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Obama: The Gloves Come Off

Putting up his dukes with the Clintons

By Peter Fearon,  Newser Staff

Posted Jan 21, 2008 6:42 AM CST

(Newser) – Barack Obama is ratcheting up the aggression in his campaign, lashing Bill and Hillary Clinton both for “unbelievable falsehoods” about his stance on Iraq and his praise for Ronald Reagan. The new tone was evident in appearances yesterday and in an interview aired this morning on "Good Morning America" in which he said the former president "has taken his advocacy on behalf of his wife to a level that I think is pretty troubling.”

He vowed, going forward, to "directly confront Bill Clinton when he's making statements that are not factually accurate.” Obama, who claims to be less divisive than other candidates, risks losing credibility if he continues to pursue a war of words with the Clintons, Politico notes. But his chief strategist tells Politico the campaign should have hit back harder in Nevada. "We need to be even more aggressive in calling out what are shameless falsehoods and distortions."

Chelsea Clinton and Michelle Obama both attended Bible Way Church of Atlas Road in Columbia, S.C., Sunday.  (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
Chelsea Clinton and Michelle Obama both attended Bible Way Church of Atlas Road in Columbia, S.C., Sunday. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)   (Associated Press)
Michelle Obama, wife of Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., waves to the congregation as she is introduced during services at the Bible Way Church of Atlas Road in Columbia, S.C., Sunday. Chelsea Clinton also attended the service. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
Michelle Obama, wife of Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., waves to the congregation as she is introduced during services at the Bible Way Church of Atlas Road in Columbia, S.C.,...   (Associated Press)
Sen. Barack Obama speaks at the Sunday morning church service at Dr. Martin Luther King's Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, Sunday. Obama has vowed to get tougher in his opposition to Bill and Hillary Clinton  (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
Sen. Barack Obama speaks at the Sunday morning church service at Dr. Martin Luther King's Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, Sunday. Obama has vowed to get tougher in his opposition to Bill and Hillary...   (Associated Press)
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, appear at a campaign rally in St. Louis. The tone of their battle with Barack Obama is becoming more negative.  (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, appear at a campaign rally in St. Louis. The tone of their battle with Barack Obama is becoming more negative. (AP...   (Associated Press)
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