The story

The remaining contenders for the presidency kicked off their final maneuvers for Super Tuesday, fine-tuning their closing messages in appearances on the Sunday talk shows and fanning out across the nation for an exhaustive list of last-minute campaign stops.

Sen. John McCain of Arizona expressed some hope of clinching his party's nomination Tuesday -- and, minutes later, found himself speaking on live national television with Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York, who has vowed she is the Democrat best prepared to beat him in a general election.

Smiling and exchanging pleasantries briefly on "Fox News Sunday," the two -- apparently unaware they'd appear together live between their separate interviews from different cities -- vowed that if selected for their parties' nominations they would have a "respectful" debate focusing on serious "differences."

Clinton is locked in a neck-and-neck race with Illinois Sen. Barack Obama. McCain has a clear lead in the polls heading toward Tuesday, but is facing stepped-up attacks by former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

Asked whether he will win the nomination Tuesday, McCain said, "I hope so. But you know, you don't know for sure. I think we got a lot of good momentum and a lot of endorsements and crowds who are enthusiastic, and we're working hard, and I'm guardedly optimistic." Read full article »

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