As she returned to the Senate for the first time since ending her campaign for president, Hillary Rodham Clinton said Tuesday her goal was simply to be the best senator she could. "I am rolling up my sleeves and getting back to work," she declared.
Yet despite being New York's junior senator, ranking only 68th out of 100 in seniority without any promise of a leadership position, a committee chairmanship or even a bigger office, it was clear Clinton will be a far more prominent figure than the usual measures might suggest.
She retains the loyalty of millions of supporters, having drawn 18 million votes before conceding the Democratic nomination to Sen. Barack Obama three weeks ago. She and her husband, Bill, remain among the country's best-known political figures, and on Friday he said in a statement he was "committed to doing whatever he can and is asked to do to ensure Senator Obama is the next president of the United States."
Acknowledging her new position, Democratic colleagues gave her a standing ovation when she arrived at their weekly lunch meeting. On Friday, Hillary Clinton will join Obama in a symbolic visit to the New Hampshire town of Unity, where she and the Illinois senator each received 107 votes in the primary.
MCCAIN CALLS FOR ENERGY EFFICIENCY
Republican John McCain said Tuesday the federal government should practice the energy efficiency he preaches, pledging as president to switch official vehicles to green technologies and do the same for office buildings.
Expanding upon his ideas to address the nation's energy crisis, the Arizona senator also called for a redesign of the national power grid so power is better distributed where it's needed and the country has the capacity to run the electric vehicles that he wants automakers to supply.
POLL: OBAMA LEADS MCCAIN BY 12 POINTS
Buoyed by enthusiasm among Democrats and public concern over the economy, Obama has captured a sizable lead over McCain at the opening of the general election campaign for president, the Los Angeles Times/Bloomberg Poll has found.
In a two-man race between the major party candidates, registered voters chose Obama over McCain by 49 to 37 percent in the national poll conducted over the weekend. On a four-man ballot including independent candidate Ralph Nader and Libertarian Bob Barr, voters chose Obama over McCain by an even larger margin, 48 to 33 percent.
Obama's advantage, bigger in this poll than in most other national surveys, appears to stem in large part from his positions on domestic issues. Both Democrats and independent voters say Obama would do a better job than McCain at handling the nation's economic problems, the public's top concern.
COLEMAN AIDE TO WORK FOR MCCAIN
McCain, eager to put Minnesota in play for his presidential campaign, has turned to a top aide to Sen. Norm Coleman to run his press operations in the state.
Tom Steward, an ex-WCCO journalist and Coleman's communications director, said Tuesday he is leaving next week to run McCain's communications shop in Minnesota and points west. Steward's title will be communications director for McCain's North Mountain Regional Headquarters, which covers Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming and Idaho.
HOLLYWOOD TURNS OUT FOR OBAMA
The campaign trail took a detour down the red carpet.
Movie stars Samuel L. Jackson and John Malkovich, big-name directors and other celebrities turned out Tuesday night to contribute to Obama, who is counting on Hollywood's reliable support for Democrats and the Democratic National Committee.
NEWS SERVICES, KEVIN DIAZ
