Obama: 'How Do You
Know AnyPresident Is Ready?'
Clinton Attacks 'A Little Desperate'
During End of Campaign, Says Obama
By ERIC JOHNSON
March 3, 2008 —
After winning 11 straight primary and caucus
victories against New York Sen. Hillary Clinton,
Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, the current Democratic
front-runner in the race to the White House, appears
to be encroaching on Clinton territory in Ohio and
Texas.
The most recent ABC News/ Washington Post poll
showed him closing in on Clinton's once hefty lead
in both states, and polls conducted since show an
even tighter race.
Watch Terry Moran's interview with Barack
Obama tonight on "Nightline" at 11:35 ET
Clinton has also received pressure from prominent
Democrats and Obama backers to withdraw if she does
not perform well in Texas and Ohio, Tuesday.
Withdrawal 'Up to Sen. Clinton'
"Well, I think that'll be up to Sen. Clinton,"
said Obama. "But if we do well in Texas and Ohio, I
think the math is such where it's going to be hard
for her to win the nomination, and they'll have to
make a decision about how much longer they want to
pursue it."
"I would assume that there are going to be people
who want to bring this to an end one way or another,
because [Arizona Sen.] John McCain's out there
the reputed Republican nominee and he's given
a little bit of a free pass."
Huge crowds greeted Obama in Westerville, Ohio,
Sunday. There was a decent amount of overflow and a
few hundred left outside, unable to squeeze in.
Earlier in the day, a smaller event took place in
the outskirts of Appalachia where he talked up
"green jobs," but told the small audience it would
be a challenge to turn the economy around.
To many political experts, Clinton's performance
in delegate-rich states like Ohio and Texas has the
potential of deciding the future of her campaign.
Even former President Clinton has admitted that
losing one could mean the end of his wife's
presidential run.
Obama says he's not taking any chances. "Remember
New Hampshire," he reminded reporters last week,
recalling his surprising defeat in the New Hampshire
primary.
But Clinton, feeling a newfound surge in energy
after raising more than $35 million in February
Obama has reportedly raised more than $50 million
has shown no signs of giving up.
Obama: Clinton 'a Lot More Aggressive' Lately
Recently, the Clinton campaign has increased its
attacks on Obama, and the candidate has kicked up
her rhetoric.
"For some people, this election is about how you
feel," she told a crowd at a rally in Westerville,
Ohio. "It is about speeches. That is not what it is
about for me. It is about solutions."
Clinton sparked media attention last
week after her campaign aired a new ad in Texas that
suggests the senator is better able to handle a
national crisis.
"It's 3 a.m. and your children are safe and
asleep," a deep, ominous voice explains in the ad,
while a camera pans over the faces of sleeping
children. "But there's a phone in the White House,
and it's ringing. Something's happened in the world.
Your vote will decide who answers the call."
The Obama campaign accused the Clinton campaign
of "fear-mongering."
"I think she has got a little desperate toward
the end of this campaign," Obama told "Nightline's"
Terry Moran, while campaigning in Ohio. "[She] has
been a lot more aggressive in her negative attacks.
"As I've pointed out, we've actually had a pretty
significant moment in the last several years, that
called people's judgment into question. And that was
the war in Iraq."
Regarding the Iraq War, this weekend, Clinton
told reporters that if she runs against McCain, she
will "put forth my lifetime of experience. Sen.
Obama will put forth a speech he made in 2002."
Obama disagrees with that characterization. "I
was in the midst of a U.S. Senate race," he said.
"It wasn't simply a speech. It was an ongoing
opposition."
Obama Welcomes the 'Experience' Debate
On the question of experience, Obama welcomes the
contrast between him and Clinton, who has repeatedly
described herself as someone who is "tested" and
"ready."
"I think the question is, how do you know any
president is ready?" Obama said. "[Until] you're
president, you haven't made these decisions."
"What people can take a look at is how I
exercised judgment on key foreign policy questions
over the last several years," he said. "And I think
they can have confidence. ... More often than not, I
have shown judgment that was superior to some of
these people who are claiming much lengthier
experience."
As part of her proven experience, Clinton has
highlighted her visits to more than 80 countries,
her time spent in the White House and her service on
the Senate Armed Services Committee.
"Look, I've lived overseas," said
Obama. "I have family overseas. I have served on the
Senate Foreign Relations Committee."
As for Clinton's experience in the White House,
Obama is dubious. "It is true that I've not lived in
the White House," he said. "Although, one of the
tough things about Sen. Clinton's campaign has been
the degree to which she takes credit for good things
that happened and doesn't take credit for bad things
that happened."
I Don't Get Rattled'
Obama believes that his "matter of temperament"
best prepares him for the White House.
"One of the things that I've known about myself
for a long time," he said, "is that, in difficult or
stressful moments, I don't get rattled And I don't
get rattled during campaigns. I don't get rattled
when things are up ... and I don't get too low when
things are down."
"Part of the problem that we've seen historically
when presidents make bad decisions is either they're
ideologically driven I would argue that that's
what happened with George Bush," he said. "Or,
oftentimes, it's driven by politics."
But Obama's critics point to Tony Rezko, a
Chicago real estate developer, as a reason to
question Obama's brand of politics.
Rezko who has raised a lot of money for Obama
over the years goes on trial this week on
corruption charges. Rezko has ties to many
politicians, but it is a real estate deal Rezko
participated in with Obama in 2005 that enabled the
senator to purchase his current home, that has
brought a lot of scrutiny to the candidate's
campaign.
For Obama, who has called himself a reformer and
touted his judgment, some voters might ask how could
he enter into this transaction with a longtime
contributor who, at that time, was known to be under
investigation for corruption?
"I've already said that that was a mistake, even
though it was completely above board," said Obama.
"Because he had been a contributor, I shouldn't have
entered into any real estate transaction with him."
Obama says he has returned all contributions from
Rezko or the people associated with him. As for
Rezko, he has pleaded not guilty to the corruption
charges issued against him.
The Clinton campaign has said that Obama's mea
culpa isn't enough and has called on the senator to
release more information related to Rezko.
"Any of us if you go through my
entire career or any of our careers, we're going
to make mistakes occasionally."
Lessons Learned From 'SNL'
Finally, Obama brought his attention to "Saturday
Night Live," which, lately, has portrayed the media
as fawning over the senator, while dismissing his
female rival.
Obama took issue with his portrayal on the show.
"As Michelle pointed out, it showed that I needed to
smile more, apparently, because he always looks very
grim," he said with a laugh.
