US election at-a-glance: 15 Feb

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DAY IN A NUTSHELL

Civil rights leader and Georgia congressman John Lewis - previously a supporter of Hillary Clinton - declares that in his role as a superdelegate he will vote for Barack Obama at the Democratic convention, the New York Times reports. Hillary Clinton's campaign releases another advertisement in Wisconsin accusing Mr Obama of dodging televised debates in the state. John McCain and Mike Huckabee campaign hard in Wisconsin.

KEY QUOTES

"If Lewis breaks away, take whatever you thought Clinton's chances of winning the nomination before and divide that number by as much as two - those would be the odds of her winning now."Time's Mark Halperin on John Lewis's decision to back Barack Obama at the convention

He's going around issuing promissory notes on the future that he can't possibly redeem Charles Krauthammer on Barack ObamaWashington Post <a class="" href="/1/hi/world/americas/7245572.stm"> At-a-glance: 14 Feb</a>

"I am a candidate of, from and for the middle class of America."Hillary Clinton

"Obama has an astonishingly empty paper trail. He's going around issuing promissory notes on the future that he can't possibly redeem."Charles Krauthammer, Washington Post

"You can bet my father would be itching to get out on the campaign trail working to elect him even if he disagreed with him on a number of issues."Michael Reagan, son of Ronald, believes his father would have backed John McCain.

"[The rock band] Boston has never endorsed a political candidate, and with all due respect, would not start by endorsing a candidate who is the polar opposite of most everything Boston stands for."Tom Scholz, founder of the band Boston, objects to Mike Huckabee's use of the Boston song "More Than a Feeling" on the campaign trail

NUMBER NEWS

Two polls of Texan voters published today paint very different pictures of the state of the race in the Lonestar State.

A Rasmussen poll suggests that Hillary Clinton has a comfortable lead in Texas, with 54% to Barack Obama's 38%.

But an ARG poll, also published today, gives Mr Obama the lead in Texas, with 48% to Mrs Clinton's 42%.

Mrs Clinton is relying on a win in Texas on 4 March to regain the initiative in the race, after Mr Obama's run of victories in February, so she will be hoping that the Rasmussen poll is nearer to the truth than the ARG survey.

Both Rasmussen and ARG agree that in the Republican race in Texas, John McCain has a modest lead over Mike Huckabee.

Rasmussen has Mr McCain on 45%, to Mr Huckabee's 37%, while ARG has Mr McCain on 42%, six points ahead of Mr Huckabee on 36%.

DAILY PICTURE

Supporters of Barack Obama are eager to get photographs of him at a rally in Milwaukee, Wisconsin