By BETH FOUHY
The Associated Press
Tuesday, January 16, 2007; 9:58 PM
NEW YORK -- Sen. Barack Obama's entry into the presidential race vaults him into the Democratic top tier, heady company that invites comparisons to two battle-tested veterans _ Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and John Edwards.
Clinton, who is expected to enter the race within days, remains the prohibitive front-runner, with more than $14 million in the bank, a huge database of supporters and an experienced team of advisers. Among them is her husband, Bill, the former two-term president.
Edwards is the 2004 vice presidential nominee and former North Carolina senator who has polled well in the early voting state of Iowa. A supporter of the 2002 resolution authorizing force in Iraq, he has recanted his vote and recently demanded that his Senate rivals such as Obama and Clinton block funds for President Bush's troop increase.
Unencumbered by the Senate and its votes, Edwards has the time to campaign and the inclination to challenge his Democratic opponents.
In announcing his presidential exploratory committee Tuesday, Obama brings a thin resume based on just two years in the Senate and a hefty dose of political celebrity stemming from best-selling books, paparazzi bathing suit shots in glossy weeklies and his status as an Oprah Winfrey favorite.
"Barack is in a unique category _ he's young, fresh, exciting and has the ability to energize the party," said Donna Brazile, a longtime Democratic activist who ran Al Gore's presidential campaign in 2000.
But, Brazile noted, "People admire Edwards for talking about poverty, something that needs to be on the national agenda. And Hillary Clinton is on a first-name basis with everyone in America, and consistently ranks as one of the most admired women in the country."
The former first lady and New York senator also has weathered years of personal scrutiny that Obama has not begun to face.
Clinton has called Obama "terrific" and an "exciting personality," but has also gently jabbed at his lack of experience.
"I think what's important is whoever the next president is has to hit the ground running," she said last month.
Other Democrats in the field include Sen. Chris Dodd of Connecticut, former Gov. Tom Vilsack of Iowa and Ohio Rep. Dennis Kucinich. Sen. Joe Biden has discussed his candidacy. Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry is considering another run, and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson is expected to announce his plans by the end of the month.
Within minutes of Obama's announcement, Clinton canceled a planned news conference on her trip to Iraq, saying a New York colleague couldn't attend. Aides promised it would be rescheduled.
The war remains the issue in which Edwards has sought to create distance between himself and his rivals while appealing to the Democratic base.
In a speech in New York Sunday, Edwards called on members of Congress to speak out against the war and to block funds for Bush's planned deployment of 21,500 more troops to the region.
"If you're in Congress, and you know this war is going in the wrong direction, it is no longer enough to study your options and keep your own counsel," Edwards said. "Silence is betrayal ... you have the power to prohibit the president from spending any money to escalate this war. Use it."
The speech effectively targeted both Clinton and Obama, since neither has indicated support for a proposal by Massachusetts Sen. Edward Kennedy to withhold funds for the troop buildup.
Interviewed Sunday on CBS's "Face the Nation," Obama batted away questions on Kennedy proposal and refused to commit to supporting it.
"I think the resolution's going to come forward, and I think it will send a message that, in fact, there is great skepticism in Congress and certainly among the American people for this plan," Obama said.
Edwards declared his candidacy in December after running virtually nonstop since 2004. Since then, he's polled strongly in Iowa, site of the first-in-the-nation nominating caucuses, while also showing strongly in Nevada and South Carolina, two other early voting states.
Edwards has worked hard to rehabilitate his image since the 2004 election in which he was criticized by many Democrats for not bringing sufficient heft to the presidential ticket.
Even as a leading black presidential candidate, Obama faces competition for black voters. Both Clintons have long enjoyed significant black support, and Edwards has won broad praise for his focus on poverty. He launched his campaign in a New Orleans neighborhood still ravaged by Hurricane Katrina to draw attention to the persistent divide between rich and poor.
At a civil rights conference in New York last week, the Revs. Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton broadly praised Edwards while offering only measured praise for Obama's likely candidacy.
"All of the beauty contest formations are trivial compared to people who need jobs, job training, drug rehab, and affordable housing," Jackson said. "Whoever has the best plan, will take the most risk and the most sacrifice deserves our support."
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EDITOR'S NOTE: Beth Fouhy covers presidential politics for The Associated Press.