Obama Superdelegate Floodgates To Open?

Senator Barack Obama's campaign began a concerted effort on Monday to rally undecided superdelegates around him so he can claim the Democratic presidential nomination after the primaries end on Tuesday night.

It appears likely that superdelegates in other states will be joined by some, if not all, of Oklahoma's last four undeclared superdelegates.

Sensing an opportunity to shut down the nominating contest, Obama's campaign advisers said that they were orchestrating an endorsement of Obama by at least eight Senate and House members who had pledged to remain uncommitted until the primaries ended, and that the endorsements would come the moment the South Dakota polls closed on Tuesday night.

The group will be led by Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa, who on Monday met with three other uncommitted Democratic senators — Ken Salazar of Colorado, Thomas Carper of Delaware and Benjamin Cardin of Maryland — at the offices of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee in what Salazar called a unity session.

Congressman James Clyburn of South Carolina, the No. 3 Democrat in the House and the highest-ranking African-American in Congress, set his formal endorsement of Obama for Tuesday, and he was urging others to do the same.

Other lawmakers and party insiders were also sending word that they would be falling in line behind Obama beginning as early as Tuesday morning.

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