Clinton Retools for Nastier NH Push

Campaign predicts victory, plans to play experience angle
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 4, 2008 12:22 PM CST
Clinton Retools for Nastier NH Push
Democratic presidential hopeful, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., walks off stage following her caucus night rally, Thursday, Jan. 3, 2008, in Des Moines, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)   (Associated Press)

After an embarrassing third-place Iowa finish, Hillary Clinton is refocusing on New Hampshire and taking the gloves off. Her campaign plans to aggressively paint Barack Obama as too inexperienced for the presidency, Politico reports. Clinton barely mentioned Obama’s name in Iowa, but now you can expect attack ads to fly. “Being the underdog will be very liberating,” said one Clinton supporter.

Despite John Edwards' second-place showing, Clinton is convinced he's done for, and she's preparing for a two-horse race with Obama, who last night proved he could excite voters. The wave of women voters the Clinton camp was counting on did show up but didn’t back her. Clinton’s chief strategist downplayed Iowa’s importance. “We really have a full month to Feb. 5,” said Mark Penn. (More Hillary Clinton stories.)

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