Obama rakes in $1.5 million from supporters in Oregon

WASHINGTON — With a month to go before Oregon's May 20 Democratic primary, the state's voters have contributed almost three times as much to Sen. Barrack Obama's presidential campaign as they have to Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's campaign, according to the most recent disclosure reports filed with Federal Election Commission.

With the $554,000 Obama received in March, he has now received almost $1.56 million from state contributors for his campaign. Oregon voters have given Clinton $540,000, including $119,241 in March.

Nationally, Clinton ended March with less than one-fourth of the money that Obama has in the bank. Clinton had less than $10 million available for the remaining primary battles compared with Obama's primary $42 million.

At the same time, Clinton disclosed $10.3 million in debt, much of it owed to her cadre of political consultants, suggesting that if the campaign were to end now, she would be financially under water. Obama had $768,000 in unpaid bills.

Clinton's debt reached $10.3 million, as her bill owed to the company co-founded by her former chief strategist, Mark Penn, increased to $4.6 million, up from $2.5 million the previous month.

Clinton strategist Howard Wolfson told reporters Monday he estimated Obama has spent $11.2 million to Clinton's $4.8 million.

Donors have given Clinton $189 million. She lent her campaign an additional $5 million.

Clinton ended March with $31.7 million in the bank to Obama's $51 million. But her total includes $22 million that can only be used in the general election. Obama has raised less than $10 million for the general election.

Both out-raised presumptive Republican nominee John McCain, who received $15.4 million in March and $80.6 million since 2007. He is relying on the Republican National Committee to help fund his campaign.

McCain woos black voters

SELMA, Ala. — Seeking support in rural Alabama, Republican presidential candidate John McCain said Monday he knows it will be difficult to win over black voters who have supported Democrats for generations.

"I am aware the African-American vote has been very small in favor of the Republican Party," McCain told reporters. "I am aware of the challenges, and I am aware of the fact that there will be many people who will not vote for me, but I'm going to be the president of all the people."

McCain delivered a speech near the Edmund Pettus Bridge, recalling the bloody beatings of civil-rights marchers there in 1965 as he embarked on a weeklong tour of places that suffer from poverty and inattention.

McCain's appearance drew about 100 people, most of them white, in a town that is 70 percent black.

From Selma, McCain went to the remote Alabama town of Gee's Bend, visiting a quilt-making collective run by generations of black women known for their intricate and bold designs. He bought three of the larger quilts, which carried price tags of up to $2,500.

Michael Moore endorses Obama

LOS ANGELES — Filmmaker Michael Moore endorsed Barack Obama on his Web site Monday, saying that Obama's experience and voting record aren't as important as his "basic decency" and ability to inspire. "What we are witnessing is not just a candidate but a profound, massive public movement for change," Moore writes. "My endorsement is more for Obama The Movement than it is for Obama the candidate."

The 54-year-old Oscar-winning "Farenheit 9/11" director also criticized Hillary Rodham Clinton.

"Over the past two months, the actions and words of Hillary Clinton have gone from being merely disappointing to downright disgusting," he writes, saying that she has tried to "smear" Obama — "Like you were nuts. Like you were a bigot stoking the fires of stupidity."

Most of Moore's ire is directed at the Bush administration "and the permanent, irreversible damage it has done to our people and to this world."

"I, like the majority of Americans, have been pummeled senseless for eight long years," he writes. "That's why I will join millions of citizens and stagger into the voting booth come November, like a boxer in the 12th round, all bloodied and bruised with one eye swollen shut, looking for the only thing that matters — that big 'D' on the ballot."

Also

The North Carolina Democratic Party on Monday dropped plans to host a presidential debate this weekend, citing time constraints and logistical issues. Barack Obama had declined to commit to the event, tentatively scheduled for Sunday, saying he wasn't sure it would fit into his schedule. The Illinois senator previously had agreed to debate in North Carolina on April 19. Hillary Rodham Clinton had agreed to the later date, and the state's Democratic leaders had urged Obama to join her.

Seattle Times news services