Rivals rally support in key states

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- The Democratic presidential contenders are targeting key states and swing voters in the closing hours before the biggest campaign test of the season, with front-running John Kerry pledging "a real conversation with America."\nSeven states and 269 pledged delegates are in the mix Tuesday and the rivals raced from stop to stop across the country. Kerry targeted all seven, while some candidates looked for targets of opportunity. Kerry continued to collect big-name endorsements.\nHoward Dean, the former front-runner, continued to pound Kerry for his financial ties with special interests, saying those links cast doubt on the Massachusetts senator's claim to be the champion of the battle against those interests.\n"He misrepresented himself, grossly misrepresented himself, as a candidate who would take on special interests in Washington," the former Vermont governor said.\n"My record responds to that," Kerry replied to reporters during a stop in Fargo, N.D. "I have fought powerful special interests every step of the way."\nMeanwhile, Kerry was continuing to pick up big-name endorsements, winning the backing of the United Farm Workers union and Washington Gov. Gary Locke. Aides said the union's backing would give Kerry crucial support among Hispanics who are a key constituency in New Mexico and Arizona, both selecting delegates Tuesday.\nWashington state holds caucuses Saturday, and Kerry plans to head there and await returns Tuesday night, shifting his focus to the next test.\nRetired Gen. Wesley Clark focused on Oklahoma, where polls show he has the best shot at pulling off a badly needed win Tuesday night. He was joined by Mike McClintic, who as a 22-year-old private pulled Clark out of gunfire and protected him during a Vietnam firefight. "Mike, you saved my life," Clark said, shaking his hand at an Oklahoma rally.\nKerry held a similar reunion with Jim Rassmann, a Special Forces officer Kerry rescued in Vietnam.\nD-N.C. Sen. John Edwards was focused on South Carolina, where polls gave him the best chance of scoring a victory. He dismissed suggestions he could join Kerry as a running mate.\n"I think you should ask Senator Kerry whether he's interested in being vice president," said Edwards, his voice growing hoarse. "You can see I've been talking too much," he added.\nConnecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman touted the endorsements of newspapers in Seattle and South Carolina. "What this says is I have national support," he said.\nKerry spent Sunday in North Dakota, fulfilling his pledge to campaign in all seven states holding tests on Tuesday: Arizona, New Mexico, North Dakota, Delaware, Missouri, South Carolina and Oklahoma. Together they represent more than 12 percent of the 2,162 delegates needed to claim the Democratic nomination.\nKerry holds comfortable leads in polls in five of the states, and is competitive in the other two -- Oklahoma and South Carolina. His hope is a big win Tuesday night that likely would narrow the field.\nKerry's focus Monday was on New Mexico and Arizona, completing a one-week blitz of the seven states currently in play. Polls show him well ahead in both states, but surveys around the country detect a huge group of undecided voters, clearly large enough to sway the outcome.\n"This election has to be about more than words," said Kerry. "It's time to have a real conversation in America, it's time to make our politics meaningful. It's time to change."\nDean, the early front-runner, conceded he may not win any of the states Tuesday night, and was focusing on Washington and Michigan, which also holds caucuses Saturday.\nIf Kerry sweeps on Tuesday, it would jeopardize the campaigns of Clark and Edwards, leaving Kerry free to focus on Dean.\nDean and Kerry both opted to skip public financing, meaning they are not subject to spending limits -- but are not getting the federal matching money that is flowing to rival campaigns. Dean burned through much of the $41 million he raised hoping to score a knockout in early tests.\n"We took an enormous gamble and it didn't work," he said Sunday.\nDean said he wasn't ready to leave the race and was focused on winning delegates. He did say he had no plans to linger on if it became clear the nomination was out of reach.