http://abcnews.go.com/Politics...tory?id=4996520&page=1
Clinton to Concede Race to Obama Friday
Former First Lady Prepares to End Historic Presidential Bid Friday
By KATE SNOW, ELOISE HARPER, SUNLEN MILLER and JENNIFER PARKER
June 4, 2008 ?
Sen. Hillary Clinton said this afternoon on a conference call with supporters that she will appear alongside her supporters on Friday and drop out of the presidential race, Democratic sources tell ABC News' Kate Snow.
Despite the settled delegate math Obama needed 2,118 delegates to win and has 2,166 to Clinton's 1919, according to ABC News' delegate scorecard, Clinton had said she will take a few days to think about her next move.
But some of her most loyal backers have begun to publicly urge her to exit the race and unify the Democratic Party behind Obama.
"Unless she has some good reasons which I can't think of I really think we ought to get on with endorsements [of Obama] and dealing with what we have to deal with & so we can move forward," New York Congressman Charlie Rangel told ABC News' Kate Snow.
Clinton made an emotional visit to her staff at her campaign headquarters in Arlington, Va. just after most of them had been told they would no longer have to report to work after Friday.
However Clinton has not told her staff if and when she will officially concede the race to Sen. Barack Obama.
"She is listening. Nothing set," a senior Clinton adviser told ABC News' Kate Snow.
The Clinton adviser said the candidate spoke to staff and with her core team, and then talked to groups of superdelegates.
A campaign staff member who was in the room said Clinton invited all of her campaign staff to come to her Washington, D.C., home on Friday.
Before Clinton arrived, the staff was told that they would be paid through June 15th.
But the bulk of the people working for her campaign were told their last day of work would be Friday. Another source who was not in the room but heard about the visit said junior staffers were emotional and some were crying.
As Clinton left her headquarters, she waved to cameras outside.