Clinton, Obama fight over Michigan, Florida

Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton bargained and bickered through intermediaries over the fate of 368 convention delegates from Florida and Michigan, a lingering dispute that threatened Democratic hopes for party unity at this summer's convention and in the fall campaign for the White House. Committee members met privately and struggled to hammer out a deal after hearing five hours of arguments from representatives of both states and from the campaigns. Although they agreed to seat the Florida delegation based on the outcome of the January primary -- with each delegate getting half a vote as a penalty -- they tussled over how to distribute delegates in Michigan where Obama's name was not on the ballot. Clinton's camp insisted Obama should not get any pledged delegates in Michigan since he chose not to put his name on the ballot. Obama's team insisted the only fair solution was to split the pledged delegates in half between the two campaigns. No matter the outcome of the convention Rules and Bylaws Committee meeting, the front-running Obama projected undiminished confidence he would wrap up the nomination shortly after the final primaries of the campaign on Tuesday.