Clinton, Obama battle over 'bitter,' Bosnia in Philadelphia debate

The two candidates argued over economic policy, Social Security, the war in Iraq, gas prices and gun control, but spent most of the first hour of the two-hour debate answering questions about recent controversies.

A front-page article in the New York Times today described it as "arguably one of Mr. Obama's weakest debate performances," saying the candidate "at times appeared annoyed as he sought to answer questions about his former pastor, his reluctance to wear an American flag pin on his lapel and his association in Chicago with former members of the Weather Underground, a radical group that carried out bombings in the 1960s that were intended to incite the overthrow of the government."

ABC News Anchor Charlie Gibson threw out the first question, asking the candidates if they would consider the other as a running mate after the nomination was decided.

After an awkward initial moment of silence from the two candidates, Obama said that it was "premature" to answer that question and then segued into a broader discussion of his message.

When the question turned to Clinton, the New York Democrat only vowed that one of the two of them on stage, at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia last night, would take the oath of office in January 2009.

The conversation then turned to Obama's recent remarks that voters in some parts of Pennsylvania were "bitter" about their circumstances, and the Illinois senator told the debate moderators that he understands why people might be offended by his choice of words, but he defended his remarks and attempted to explain again what he meant. Obama also decried the "gotcha politics" in which divisive wedge issues take prominence in campaigns.

Clinton seized on the question to talk about her grandfather, who she described as a factory worker in Scranton, Pennsylvania, and she disagreed with Obama's characterization of the people of the state as "bitter." I don't think people cling to religion and guns when Washington is not listening, she said.

After the "bitter" question had been answered, the moderators turned to the issue of electability, asking Sen. Clinton directly if Obama could beat McCain. Sen. Clinton initially responded without answering the question, but then after a follow-up question conceded that Obama could possibly beat the Republican's presumptive nominee. "Yes, yes, yes" she acknowledged, adding, "I think I am better able and better prepared." Obama agreed that Clinton could win also but said he too felt he could do a better job against McCain.

Obama responded to Clinton's implication that his "bitter" remarks might turn off voters, by saying that he was not condescending to people of faith because he is one himself. He also used the opportunity to take a jab at Senator Clinton, pointing to her controversial remarks in 1992 that she did not plan to sit around and bake cookies as a housewife, a comment that Obama said voters thought was condescending.

"I recall when back in 1992, when she made a statement about how, 'what do you expect, should I be at home baking cookies?' And people attacked her for being elitist and this and that. And I remember watching that on TV and saying, well, that's not who she is; that's not what she believes; that's not what she meant. And I'm sure that that's how she felt as well," Obama said.

The debate then turned to the controversy over Obama's association with Rev. Jeremiah Wright, to Clinton's inaccurate retelling of landing under sniper fire during a trip to Bosnia, to Obama's alleged reluctance to wear an American flag pin, and to his association with a member of a controversial group called Weather Underground.

"I revere the American flag, and I would not be running for president if I did not revere this country," Obama said.

Obama, who spent much of the evening on the defensive, also responded to Sen. Clinton's attack that he served on a board of directors with a former member of the Weather Underground. "President Clinton pardoned or commuted the sentences of two members of the Weather Underground, which I think is a slightly more significant act than me serving on a board with somebody for actions he did 40 years ago," Obama said.

The first question about the war in Iraq was asked at 8:52 p.m, almost an hour into the debate. It was four minutes after 9 p.m., more than an hour into the two-hour debate, before the candidates got their first question about the economy, which polls indicate is the biggest concern facing voters in the election.

Senator Clinton also tried to raise questions about Obama's electability, by talking about her own experience in fighting against attacks and criticism. "I have a lot of baggage, and everybody has rummaged through it for years," said Clinton, which she said afforded her "an opportunity to come to this campaign with a very strong conviction and feeling that I will be able to withstand whatever the Republican sends our way."

The two-hour debate was interrupted by commercials four times while the candidates were on stage, and then again for a fifth time after the moderators, Gibson and George Stephanopoulos, briefly discussed it with ABC political correspondent Jake Tapper. Audience members booed when Gibson announced the final commerical break of the show.

In an unscientific ABC News web site poll, Obama was seen as the clear winner. Sixty-eight percent of respondents (27,495) said Obama won the debate, while only 24 percent (9,874) thought Clinton won the debate. Eight percent (3,194) thought it was a tie, as of Thursday morning. An NBC text poll also found Obama was seen as the winner.