Obama, Romney trade well wishes

President Obama called Mitt Romney on Wednesday to congratulate him on clinching the Republican presidential nomination. “President Obama said that he looked forward to an important and healthy debate about America’s future, and wished Gov. Romney and his family well throughout the upcoming campaign,” the Obama campaign said in a statement. Romney secured a majority of Republican convention delegates Tuesday night with a win in the Texas primary. Obama made the call around 11:30 a.m. In a statement, the Romney campaign described the conversation as “brief and cordial.” It added, “Gov. Romney thanked the president for his congratulations and wished him and his family well.” — David Jackson

‘Obama of Alabama’ leaving Dems

Former Alabama congressman Artur Davis, who seconded Barack Obama’s nomination for president four years ago, says he’s leaving the Democratic Party. The onetime rising Democratic Party star — once described as “the Obama of Alabama” — said on his website that he is switching his voter registration to Virginia and is considering running for office as a Republican. Davis was also critical of the Obama administration, with whom he was sometimes at odds while in Congress on issues such as health care. Davis said in his statement, “I have regularly criticized an agenda that would punish businesses and job creators with more taxes just as they are trying to thrive again.” Davis, who served in Congress from 2003 to 2011, was considered a possible candidate to become attorney general in the Obama administration. He did not get that post, and he voted against Obama’s signature health care legislation. In 2010, Davis failed in an attempt to become the first African American to be elected governor of Alabama. — Catalina Camia