Sen. Barack Obama in Littleton, N.H., yesterday, has disbursed over $180,000 through his PAC.
(robert f. bukaty/associated press)
The Democratic primary feud between Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama intensified yesterday as their two campaigns traded barbs over each other's finance practices.
Clinton seized on a report in yesterday's
Presidential candidates are prohibited from using such PACs to directly influence the election. Clinton suggested Obama was doing precisely that.
"On the campaign trail, Senator Obama is outspoken about his desire to reform the campaign finance system so it was surprising to learn that he has been using his PAC in a manner that appears to be inconsistent with the prevailing election laws," Clinton's campaign said in a statement, noting that Clinton shut down her own PAC, HillPAC, when she announced her White House run.
Obama's campaign rejected Clinton's suggestion that he had violated the law and sought instead to highlight differences between the two candidates over how much personal and campaign finance information they are willing to disclose.
"The latest personal attack from Hillary Clinton is a completely false attempt to misrepresent Barack Obama's full disclosure of his campaign finances," Obama spokesman Bill Burton said in a statement. "Senator Obama's commitment to disclosure is one that Hillary Clinton does not share, and until Senator Clinton is willing to make this commitment - by disclosing her White House records, the list of donors to her husband's presidential library, how much her bundlers raise, and releasing her personal tax returns to the public - she's not really in a position to point fingers at others."
Obama's campaign said that the majority of Hopefund's 2007 contributions have gone to candidates and organizations outside of Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina, which hold the first party-sanctioned primaries or caucuses. Obama trumpets the fact that he does not accept PAC contributions, but Hopefund does, including more than $100,000 in 2005-06 from defense firms and other industries.
The dispute highlights the escalating tensions between the two rivals as the Jan. 3 Iowa caucuses near. Polls show a three-way race in Iowa among Obama, Clinton, and former senator John Edwards of North Carolina.
Since her admittedly lackluster performance in a late October debate and ensuing negative press coverage and slippage in polls, Clinton has gone after Obama and Edwards on a range of issues, including healthcare, Social Security, and experience. Last week, Clinton mocked Obama's comment that living overseas as a child gave him valuable foreign policy insight.
Obama, in turn, questions the value of her experience as first lady.
"The fact of the matter is that Senator Clinton is claiming basically the entire eight years of the Clinton presidency as her own, except for the stuff that didn't work out, in which case she says she has nothing to do with it," Obama said in an interview with ABC's "Nightline" scheduled to air last night. "There is no doubt that Bill Clinton had faith in her and consulted with her on issues, in the same way that I would consult with [my wife] Michelle, if there were issues. On the other hand, I don't think Michelle would claim that she is the best qualified person to be a United States senator by virtue of me talking to her on occasion about the work I've done."
Scott Helman can be reached at shelman@globe.com.
© Copyright 2007 Globe Newspaper Company.
