Facing the biggest day in the history of presidential primaries, White House hopefuls scattered Saturday from Los Angeles to the Deep South, promising results and offering reassurances on the last weekend before nearly half the country goes to the polls.
Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton pitched for Latino and black support in the Los Angeles area, then took a shot at Barack Obama by comparing him to President Bush. Obama ventured into red-state territory, drawing a crowd of 14,000 in Boise, where he assured Idaho gun owners he would not confiscate their weapons. He also picked up the endorsement of the Spanish-language newspaper La Opinion.
On the Republican side, Mitt Romney left the campaign trail to attend the funeral of Gordon B. Hinckley, leader of the candidate's Mormon church. Rivals John McCain and Mike Huckabee traveled the South, touting their conservative credentials.
The candidates are facing something unprecedented: a virtual national primary on Tuesday, when voters in 24 states cast ballots.
While some analysts say McCain could lock down the GOP nomination with a strong showing, Romney disagreed. "I intend to keep on battling," the former Massachusetts governor told reporters, though he hinted staff cuts may lie ahead.
In Salt Lake City, Romney joined other Mormon luminaries at the Hinckley funeral, including Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah). The event drew renewed attention to Romney's Mormon faith, a source of concern for some evangelical voters.
Before leaving Utah, Romney assailed McCain in satellite interviews with TV stations across the country. "This is a battle in some respects for the heart and soul of the Republican Party," he said. "Are we going to turn left, or are we going to stay in the house that Reagan built by holding firm to conservative principles?"
Later, Romney compared McCain to Clinton, citing the Arizona senator's record on taxes, immigration and global warming, among other issues. "I don't think we get to the White House by getting as close to Hillary Clinton as we can without being Hillary Clinton," Romney told cheering supporters in Edina, Minn.
McCain all but ignored his rivals as he stumped in Tennessee, Alabama and Georgia. In Nashville, he called for spending cuts and lower taxes to buoy the sagging economy. Throughout the day, McCain swatted away reporters' questions about criticism from prominent conservatives, insisting he will unite the party. At a pair of Southern stops, he sought to burnish his conservative credentials by stressing his opposition to abortion.
