Hillary Clinton has been hinting at running alongside current competitor Barack Obama: “That may be where this is headed. But of course we have to decide who is on the top…” Ain’t it always… [Newsday]

It’s a big day in America today! If you close your eyes and take a big whiff, you can smell the distinct scent of democratic action. It’s sweet, yes, but with a bit of…taint.

A new study from the Williams Institute in Arizona concludes that queer couples make less than their straight counterparts, especially when there are children involved. “Gay men earn less than straight men,” said Adam Romero, a public-policy fellow who co-authored the study. “Even when you hold constant occupation, race, geography, they earn less and that’s something economists would call discrimination.”
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“When you only look for households where children are present, same-sex couples do much, much worse,” he said.

Same-sex parents in Arizona have lower median household incomes, $39,000 a year compared with $54,000 for married couples. Those numbers are pretty distressing, especially considering that all of the presidential candidates tout our nation’s commitment to equality.
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Hillary Clinton’s campaign may come to an end this week. And, on the eve of a decisive primary, we can’t help but wonder if she made a fatal mistake: downplaying her femininity.
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Stop the presses! Hillary Clinton reportedly raked in $35 million worth of donations during the month of February. In related news, Clinton’s trailing Obama by four points in Texas, where eight percent of voters are still undecided. She’s up by the same amount, however, in Pennsylvania, but twelve percent of Democratic primary voters are torn, so it’s kind of a mixed review. [Politico and Rasmussen]

Barack Obama’s probably feeling pretty confident right now - he’s won the last eleven primaries, has eaten into Hillary Clinton’s base and keeps climbing in national numbers. It seems the Senator’s just two states away from clinching the Democratic presidential nomination. If he wins in Texas and Ohio on Tuesday - well, even Bill admits that Hillary’s campaign’s not going to make it.

One can’t get lazy, of course, which may explain why he’s now placing the above “generic” LGBT ad in gay newspapers in Ohio and Texas. Oh yeah, Obama’s definitely stamping on Clinton’s queer territory. It’s a crazy strategy, yes, and may just push Obama over the edge…
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It’s not necessarily an “endorsement,” but lesbian funny lady showed some via satellite love for Hillary Clinton yesterday.
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The rumors are true!

Former presidential candidate Chris Dodd officially endorsed Barack Obama this morning. Dodd wrote in an email to supporters: I’m deeply proud to be the first 2008 Democratic presidential candidate to endorse Barack Obama. He is ready to be President. And I am ready to support him - to work with him and for him and help elect him our 44th President. Will Dodd’s support help push Obama further toward victory? It sure as shit couldn’t hurt.

Read the rest of Dodd’s very special message, after the jump…
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Rumor has it that former presidential candidate Chris Dodd will endorse Barack Obama ahead of tonight’s Democratic debate in Cleveland, which could give the Senator an important bump: “Don’t forget that Mr. Dodd had received the backing of the powerful firefighters union, yet another labor group that could swing to the Obama camp.” [NY Times]

Ralph Nader officially threw his hat in the presidential campaign on Meet The Press yesterday. Most of you remember the horrific 2004 election, when Nader caught heat for sapping Democratic votes from John Kerry. Nader’s certainly aware of those critiques, but insists that his candidacy should not spell doom for the Democrats. And, if it does, that’s their problem: “if Democrats can’t landslide the Republicans this year, they ought to just wrap up, close down, emerge in a different form.” Democratic front runner Barack Obama doesn’t seem to agree, saying: “…His function as a perennial candidate is not putting food on the table of workers.” Obama also had harsh words for Nader’s 2000 … Continued…

John McCain denied the NY Times‘ assertion this week that the Republican candidate did favors for lobbyist Vicki Iseman’s clients, Alcalde & Fay and Paxon Communications. McCain insists he never had personal contact with officials from those companies, but a 2002 deposition says otherwise. Said McCain: “I was contacted by Mr. Paxson on this issue. He wanted their approval very bad for purposes of his business. I believe that Mr. Paxson had a legitimate complaint.” Gun smoking? [Newsweek]

It’s no secret that presidential contender Hillary Clinton and her campaign have hit a few rough spots as Barack Obama digs into her electoral base.

Clearly Mrs. Clinton’s sliding in the ranks and needed to make a good showing during last night’s CNN-sponsored debates. Multiple pundits and journalists are calling Clinton’s appearance a failure, but we’re not sure that’s entirely fair.
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The John McCain lobbyist scandal continues to unfold today. Some claim the NY Times published that unflattering, sensational lobbyist story for political purposes.

The implicit suggestion is that the Times wanted to take out the Republican’s wobbly conservative support. These predictions, however, may have fallen flat.
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Hillary Clinton has long been a gay ally. Who could forget how the former First Lady invited gays into the White House, tried to set up gay administration staffers and marched in New York City’s gay pride parade? No wonder so many gay people are throwing their vote behind the Senator from New York.

What would possess a gay person, then, to vote for Barack Obama, a fairly unknown candidate from Illinois? Our editor recently sat down with three of Obama’s key gay campaigners to figure out what makes them tick and tock for Obama’s presidential clock.

Read all about them - and so much more - after the jump.
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Barack Obama’s certainly smiling right about now. CNN, MSNBC and ABC are all projecting that the Senator from Illinois won the Wisconsin primary. Delegates haven’t been split yet. Hillary Clinton could still make headway in Hawaii, but those votes won’t be counted until well after our bedtime. McCain also won Wisconsin, as if we had to tell you that.

Interesting theory and worth noting: “The longer the primary fight between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama stretches out, the more it will weaken the fundraising capacity of the Democratic National Committee, a crucial source of financial and staff support for the general election nominee… The DNC’s bottom line, according to most experts, will not improve significantly until the party settles on a nominee. Once that happens, many donors, if past history is a guide, will give to the DNC to boost prospects of taking over the White House.” [HuffPo]