With One Day to Go in N.H., Clinton Struggles

Mon, January 07, 2008 - 7:31 AM

Like a kite caught by an updraft, Sen. Barack Obama has taken flight, soaring to double-digit lead in New Hampshire. Hillary Clinton just appeared on the “Today” show, trying to pull him back to earth.

Calling Obama “a truly inspirational speaker” and “an incredibly gifted politician” -- thinly veiled knocks -- Sen. Clinton urged voters to look beyond the speeches and see what happens “when the cameras are off.”

She said a lot of people voted for George W. Bush because he pledged to be a uniter, not a divider and said voters need to assess Obama’s “talk versus action and rhetoric versus reality.”

Although NBC described her campaign as panicked, Clinton insisted “I feel great, actually.”

She always knew the nomination would be a long process, she said. She said she’s drawing huge crowds as she answers questions from undecided and independent voters, and “I think we’re going to be a very effective presence” when people realize how high the stakes are in the election.

“I feel ready to be president,” she said.

Today’s USA Today-Gallup poll has Obama at 41 percent, Clinton at 28 percent and former Sen. John Edwards at 19 percent. Bill Richardson and Dennis Kucinich are in single digits.

A CNN-WMUR poll also showed Obama at 39 percent and Clinton at 29 percent on Sunday. A day earlier, they were tied at 33 percent. Edwards dropped from 20 percent to 16 percent.

The “Today” show report showed a snippet of Bill Clinton on the campaign trail saying, “We can’t be a new story. I’m sorry. I can’t make her younger, taller, male…” But he said if voters want the best president, she’s the one.

-- Marsha Mercer