(AP) - IN THE HEADLINES

Obama bids for a delegate milestone in Oregon, Kentucky primaries ... Veterans' college aid bill a likely issue in presidential campaign ... Obama's crowds reflect enthusiasm, but also careful crowd building

Oregon, Kentucky primaries latest to shape race

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) _ Barack Obama is reaching for a symbolic tipping point in the Oregon and Kentucky primaries Tuesday _ a majority of pledged delegates offered in the Democratic presidential contest.

Hillary Rodham Clinton vowed there was "no way that this is going to end anytime soon" as she campaigned Monday across Kentucky, a state she was expected to win.

Obama was favored in Oregon, where supporters delivered the largest crowd of his campaign on Sunday.

Regardless of who prevails in those states, Obama is on track to secure the largest share of delegates who could be won in the long slog of primaries and caucuses since the snows of January.

If there were to be practical dividends in that achievement, they would come from persuading the remaining uncommitted superdelegates _ the party insiders who are not tied to primary or caucus results _ to pick up the pace of their endorsements.

Enough of them have done so already to transform Clinton's hopes for the nomination from improbable in recent weeks to worse.

Still, the New York senator soldiered on through event after event, ending her night Monday in Louisville before a crowd of several hundred, her voice raspy from the stage.

McCain targeted for opposing vets college aid bill

WASHINGTON (AP) _ Democrats and their allies are ready to convert Sen. John McCain's stance on college aid for military veterans into a presidential campaign cause.

McCain, the all-but-nominated Republican presidential candidate, opposes a Democratic-backed bill that would significantly expand the breadth of education benefits for veterans, first adopted for those returning from World War II. Democrats want the proposal included in a war spending bill the Senate is scheduled to vote on this week.

Sen. Barack Obama, McCain's most likely general election opponent, already has raised objections to McCain's resistance. And on Tuesday, a veterans' group that has been critical of the war in Iraq is launching an ad in Washington to pressure McCain to change his mind.

By taking issue with McCain on the subject of veterans, Democrats hope to weaken one of his biggest assets _ his personal biography as a former Navy pilot who became a prisoner of the North Vietnamese and endured torture at the hands of his captors.

The legislation, sponsored by Democratic Sen. Jim Webb of Virginia and Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, also veterans of Vietnam, would guarantee full tuition payments to veterans at any public school in their home state. Its expected cost is $52 billion over 10 years.

McCain says the legislation is too expensive and has proposed his own version, which would increase the monthly benefit available to most veterans to $1,500 from $1,100. It would not offer the equivalent of a full scholarship.

Large crowds at rallies an Obama trademark

NEW YORK (AP) _ Barack Obama is well known for his ability to draw large crowds, but 75,000 in Portland, Ore.?

The mass of people who converged by foot and by boat on a Willamette River park on Sunday was the largest rally to date for the Democratic presidential hopeful. Organizers credited the sunny, spring day and enthusiasm for Obama in the well-educated, largely liberal city as key factors helping drive turnout.

But the Illinois senator already has seen plenty of eye-popping crowds.

Thirty-five thousand crammed into Independence Park in Philadelphia last month, and 30,000 filled a Columbia, S.C., arena in December to cheer him at a rally with Oprah Winfrey. His events often dwarf Hillary Rodham Clinton's, even though her crowds are far larger than most political candidates ever enjoy.

Praised for its attention to the mechanics of grass-roots organizing, Obama's campaign has taken the art of crowd building to an unprecedented level _ using networking tools and old-fashioned word of mouth to drive turnout, which aids fundraising and organizational efforts.

"Rallies are very helpful for three major reasons: to provide momentum, allow a large number of people to be exposed to Barack and create an organizational mechanism to win the election," deputy campaign manager Steve Hildebrand said.

THE DEMOCRATS

Hillary Rodham Clinton holds an election night rally in Louisville, Ky. Barack Obama speaks to supporters at a rally in Des Moines, Iowa.

THE REPUBLICANS

John McCain talks to voters in Miami.

QUOTE OF THE DAY:

"He and I are in a big argument right now because I said we should talk not just to our friends, but we should talk to our enemies. He wants to pursue the same failed policies of George Bush, talking tough and not getting anything done. We've got to change our foreign policy." _ Barack Obama, discussing his foreign policy differences with John McCain.

STAT OF THE DAY:

Democrats have won Oregon in the last four presidential elections. The last time Kentucky went Democratic was in 1996.

Compiled by Ann Sanner and Jerry Estill.