Obama Learns to Talk Tough, Just in Time
By Paul Harris

Democratic presidential hopeful Senator Barack Obama once electrified America by preaching a ‘politics of hope’ that would eschew negative adverts and attract voters put off by the divisive rhetoric of the campaign trail.

Unfortunately Obama then found himself outsmarted and outfought by his chief rival, Senator Hillary Clinton, and languished in the polls. Now Obama has, in effect, relaunched his campaign, coming out fighting against Clinton and slamming her record on everything from Iraq and Iran to education and trade.

It is working. Obama’s support in the key state of Iowa — which votes first in the Democratic presidential nomination race — has moved up strongly. Last week a poll for the Washington Post put Obama four points ahead of Clinton. The news rocked the political pundits who for months had assumed that Clinton’s lead there was virtually unassailable.

America is waking up to the fact that Obama’s shift in tactics, and some critical missteps by the Clinton campaign, have left the Democratic field open again. “It is back to being Obama or Hillary. It has tightened up in the last few weeks,” said Professor Bruce Gronbeck, a political specialist at the University of Iowa.

The signs of Obama’s new aggression were everywhere last week. He did not hesitate to attack Clinton and defended himself against criticism. In Austin, Texas, he slammed her for being too calculating and cynical to be President, echoing a feeling among many Democrats that the former First Lady has shifted her principles to secure the nomination. “Triangulating and poll-testing positions … just won’t do,” he said, attacking Democrats “… who think and act and vote like George Bush Republicans.”

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