Clinton, Obama rest up for long-haul race

By Jeff Mason

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama took a much-needed rest from their U.S. presidential campaigns on Easter Sunday as their tight race for the Democratic nomination looked set to drag on for months.

Republican John McCain, who has locked up his party's nomination, returned from an overseas trip where he tried to polish his foreign policy credentials and prepared for a fundraising swing through Western states this week.

While McCain concentrated on travel and raising money, the Democrats, who pulled in record amounts of funds last month, focused on the next prize in the primary race -- Pennsylvania, which holds its nominating contest on April 22.

The contest is crucial for Clinton, who is behind Obama in the number of accumulated pledged delegates who, at a party convention in August, will determine the Democratic nominee for the Nov. 4 election.

Her campaign said on Saturday that strong fundraising showed Democrats were not ready for the Obama-Clinton race to end, but it had to knock down suggestions that she was facing pressure to drop out.

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, an ambassador and energy secretary under President Bill Clinton, seemed close to calling for the former first lady to step aside when he endorsed Obama on Friday.

"My affection and admiration for Hillary Clinton and President Bill Clinton will never waver," he said when announcing his endorsement.

"It is time, however, for Democrats to stop fighting amongst ourselves and to prepare for the tough fight we will face against John McCain in the fall."