Obama Says He Is Emissary for Change

Democratic presidential hopeful U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., speaks during an interview with The Associated Press, Wednesday, July 4, 2007, in Oskaloosa, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) (Charlie Neibergall - AP)

OSKALOOSA, Iowa -- Democrat Barack Obama declared that "change can't just be a slogan" as he voiced admiration for former President Clinton, while arguing that voters are looking for a new face that moves past the bitter wrangling of past campaigns.

"I think I'm in a position to bring about the changes that people want," Obama said in an interview with The Associated Press.

Obama said the dominant theme he is hearing from voters is weariness with Washington-style wrangling.

As Obama was speaking, the former president was stumping across Iowa on behalf of his wife, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. A former president on the campaign trail was getting heavy attention, and the Clintons were campaigning with a slogan arguing they were best prepared to bring change to the country.

On Tuesday Bill Clinton said: "Yesterday's news was pretty good," referring to his time in office and taking a jab at critics who call the former first couple old news.

Obama said he thinks voters are looking to turn the page and not return to an earlier era.

"I admire Bill Clinton, I think he did a lot of fine things as president and he's a terrific political strategist," the Illinois senator said. "What we're more interested in is in looking forward, not looking backward. I think the American people feel the same way. They are looking for a way to break out of the harsh partisanship and the old arguments and solve problems."

In the interview, Obama said his campaign is based on change and his history shows he can be an agent of change.

"Change can't just be a slogan," Obama said. "Change has to mean that we're not doing the same old thing that we've been doing."

Obama's delicate handling of the former president could be described as wielding a club using a velvet glove, treating a popular political figure with great deference while making clear he views himself as the figure of the future.

Obama's critics argue he lacks experience, and Hillary Clinton's backers point to her eight years in the White House and her tenure in the Senate as evidence she's qualified to be president. Obama dismissed experience that's rooted in Washington.

"What I know is the kind of experience I have outside of Washington as a community organizer working with families that are struggling, as a constitutional law professor, as a state legislator dealing with the very issues that affect people, people find that experience at least as relevant, maybe more relevant, than experience in Washington."