Boston Globe: Similarities to Clinton land Obama in a tough spot
To stay positive, he refrains from attacking character
By Scott Helman, Globe Staff | October 30, 2007
The Iraq war. Healthcare. Diplomacy. Iran.
In the nine months since launching his insurgent campaign for president, Senator Barack Obama of Illinois has seized on a slew of issues in trying to set himself apart from Senator Hillary Clinton of New York. But with Clinton's dominance unabated, there is little evidence Obama has made headway on any of them.
Poll after poll shows Clinton not only leading the Democratic field, but also leading on issues on which Obama has sought to gain advantage. Likely voters say that they see Clinton as the best candidate to fix Iraq. They trust her over her rivals to solve the healthcare crisis. And they believe she would bring change to Washington.
Part of Obama's problem, analysts say, is that despite how hard his campaign is working to highlight its differences - he is vowing again this week to take her on more directly - he and Clinton are simply not far apart on major issues. "It's Wal-Mart and Kmart - they're occupying the same space," said Benjamin Ginsberg, a political science professor at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore
That, analysts say, puts Obama in something of a box: If he and Clinton are too alike on substance and policy, Clinton's character should be his prime target - but to attack that would undermine the unifying, positive message of his candidacy. Obama's best hope, analysts say, is his organizational strength in the first state to vote, Iowa, where polls show a tight race....
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2007/10/30/similarities_to_clinton_land_obama_in_a_tough_spot/