Hillary ends White House bid, backs Obama

FINAL BID: Hillary Clinton, her mother Dorothy Rodham, daughter Chelsea Clinton and Bill Clinton in Washington.

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Joining Clinton on stage were her husband, former President Bill Clinton, and their daughter, Chelsea, to loud cheers from the crowd. When she spoke, they stepped away.

In deciding to suspend her campaign, Clinton kept some options open. She gets to retain her delegates to the nominating convention this summer and she can continue to raise money. It also means she could reopen her campaign if circumstances change before the Denver convention in late August, but gave no indication that was her intention.

Clinton supporters began lining up at dawn to attend the farewell address. A smattering of Obama backers showed up as well, saying they did so as a gesture of party unity.

Supporters and press jammed the museum's vast ground floor, with the second and third floor balconies quickly filling up as well. The stage was draped with American flags, and a sound system blared upbeat music.

As they awaited her arrival, campaign staffers milled the room, exchanging hugs and saying goodbye.

Clinton seemed almost buoyant in her address, feeding off the energy of a loud and appreciative crowd.

''Well, this isn't exactly the party I planned but I sure like the company,'' she said as she opened her speech.

Clinton backers described themselves as sad and resigned. ''This is a somber day,'' said Jon Cardinal, one of the first in line. Cardinal said he planned, reluctantly, to support the Illinois senator in the general election. ''It's going to be tough after being against Obama for so long,'' he said.

Obama and Clinton had a face-to-face meeting Thursday evening at the Washington home of a Senate colleague, California Democrat Dianne Feinstein.

Clinton was expected to campaign for Obama and to help with fundraising, while seeking his assistance in retiring her $30 million campaign debt. The New York senator has told colleagues she would be interested in joining Obama as his vie presidential running mate.

The undisputed front-runner when she announced her candidacy in January 2007, Clinton saw her march to the nomination derailed a year later after being swamped by Obama in Iowa's leadoff caucuses. She stayed alive after a narrow victory in New Hampshire five days later. But her campaign never fully regained its footing despite strong showings in several big-state primaries beginning in March.