Strict, smile-less Hillary takes on Obama in debate

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton confronted Senator Barack Obama on health care...

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton confronted Senator Barack Obama on health care, Nafta, Iraq and his political tactics on Tuesday night in one of her most pugnacious debate performances of the campaign, as she fought for fresh momentum before four potentially decisive nominating contests next Tuesday.

Obama, pursuing a front-runner’s strategy of nonconfrontation after winning 11 straight contests, mostly defended his positions and views, though he said he and his team had not “whined” about the Clinton camp’s attacks on him. Sitting a couple of feet from Clinton at a circular table, he appeared to listen intently to her attacks before responding in even tones.

The debate — the 20th for Democrats—- was the final one before the March 4 contests in Ohio and Texas, states that the Clinton camp has labelled as must-win if she is to keep her campaign alive.

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Questions about which approach Clinton would take to sway voters were quickly answered as she immediately confronted Obama, and she was relentless throughout the meeting. She insisted on responding to virtually every point that he made— often interrupting the debate moderators, Brian Williams and Tim Russert of NBC, as they tried to move on.

At the same time, it was one of the most detailed and specific of all the debates, with both Clinton and Obama giving long explanations of their records and views.

Unlike their debate last Thursday, a more cordial affair that ended with Clinton saying she was “honoured” to share the stage with Obama, this exchange had a belligerent edge. Clinton did not nod along as Obama made standard Democratic points, as she has been known to do. She was more apt to call him “Senator Obama” than the friendlier “Barack”. She did not smile at him.

At one point, after the moderators asked her a series of pointed questions, Clinton even vented her long-simmering frustrations with news coverage of Obama, citing a “Saturday Night Live” sketch from last weekend that portrayed debate moderators as fawning fans of Obama. “Can I just point out that in the last several debates, I seem to get the first question all the time?” Clinton said, to a mix of boos and applause. “I do find it curious, and if anybody saw “Saturday Night Live”, you know, maybe we should ask Barack if he’s comfortable and needs another pillow.”

Poll: McCain has edge over Democrats

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WASHINGTON: As he emerges from a sometimes-bitter primary campaign, presumptive Republican presidential nominee John McCain poses a stiff challenge to either of his potential Democratic opponents in the general election, a new Los Angeles Times/Bloomberg poll has found. The findings underscore the difficulties ahead for Democrats as they hope to retake the White House during a time of war, with voters giving McCain far higher marks when it comes to experience, fighting terrorism and dealing with the situation in Iraq.