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Obama Analyzes New Hampshire Performance

Sen. Barack Obama addresses a crowd in Nashua, N.H., ahead of Tuesday's primary.
Michal Czerwonka
/
AFP/Getty Images
Sen. Barack Obama addresses a crowd in Nashua, N.H., ahead of Tuesday's primary.

Sen. Barack Obama said Wednesday that rival Hillary Clinton had done better among women voters in New Hampshire's primary than many had expected, helping propel her to a victory in the state.

Speaking to NPR's Morning Edition, Obama acknowledged that Clinton "clearly ... did better among women than she had anticipated and than many of the pundits had anticipated."

Obama said his campaign planned to set the record straight about his position on the war in Iraq, which former President Bill Clinton, stumping on behalf of his wife, had taken to task in recent days. The former president suggested that Obama's voting record on war-related issues in the Senate had been little different than Sen. Clinton's.

"We're going to have to call him on it," Obama said.

"The press has already pointed out that he's wrong about this, but he keeps on repeating it," the Illinois senator said. "It is indisputable; I opposed this war from the start."

His Senate vote for funding the war in Iraq "is perfectly consistent with my position that it was important to make sure that our troops had the equipment and the tools that they needed at a time when things were very dicey," he said.

Looking ahead to South Carolina's Jan. 26 primary, Obama said there is "no doubt that we are in a very strong position to win."

The state's strong African-American base is widely expected to significantly boost Obama's chances there, but the presidential hopeful said he was "reaching out not just to the African-American community, but to people of all walks of life."

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