Obama says Clinton campaign criticism reflects tightening of Democratic race
WATERLOO, Iowa -- Democrat Barack Obama Saturday scoffed at suggestions by President Clinton that the Illinois senator is not ready to be president, and that Obama is running strong in Iowa in part because his home state and Iowa share a border.
''When I was 20 points down, they all thought I was a wonderful guy. Obviously things have changed here in Iowa and elsewhere,'' Obama said at a press conference Saturday. ''If they're suggesting that I, as this 'callow youth,' somehow had a structural advantage in Iowa relative to the Clinton operation and the former president of the United States, that doesn't strike me as a real plausible argument.''
(AP)
Obama is locked in a tight contest with Hillary Rodham Clinton and John Edwards in Iowa less than three weeks before the state's caucuses, which lead off the presidential nominating season. Obama's comments came amid evidence that the former first lady's once-commanding lead in many state polls has vanished and that her campaign is scrambling to restore its footing.
Bill Clinton has emerged as a key surrogate and spokesman for his wife in recent weeks, and planned to return to Iowa to campaign for her this week.
In an interview broadcast Friday on PBS' ''The Charlie Rose Show,'' Bill Clinton suggested Obama's experience in public life -- he served seven years in the Illinois state legislature before being elected to the U.S. Senate in 2004 -- was insufficient.
''I mean, when is the last time we elected a president based on one year of service in the Senate before he started running?'' Clinton said. ''In theory, we could find someone who is a gifted television commentator and let them run.''
The former president said voters who chose Obama would be ''rolling the dice,'' and said his state's proximity to Iowa gave him an advantage over Hillary Clinton, a New York senator who grew up in Illinois.
Obama said the former president was simply echoing an argument his wife's campaign had made for months.
''I have the kind of experience the country needs right now,'' Obama said, noting that Bill Clinton was a relative newcomer to the national stage when he was elected president in 1992.
Obama was also asked about the resignation of a top Clinton adviser who had raised the issue of Obama's use of illegal drugs as a teenager in a newspaper interview last week.
The adviser, Bill Shaheen, stepped down from the campaign after Clinton personally apologized to Obama for Shaheen's comments.
Obama, 46, acknowledged using marijuana and cocaine in his 1995 memoir, ''Dreams From My Father.'' He told a group of students in New Hampshire last month that his drug use had caused him to ''waste a lot of time'' during his high school years.
He said he didn't know if voters are willing to accept a presidential candidate's past use of drugs, but he believes most have more pressing concerns.
''I think the average American believes what someone does when they were a teenager, 30 years ago, probably is not relevant to how they are going to be performing as commander in chief or president of the United States,'' he said.
At a press conference Friday, Clinton noted that her past had been thoroughly explored over her years in public life and that ''there are no surprises.''
Asked about her comment, Obama said he was satisfied that his own past had been well-documented.
''I've written two books. I've probably been more reported on than any political figure in the country over the last year,'' Obama said. ''I hardly think I've been underexposed during the course of this race.''