From The Road
January 17, 2008 7:30 PM

Gloves, Temporarily Back On, Are Off Again

By
Jim Axelrod
Topics
Hillary Clinton
(CBS)
From CBS News Chief White House Correspondent Jim Axelrod, who's covering the Clinton campaign:

NORTHRIDGE, CALIF. -- Two days before the Nevada caucuses - and just two days after the Democrats staged a near love-in of a debate - the gloves are off.

It's a complex dynamic that's yielded some sharp and overt hostility between all three of the leading Democrats. It begins with the most significant union endorsement in Nevada - the 60,000 member culinary workers' union - going to Obama. Next, a competing, and Clinton-friendly, union (though they haven't endorsed her officially) - the teachers - files a suit to block a plan to set up caucus locations in 9 casinos to allow workers with Saturday afternoon shifts to caucus. The teachers say it presents an unfair advantage to casino workers -- some of whom are in the culinary union. The teachers lose. You with me? Because here's where it starts to get nasty.

Another labor group that endorsed Obama - UNITE HERE - runs a Spanish-language radio ad, insinuating that the teachers' lawsuit was filed with Clinton backing, which the Clinton campaign denies.
Listen to the ad here

The ad says (translation by UNITE HERE):

"Hillary Clinton does not respect our people. Hillary Clinton's supporters went to court to stop working people from being able to vote on Saturday. That is disgraceful. Unforgivable. Hillary Clinton does not respect our people who work hard. Hillary Clinton's supporters want to stop people who are working on Saturday so they can't vote. Disgraceful. Unforgivable. Hillary Clinton has no shame. Hillary Clinton should not let her friends attack the right of our people to vote on Saturday. Disgraceful. Unforgivable. No respect. Senator Barack Obama is defending our right to vote. Senator Obama wants our votes. He respects our votes. He respects our community, our gente. Barack Obama's campaign theme is 'Si Se Puede.' Yes we can. Vote for a President who respects us and our right to vote. Obama for President. Yes we can.


Through a surrogate, the Clinton campaign called on the Obama campaign to condemn the ad. Nothing doing.

"The fact is their camp clearly would like to have worker's voices silenced and they need to live with that unfortunate position," came the reply from an Obama spokesman.

Of course that wasn't going to be the last word. The Clinton campaign fired back: "In Iowa, Senator Obama and his campaign went out of his way to attack labor unions for independently promoting other candidates. But in Nevada, he's looking the other way as they falsely attack his opponents."

At that point, there was only one thing you could count on for sure. John Edwards wasn't going to sit this one out. His spokesman took up on the same side of the street as the Clintons -- skewering Obama for criticizing in Iowa what he won't in Nevada. "When Senator Obama says turn the page, he obviously means turn to whatever page is most convenient."

Suddenly Tuesday night's debate when Clinton, Obama, and Edwards were all smiles -- and kept their swords in their sheaths -- seems like months ago.

Add a Comment
by g02342000 January 18, 2008 2:29 PM EST


John Edwards is the only one that will fight poverty and bring health care and education to the poor & middle class of America. John Edwards would be the best President for all of America, anything less will be as bad as keeping Bush in office forever.

America deserves honest men of integrity that will fight for all Americans, and Edwards is a true patriot that can make America great. He has the substinance, determination, and will to fight greed, corruption and end the outsourcing of our jobs.

His economic, education, health and welfare policies are now being copied by all the canidates. Edwards spoke out months and even years before the others.

America needs to think about why the "Washington Greed, Corruption, Large Corporations and Media" are trying to make this a two candidate Democratic race?

Edwards is the only Democrat able to win the Presidency, as polls have showed that any Republican nominated will beat Clinton and/or Obama.

An Edwards presidency will create American jobs for Americans by ending the outsourcing of our jobs lost through NAFTA and CAFTA. It will end the greed and corruption of large corporations and Washington politicians.

End the $700 million per day wasted in Iraq and invest in America, America can prosper in a global economy without outsourcing our jobs

Vote for jobs for the workers of America, healthcare and education for the middle class by endorsing a true patriot of integrity and honesty for America, John Edwards
Reply to this comment
by tazmjam January 18, 2008 1:49 AM EST
Obama is a fake.
He will say or do what ever he thinks will win him the vote in the state he is in. It appears there are many faces to Barack Obama.
Now that California primaries are approaching he''s praising Ronald Reagan. After all California is Reagan country.
Yes, Ronald Reagan changed the direction of our country. But it was just an illusion of prosperity.
He quadrupled are national debt creating this illusion! It went from 700 billion to 3 trillion dollars under Reagan''s administration. We became the largest debtor nation in the world.
Lets not forget Reaganomics and trickle down economics, or the Savings and Loan crisis. Oh and the big one, the Iran-Contra mess. What is there to praise? That he was a optimistic cowboy father figure?
Obama doesn''t think the Clinton administration was that great? (Why have you hired so many old Clinton advisers then?)
Clinton did accomplish a few things while in office. For one, he passed the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act with only 1 Republican vote. This would have balanced our budget, if GWB had left it alone. The money we spend just to pay the interest on our national debt would pay for healthcare and much more.
So Obama are you for unions promoting candidates or against it?
Are you for the middle class and poor or Reagan''s trickle down economics and tax cuts for the rich?
Would the real Barack Obama please step forward, because you can''t play both sides of the fence.
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