Obama and Clinton trade jabs

Published 10:47 pm Monday, January 21, 2008

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. — Democratic presidential rivals Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Sen. Barack Obama accused each other of repeatedly and deliberately distorting the truth for political gain Monday night in a highly personal, finger-wagging debate that ranged from the war in Iraq to former President Clinton’s role in the campaign.

The exchanges brought to national television a dispute that has been simmering the past two days. It turned the opening minutes of their two-hour debate into the harshest moments of their campaigns.

Obama told the former first lady he was helping unemployed workers on the streets of Chicago when “you were a corporate lawyer sitting on the board at Wal-Mart.”

Moments later, Clinton said that she was fighting against misguided Republican policies “when you were practicing law and representing your contributor … in his slum landlord business in inner city Chicago.”

Obama seemed particularly irritated at the former president, whom he accused of uttering a series of distortions to aid his wife’s presidential effort. He cited statements Bill Clinton made about his record on the Iraq war and a recent comment that the senator from Illinois made about Ronald Reagan and the Republican Party’s ideas.

“I’m here. He’s not,” Hillary Clinton snapped.

“Well, I can’t tell who I’m running against sometimes,” Obama countered.

Defending himself over his comments on Reagan and Republican ideas, Obama said he never praised the ideas of the other party, only that he had called Reagan a transformative politician.

The tone of the debate, which included former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina, underscored the increasingly fierce competition between Clinton and Obama. South Carolina Democrats will vote Saturday, the first primary that will include a large percentage of African American voters.

Statements and exchanges between Clinton and Obama were unusually acrimonious Monday night.

Obama suggested the Clintons were both practicing the kind of political tactics that had alienated voters.

“There was a set of assertions made by Senator Clinton as well as her husband that are not factually accurate,” Obama said. “I think that part of what people are looking for right now is someone who is going to solve problems and not resort to the same typical politics that we’ve seen in Washington.”

Sen. Clinton countered: “I believe your record and what you say should matter.”

Edwards, who badly trails his two rivals, tried to stay above the fray while pleading for equal time.

“Are there three people in this debate, not two?” he asked.

“We have got to understand, this is not about us personally. It’s about what we are trying to do for this country,” Edwards said to applause from the audience.

Often speaking over each other, Obama and Clinton bitterly complained about each other’s legislative records. Obama questioned why the New York senator had voted for a bankruptcy bill that she later said she was glad hadn’t passed, and Clinton criticized Obama for voting “present” on dozens of occasions while a member of the Illinois Legislature.

“Senator Obama, it’s hard to have a straight-up debate with you because you never take responsibility for any vote,” Clinton said to loud boos. “On issue after issue, you voted present … Whenever someone raises that, there’s always some sort of explanation.”

Obama accused Clinton of playing loose with the facts and saying anything to get elected, while Edwards joined Clinton in criticizing Obama for the “present” votes.

“Why would you over 100 times vote present?” Edwards pointedly challenged Obama.

Obama said most of his present votes didn’t have political consequences but were because of technical or legal concerns.

“Don’t question, John, that on issue after issue that is important to the American people, I haven’t followed. I have led,” Obama said.

Clinton and Edwards compared their records on helping to alleviate poverty, while Obama was asked if he agreed with the famed black novelist Toni Morrison who dubbed Bill Clinton “the first black president.”

Obama praised the former president’s “affinity” with black people but also drew laughs.

“I would have to investigate more, Bill’s dancing abilities and some of this other stuff before I accurately judged whether he was, in fact, a brother,” Obama said.

“I’m sure that can be arranged,” Sen. Clinton joked.

Monday’s debate was sponsored by the Congressional Black Caucus Institute and was aired nationally on CNN.