Clinton looks to the people as Obama seeks Edward's backing

A struggling Hillary Clinton today courted working class families with a detailed economic plan seeking votes in tomorrow’s Wisconsin primary.

Meanwhile rival Barack Obama was looking to former Democratic hopeful John Edwards for backing in a bid to widen his lead in the tight race for the nomination.

On the Republican side John McCain was expected to get former President George Bush’s endorsement, another step in the veteran senator’s fight win unite the party in the face of wary conservatives who have viewed his candidacy with scepticism.

Mrs Clinton has been battling to halt Mr Obama’s streak of eight wins, particularly if she hopes for any momentum going into the bigger state contests in Texas and Ohio on March 4 that are key to her push to be the US’s first female president.

The 13-page blueprint for fixing the economy, released by her campaign today, details the former first lady’s plans to achieve universal health care, address the home foreclosure crisis and develop jobs for the middle class.

These are core issues now for a majority of Americans amid fears of a recession stoked by the subprime mortgage and credit crunch, and are likely to resonate well in states like Wisconsin and Ohio with agricultural or industrial economies.

Polls show a tight race in Wisconsin, even as Mrs Clinton’s advisers have publicly downplayed their expectation for the state. Wisconsin offers the winner a hefty 92 delegates while Mr Obama’s native Hawaii, which holds its caucuses also on Tuesday, offers 20.

Mr Obama met in secret with Mr Edwards yesterday. His campaign team confirmed the meeting, but would not comment on the possibility of an endorsement.

Mr Edwards dropped out of the Democratic race after failing to win any of the earlier state races. Both Democratic candidates are actively seeking his support because of his appeal to working-class Democrats who are heavily represented in Ohio’s primary and Pennsylvania’s April 22 contest.

Mr Obama, who usurped Mrs Clinton as the leader by a slender margin last week, was campaigning today in Wisconsin, where he has been for most of the week. Mrs Clinton arrived in Wisconsin on Saturday after spending most of the week campaigning in Ohio and Texas.

In the Republican race, Mr McCain, a former prisoner-of-war, has struggled to win over conservatives who view him as a political maverick out of step with the party on key issues like tax cuts, immigration and campaign finance reform.

Mr McCain also competes in Wisconsin, with 40 delegates at stake, but the race is essentially over as he has 903 delegates to Mike Huckabee’s 245. A total of 1,191 delegates are needed to secure the party’s nomination, and Mr Huckabee has refused to drop out of the race until his rival reaches that number.

The endorsement by the elder Bush, the patriarch of the Bush family, comes on the heels of former rival Mitt Romney’s endorsement last week.

The former president is viewed as a moderate, and his endorsement may not directly help Mr McCain win over conservatives. But it sends a clear message to all Republicans that they must back him if the party hopes to successfully confront either Mr Obama or Mrs Clinton in the general election.