Clark puts focus on humble childhood

KEENE, N.H. -- Retired Army General Wesley K. Clark had found a new way to introduce himself to voters as he dipped into truck stops and fast-food restaurants yesterday morning: "I'm a Washington outsider. I grew up with no money."

The Democratic presidential candidate who has spent several months emphasizing his military background, and the last week touting himself as a man with executive experience, turned yesterday to economic populism. And Clark and his supporters seemed at times to almost concede that he would not take a top spot in the New Hampshire primary, and to be turning attention instead to South Carolina and the other primaries on Feb. 3.

Introducing Clark at a rally in Nashua, Representative William J. Jefferson of Louisiana told the group that Massachusetts Senator John F. Kerry and former Vermont governor Howard Dean were expected to do well in their New England home turf but would not do well in the South.

As Clark traversed the state in a daylong, 10-county tour -- which was to end at midnight in Dixville Notch, when primary voting begins -- he even took rare aim at his opponents. "Unlike all the rest of the people in this race, I did grow up poor," he told a group of supporters in a diner in Keene. "I didn't go to Yale. My parents couldn't have afforded to send me there. I went to West Point."

Kerry, Dean, and Senator Joseph I. Lieberman attended Yale. But several other candidates in the race grew up without money, most prominent among them John Edwards, who has long informed crowds that he is "the son of a mill worker."

Reminded of that fact when he faced reporters yesterday, Clark said he had misspoken.

"I overstated that, and I apologize," he said. "I was thinking of the major candidates who are up there, the top two candidates."

Although Clark made little money during his career in the Army, he earned $1.6 million in 2002, mostly as a consultant and military analyst. Clark said his remarks yesterday were not an appeal specifically to Southern voters.

"I think Americans are looking for someone who really understands them," he said. "They look for someone who has the same background.

Still, in the face of flagging support in the polls in New Hampshire, Clark's aides have repeatedly emphasized that they see strong chances in Southern and Southwestern states that hold primaries next month.

Joanna Weiss can be reached at weiss@globe.com.