Two Senators Come Forward to Declare Win for Obama

Following on the heels of Gov. Bill Richardson's endorsement of Barack Obama, are other Dem leaders coalescing around the candidacy of Obama and opening a dialogue to encourage Clinton to admit defeat and withdraw from the race? At least two have come forward since yesterday, as reported by Taegan Goddard:

Yesterday, Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT:
"I think it's very difficult to imagine how anyone can believe that Barack Obama can't be the nominee of the party. I think that's a foregone conclusion, in my view, at this juncture given where things are."

Today, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT):
"There is no way that Senator Clinton is going to win enough delegates to get the nomination. She ought to withdraw and she ought to be backing Senator Obama. Now, obviously that's a decision that only she can make frankly I feel that she would have a tremendous career in the Senate."

More good news for Obama's campaign -- he's now up by eight points in Gallup's daily national polling.

Meanwhile, DNC Chair Howard Dean is talking to the media about ending the contest by July 1st at the latest, after the June primaries. From the AP

Dean's supporters say he's working behind the scenes to resolve some of the issues. He's been consulting with party stalwarts about how to wrap up the nomination quickly after the voting ends in June, including former Vice President Al Gore, former presidential candidate John Edwards, former Sen. George Mitchell, former president Jimmy Carter, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, civil rights activist Jesse Jackson and former New York Gov. Mario Cuomo.

"There'll be some nasty fights if it goes to convention, and people will walk out,'' Dean said. "But I've also been talking to a fairly significant number of, by and large, nonaligned people about how we might resolve this.''

Dean wouldn't talk in detail about what the plan is, but it likely involves encouraging superdelegates to pick a candidate shortly after the voting ends. He said he will not encourage any delegate to vote one way or another.

Dean today on the CBS Early Show (with video):

"Well, I think the superdelegates have already been weighing in. I think that there's 800 of them and 450 of them have already said who they're for. I'd like the other 350 to say who they're at some point between now and the first of July so we don't have to take this into the convention."