropping out, she will appear in the Feb. 26 Ohio debate, which will be aired on MSNBC, says Sarah Wheaton at The New York Times' The Caucus.

The Democratic race is close, so close, in fact, that both Obama and Clinton are gearing up to move their campaigns past the states and into American territories, says Mark Memmott at USA Today's On Politics. Guam's May 3 caucus and Puerto Rico's June 7 primary, the last, could give either candidate the delegate lead they need to take the nomination.

Obama is down one endorsement. Hulk Hogan revoked his support for Obama on The View yesterday, and toyed with supporting McCain, says Andrew Malcolm at the L.A. Times' Top of the Ticket. Hulk told the ladies of The View, "I don't know who I'm for anymore. I'm sort of confused. I'm here because I need help now. Therapy. McCain, when I see him serving his country when he was younger, I mean, everybody has stepped up to the plate and it's a very crucial time for change."

McCain will speak at the "Statesman and Cabinet Dinner," a gathering of Republican governors on Feb. 23 according to an email sent by RGA executive director Nick Ayers, reports Chris Cillizza at washingtonpost.com's The Fix. This could be a sign that this last base for Huckabee is getting ready to throw its weight behind McCain. Also, the conservative governors could be a potential pool of choices for McCain's running mate.

Joe Lieberman is straying farther and farther from his Democratic roots. Not only is he backing McCain for president, but now he's attending the Republican National Convention, and even said he's willing to speak says Laura Meckler at The Wall Street Journal's Washington Wire.

Mitt Romney was known to adjust his views every now and then, but apparently he isn't the only Republican rewriting history a little bit, says Peter Baker at washingtonpost.com's The Trail. McCain's Iraq stance is that he's always supported the war, just not the way it was waged, and in recent weeks has said "he was 'the only one' who called for then-Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld's resignation. The only trick is he never did, at least not publicly," Baker writes.

Democratic superdelegates have been receiving campaign donations from the top two presidential candidates, says Foon Rhee at The Boston Globe's Political Intelligence. Obama's political action committee has spent more than $694,000, and 34 of his 81 committed superdelegates received cash from the Illinois senator. Clinton's spent just $195,000, and only 13 of her 109 superdelegates were recipients.