Obama Ratchets Up Criticism of Clinton

Sen. Barack Obama to take aggressive tack. (Jay Laprete - AP)

Obama's critiques of Clinton come as his campaign -- once carried by enthusiasm, as illustrated by huge crowds and prodigious fundraising -- is increasingly beset by a perception that it has stalled. With Clinton in command of the lead in polls, Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.), a civil rights activist who had praised Obama earlier this year and talked excitedly about the promise of the first black president, this month stunned Obama's aides by saying he will back Clinton. And late last week, Robert Farmer, a veteran Democratic fundraiser who was on Obama's national finance team, moved to the Clinton camp.

Axelrod said Obama's increasingly pointed comments represent a "natural evolution" as the primary season approaches, rather than a strategic reversal.

Obama, who said he did not want to "knee-cap" Clinton, is still careful in his criticism, not mentioning Whitewater or other 1990s Clinton controversies, which another rival, former senator John Edwards (D-N.C.), has not shied away from addressing.

The Times reported that Obama said Clinton is "an admirable person" and "a capable senator," while suggesting that she would struggle to win a general election.

"If Hillary Clinton is the nominee, then we have a repetition of 2000 and 2004," he said. "There's no change in the political map. I'm not making predictions specifically about which way Ohio or Florida will go, but what you do know is that 45 percent of the country will be on one side and 45 percent of the country will be on the other. . . . There's not going to be an expansion of the electorate. I don't think anybody would claim that Senator Clinton is going to inspire a horde of new voters. I don't think it's realistic that she is going to get a whole bunch of Republicans to think differently about her."

Singer pointed to Clinton's strong performance in her two Senate victories in New York as evidence that she would be a winning candidate if she got the nomination.

"Senator Clinton beats each of the leading Republicans in poll after poll, because voters know she has the strength and experience to end the war, reform health care and get our economy back on track," Singer said. "She's got a proven track record of getting things done in the Senate by working with Democrats and Republicans."

Clinton, Obama and the rest of the Democratic field will meet in a debate Tuesday night in Philadelphia.