TACOMA, WA — Joe Biden said any questions about Barack Obama’s readiness to be commander-in-chief should be answered by the endorsement of former Secretary of State and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Colin Powell.

“I have been a friend of Colin Powell for over 25 years. He’s a man I’ve grown to admire and know very well,” Biden told the biggest crowd he’s seen on the campaign trail — some 12,000 people at a minor league baseball stadium. “From the day he got to the senate, Barack Obama established a relationship with secretary of state, then, Colin Powell.”

“From the very beginning, this Republican party has tried to suggest that Barack Obama, Senator Barack Obama wasn’t ready to be commander in chief,” he said. “Ladies and gentlemen, with all the three and four star generals, with the former chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, the former national security adviser, the former secretary of state, one of the most respected men who’ve ever worn the uniform endorsing Barack Obama over John McCain today, no more question.”

While Washington isn’t in question for the Obama-BIden ticket — it will almost certainly vote Democratic — Biden exhorted the crowd to vote early. “This is far from over. Let me remind you. Polls don’t determine the outcomes of elections. Votes do,” he said.

Those votes will be crucial for Democratic Governor Christine Gregoire, who won a squeaker in 2004 and is up for reelection in a rematch against Republican Dino Rossi. Gregoire introduced Senator Biden. “We just heard from your governor,” Biden said. “She can tell you better than anybody in America. Every vote counts. Every vote counts.”

After 16 months as a presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton will hang up her stumping shoes today in Washington — where she’ll throw her support behind her long-time Democratic rival, Barack Obama

Clinton spokesman Mo Elleithee says Hillary Clinton’s final campaign remarks will focus her speech on unifying the party. “She’s going to make it very clear she’s supporting Senator Obama, and urge her supporters to do the same,” he said. She’ll also talk about the high stakes in this election, stressing the need for party unity to elect a Democrat.

A senior Clinton aide says bringing disgruntled supporters along with her to support Obama is crucial in the immediate aftermath of her defeat — noting that the bitterness engendered by a tough primary fight needs to be put to bed quickly so the party can get behind Obama. Exit polling showed Clinton supporters to be far less likely to support Obama should he be the nominee, and some websites have sprung up urging her voters to  support McCain in the Fall.

The Clinton aide also insists that the criticism of her final election day speech on Tuesday — which some said sounded like a victory address, even though Obama wrapped up the delegates needed to win the nomination — is just beltway chatter. He argues that the millions of Clinton supporters would never have accepted her ending the campaign so abruptly, and that they needed to be brought along slowly to ensure they remain loyal to the Democratic party in November.

But it’s not all about coming together; Clinton is expected to reflect on all that her campaign accomplished and the history that was made — particularly on behalf of women, who supported her in record numbers.

As for what’s next, the New York Senator will hold a private reception after the event for big donors, then return to her house in Georgetown before flying to her home in Chappaqua, NY with her family.

At a Dunkin’ Donuts in Washington, DC, this morning, Barack Obama picked up some donuts and hot chocolate to take to frigid sign-waving volunteers encouraging citizens to vote at a nearby metro stop.

As he waited for his order, Obama, alongside DC mayor Adrian Fenty, mingled with patrons. After he finished up discussing health care with one voter, I asked him how he was feeling considering he’s expected to win all three of today’s contests in the “Potomac Primary.”

Here’s his response:

Annapolis, MD — Acknowledging that he has “a lot of work to do” to attract and energize the conservative base, Sen. John McCain said Monday he continues to increase his share of the conservative vote and is on pace to seal up the GOP nomination in the coming weeks.

“We are doing fine. We have 700 some close to 800 delegates. And the last time I checked Governor (Mike) Huckabee has very few…..we continue our movement in the right direction,” McCain said at a Monday press conference, when asked about weekend losses to Huckabee in Kansas and Louisana. McCain is well positioned to grab more than 100 delegates in the Virginia, DC and Maryland primaries scheduled for Tuesday, noting he believes “it’s important that we do well tomorrow”

“I have said we have a lot of work to do to unite the party…we are doing very well with conservative voters. We continue to increase our share of the vote with conservative voters and we will continue to work with them,” he added, when asked about President Bush’s weekend comments that the Arizona senator has some work ahead to unite critical conservatives around his candidacy.

The campaign is touting the endorsement of former Family Research Council president Gary Bauer. In a written statement released this morning, Bauer said he “admire(s) his consistent 24-year pro-life record and demonstrated commitment to the values that keep our families and communities strong. John McCain alone has the experience, character and credibility to lead as commander in chief on day one and defeat the transcendent threat of our time — radical Islamic extremism. I am proud to support John McCain for president.”

The Arizona Senator also denied that his campaign had any role in Governor Rick Perry’s phone call to Huckabee over the weekend in which the Texas Governor allegedly asked McCain’s rival to drop out.

Additionally, McCain said Huckabee is entitled to call for a recount into the Washington State Primary results, but added that he believes the state party had “sufficient evidence,” to declare him the victor. “I think it is pretty clear that we won,” he said.