It's becoming clear that opposition is bending toward the $700 billion financial rescue plan in time for a second House vote on Friday.

Barack Obama called Maryland Rep. Elijah Cummings on Tuesday with a promise: As president, he would revisit bankruptcy laws to give judges more leeway to prevent foreclosures.

Obama didn't need to lay out a quid pro quo because the message was clear.

Cummings, who voted against the financial-markets bailout on Monday, told Obama he was “open” to changing his vote but wasn’t there yet.

"I have to look beyond [the bailout] to a rainbow called Obama," he said. "When you bring in the Obama factor, that's very very important."

As the final high stakes vote on the bailout bill approaches Friday, Cummings is not alone among lawmakers who have found solid reasons to reconsider their vote. Whether it's the "Obama factor," or the fact that billions in new tax incentives have been added to the bailout bill, it's becoming clear that opposition is wilting to the $700 billion financial rescue plan just in time for a second House vote on Friday.

After a blitz of last-minute lobbying, Republicans and the Bush administration are hoping to get in the neighborhood of 80 to 85 GOP votes on the bailout bill after garnering only 65 on Monday. And Democrats are hoping to build slightly on the 140 lawmakers who supported the bill earlier this week.

The outcome still hangs on the prerogatives of a dozen or so wavering lawmakers in both parties, but congressional leaders are “cautiously optimistic” about the outcome Friday even after watching their rank and file sink the initial bill on Monday in a public revolt that shook financial markets around the world.

Thursday brought another round of public – and private – reversals, with Georgia Rep. John Lewis, a prominent member of the Congressional Black Caucus, telling colleagues at a closed-door meeting that he would support the bailout plan, according to people present – Lewis wouldn’t confirm as he left the meeting, but said, “Just watch the board.”

Republicans, from retiring Minnesota Rep. Jim Ramstad to Tennessee Rep. Zach Wamp, and Democrats, from Nevada Rep. Shelley Berkley to Missouri Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, all declared on Thursday they would support the current bill, according to various news sources.

It's important to note that nothing is certain until the gavel falls Friday, so none of these public or private declaration means a thing until that point.

“We’re still looking at it,” said Rep. Pete Hoekstra, another lawmaker rethinking his vote.

The Michigan Republican is more attracted to the Senate package than the initial bill because it would raise the amount of money the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. insures, from $100,000 to $250,000. Hoekstra told Vice President Dick Cheney on Monday to make that change and is pleased to see it has been included.

Hoekstra is also more open to the bailout package now that SEC Chairman Chris Cox agreed to give companies more leeway in pricing their assets.

But he is upset about “all the pork in the bill,” referring to a number of tax extensions in the legislation tailored to specific industries, like a break for wooden arrows that has been mocked by watchdog groups sifting through the 450-page Senate version of the bill.

Obama, the White House and business leaders from across the country have all bombarded Capitol Hill with phone calls, e-mails and personal visits since the House sank an initial bailout bill Monday. President Bush even gave business lobbyists a list of targeted lawmakers to contact before Friday’s vote as the key constituencies emerge.

And time is increasingly important, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropping another 348 points on Thursday. As one GOP aide suggested, the House either passes the bill this week or it never gets done.

With Lewis and Cleaver changing their votes and others, like Cummings, now on the fence, Democrats and Republicans alike were predicting significant movement from the Congressional Black Caucus.

One member pointed to Reps. G.K. Butterfield of North Carolina, Jesse Jackson, Jr. of Illinois and David Scott of Georgia. Scott has been working with Financial Services Chairman Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and other leaders to address the CBC concerns.