CLINTON CHAIRMAN OPEN TO FLORIDA, MICHIGAN COMPROMISE

Senator Clinton’s campaign chairman, Terry McAuliffe, said yesterday that Mrs. Clinton might be willing to accept a resolution to the dispute over Florida and Michigan, in which only half of each state’s delegation was seated at the Democratic National Convention in August. “We certainly might, you bet,” Mr. McAuliffe said when asked directly about the proposal in an interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” The comments signaled a possible softening by the Clinton campaign, which has steadfastly called for the entire Florida and Michigan delegations to be seated according to the results of their largely uncontested January primaries, which Mrs. Clinton won. While the comments raise the possibility of a compromise, awarding just 50% of the delegates would make it even harder for Mrs. Clinton to overtake Senator Obama in the race for delegates. A former chairman of the Democratic National Committee, Mr. McAuliffe, noted that party rules allow for a maximum penalty of 50% of a state’s delegates, not the 100% that were stripped from Florida and Michigan when they disregarded the party’s calendar and scheduled early primaries.

OBAMA TOUTS COAL SUPPORT IN NEW AD

Senator Obama is touting his support for the coal industry in a new television ad running in Kentucky, which holds its Democratic primary on May 20. The 30-second spot features a coal miner from Illinois praising Mr. Obama on the issue, and the ad cites his support for expanding “clean coal.” “Washington, D.C., is not listening to us. Barack understands it,” the coal miner, Randy Henry, says in the ad. The Republican National Committee says the ad is misleading, citing Mr. Obama’s support for additional taxes on coal and his votes against legislation that would help the industry.

LIEBERMAN CRITICIZES OBAMA ON FOREIGN POLICY

Senator Obama may be a strong supporter of Israel, but his pledge to engage in direct talks with Iran would undermine the security of the Jewish state, Senator Lieberman said yesterday. Mr. Lieberman, an independent who caucuses with the Democrats, said on CNN’s “Late Edition” that Mr. Obama’s willingness to sit down with President Ahmadinejad “gives prestige to a terrible America- and Israel-hater” and “threatens our allies in the region.” The Connecticut senator has been campaigning for Senator McCain after endorsing him in December. “I don’t question Senator Obama’s commitment to the security of the state of Israel,” he said. “I’m saying when it comes to dealing with enemies, both in the Middle East and around the world, Senator McCain has more experience, more balance, knows when to be tough, knows when to be soft.”

EDWARDS SAYS OBAMA NOMINATION IS ‘LIKELY’

John Edwards is keeping his spot on the sidelines of the Democratic presidential battle, but he now says that Senator Obama is the party’s “likely nominee.” The former North Carolina senator, who dropped his second White House bid earlier this year, praised Senator Clinton for running a tough race, but he characterized her chances for overtaking Mr. Obama as slim. “You cannot make a compelling case for the math,” Mr. Edwards said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.” While he said she had every right to continue to campaign and make the case for her own candidacy, he offered a polite warning that she “be really careful that she’s not damaging our prospects” by attacking Mr. Obama and giving an upper hand to Republicans.

SUPERDELEGATE STAKES

Senator Obama picked up one more superdelegate endorsement yesterday, extending his overall delegate lead and moving one small step closer to securing the Democratic nomination. A California superdelegate who serves on the board of the Young Democrats of America, Crystal Strait, pledged her vote to Mr. Obama yesterday, citing his commitment to young voters and his demonstrated ability to draw them to the polls. Mr. Obama has rolled out more than a dozen superdelegate endorsements in recent days as the party begins to close ranks around his candidacy. For the first time, he has surpassed Senator Clinton in superdelegate support, erasing one of the few remaining metrics in which she had led the Democratic race.

DELEGATE COUNT

DEMOCRATS

OBAMA: 1,865.5

CLINTON: 1,697