By Rick Pearson and John McCormick
PITTSBURGH - Hillary Clinton, on the eve of another must-win contest, used images of Osama bin Laden and a nation at war to present Pennsylvanians with an unprecedented display of her toughness as Barack Obama spent Monday to extolling voters to embrace his message of a new politic ethic built upon change.
With Clinton holding a pre-primary advantage in polling heading into Tuesday's balloting, the New York senator needed a victory to continue her presidential campaign, potentially gaining momentum among voters in the next battleground contests and with nominating convention superdelegates who could counter Obama's lead in popular votes and in elected pledged delegates.
As a potential indicator of how the candidates viewed the outcome, Clinton scheduled a celebration for supporters in Philadelphia on Tuesday night, while Obama, an Illinois senator, was headed for neighboring Indiana and a rally in Evansville featuring singer John Mellencamp, whose endorsement was courted, in anticipation of the next big battle awaiting both candidates on May 6.
The balloting Tuesday ends six weeks of often bruising campaigning in the state, fueled by more than $16 million in spending primarily on TV ads, with Obama holding a three-to-one advantage over Clinton. In recent days, the campaign reached new levels of negativity as the contenders sought to exploit miscues and gaffes while their strategists offered up varying rationales to try to diminish expectations for Tuesday night.
A frenetic day of cross-state appearances by Obama and Clinton marked the last full day of campaigning before an anticipated record number of Pennsylvania voters go to the polls for a primary, their ranks swelled by an increase in voter registration generated by the prolonged campaign.
Obama and Clinton quickly snapped up opportunities for free TV on primary eve, no matter the sophistication level. Both taped an appearance on Comedy Central's "The Daily Show" and Clinton was interviewed for "Countdown with Keith Olbermann" and "Larry King Live." Both Democrats, along with presumptive Republican nominee, Sen. John McCain of Arizona, also taped an introduction to World Wrestling Entertainment's "Raw."
But Clinton's attempts to display toughness were not limited to a cable-TV wrestling saga. Her campaign launched a final ad that displayed images of bid Laden, Pearl Harbor and the stock market crash while a narrator asks, "Who do you think has with it takes?"
The Obama campaign labeled the ad "fear mongering," as they did in Ohio when Clinton unleashed a controversial TV ad that asked voters who was better prepared to handle a 3 a.m. emergency crisis call at the White House. And the Obama camp followed up with an ad posted on its web site in which an announcer asks, "Who in times of challenge will unite us--not use fear and calculation to divide us?"
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Comments
Gee, where have I heard this kind of fear mongering before? Oh yeah,.....Republican Prez Doofus and Darth Cheney!
Sounds like Clinton has been dodging non-existent sniper fire again:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=It6JN7ALF7Y
Posted by: John E | April 21, 2008 8:13 PM
Billary playing the Rove handbook just to sink the whole ship?
What a sad deluded dysfunctional family the Clintons are. Only in America.
Chelsea in 2016 - she's vetted - just roll clips of her answering the tough Lewinsky questions.
Posted by: karl | April 21, 2008 8:21 PM
Clinton has made her last pitch effort in PA as if she were asking for the HR for the job.
Speaking from an HR perspective, based on Senator Clinton's actions, she is an HR nightmare....She's a toxic workplace hazard who ---- rather than create harmony, foster team building, and maintain the cohesiveness required for a healthy company----would illicit confusion, bullying, mistrust, and would use anyone for her personal gain. She's content with spreading malicious rumors and happy with displaying disrespectful behavior to her colleagues. That's a dangerous characteristic in any employee.
The way she has poorly managed her campaign, and how she is unable to garner the financial base that her counterpart indicates how she will run the country.
Posted by: Truth | April 21, 2008 8:53 PM
If Hillary wins, it will be by default, not because she is the better candidate. Why self-described Pennsylvanian "God-fearing Catholics" would vote for a pathological liar is amusing at best; disheartening at worst.
Posted by: tony | April 21, 2008 9:08 PM
YOU MEAN BIN LADEN - AS IN OSAMA BIN LADEN AS IN; THE TERRORIST THAT BILL CLINTON AND SANDY BERGER LET GET AWAY ???
number ONE reason to vote against hillary;
bill - the one who let oSama get away and then played the race card on oBama - the one who has not learned self control even after his lack thereof ruined his OWN legacy and embarrased his OWN country - the one who never got more than 49 % of the country to vote for him - EVER - the one who will demand the limelight if he gets the chance
number two reason is even more important;
the lies of Hillary
think about it
A PARABLE;
if a man or woman is engaged to be married and is totally faithful to his/her betrothed but is given gonorrhea by the fiance - not once - not twice but a dozen different times while engaged - then the one who is cheated on goes ahead with the marriage - three or four years later, the faithful one is given an HIV infection by the cheater and then goes back to the same doctor who treated the twelve cases of gonorrhea - the doctor is probably going to think "what did you think was going to happen ?" and if the minister who married them and knew of the affairs hears the news, the minister is going to think, "what did you think was going to happen ?" and when the mother of the newly infected spouse hears the news, she will be thinking "I knew this was going to happen" & if the faithful spouse confronts the cheater, the cheating one is going to say "you knew how I was and you married me anyway"
hillary has been caught in so many lies it is not funny any more
caught - red-handed - proof positive - not just once - not just twice - not little white lies - not just exaggerations
if hillary ends up president, the American electorate - the American public - the citizens of America that are supposed to be served by our leaders will have permanently given up any right to confront those leaders about lying to them
how could anyone want that ??
how could anyone want the next Nixon to be able to say with a straight face, "So what ?"
at least bush and cheney got caught in their lies after election
say what you will about obama and mccain - they may have faults but they are not compulive liars
Americans deserve better
the women of America need to wait for an honest woman to be the first female to lead her country - the American voters should settle for NO LESS - otherwise when their trust is breeched by their new leader, they will have no recourse when that leader tells them, "you knew me and you elected me anyway"
the women and men and children of America deserve better than that
and to "the truth" above, you are 100% right
Posted by: AN IMPORTANT PARABLE #1/#2 reasons to vote against you know who | April 21, 2008 9:46 PM
Rework of the Giuliani 'Ready' ad:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2iFhGtKO-Q
"...and Osama bin Laden still making threats. In a world where the next crisis is a moment away, America needs a leader who's ready."
At least she didn't say "a people perverted."
Posted by: Tom J | April 22, 2008 7:16 AM
I think Hillary needs to be careful with her remarks on Bin Laden before she stirs up strife with him. She wouldn't be able to deal for real or get by with it as did the lie she blatantly told on Bosnia. She needs to exhale before she starts another 'unescessary war', with thost off the top of the head remarks.
Posted by: Nisey01 | April 25, 2008 12:29 AM