Obama Leads Clinton In Iowa Caucus Poll
BY JOHN TOSCANO

Just when it looked like Democratic presidential frontrunner Hillary Rodham Clinton's fine performance in the most recent debate had helped her overcome some problems, she got smacked down again as a poll showed Barack Obama sprinting ahead of her in the latest survey on the Iowa caucuses, now just about six weeks away.

The surprising development came as both Democratic and Republican presidential hopefuls are criss-crossing the Hawkeye State trying to notch a win in the January 3 caucuses and build some early momentum in the first of many primaries.

At the beginning of the month, Clinton had overtaken John Edwards, who was leading the field, and Illinois Senator Obama was a close second. On Monday, however, a new ABC/Washington Post poll showed Obama with 30 percent, Clinton second with 26 percent and Edwards fading at 22 percent.

On the Republican side, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney has a slight lead over another former governor, Mike Huckabee of Arkansas. Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who's been the steady frontrunning leader among GOP hopefuls, is a non-threatening third at this point.

Although Giuliani leads the national polls, he trails in Iowa and also in New Hampshire, another early primary state.

In the Democratic race, Clinton attacked Obama as an unexperienced candidate, but he countered that so was the former First Lady. Obama needled Clinton, saying, "My understanding was that she wasn't Treasury Secretary in the Clinton administration, so I don't know exactly what experience she's claiming."

Giuliani was overlooked last week as two endorsements were made. In one, Giuliani's strong 9/11 credentials were not enough for former 9/11 Commission Chairman Tom Kean, who instead endorsed Arizona Senator John McCain, citing his Vietnam War experience.

In the other, a major anti-abortion group swung its support to Fred Thompson, the former Tennessee Senator whose campaign has been rather quiet lately. The group, the National Right to Life Committee, chose Thompson over Romney and Huckabee.

In another campaign development, the Commission on Presidential Campaign Debates selected nearby Hofstra University on Long Island as the site for a debate next October 15. It will be the first general election presidential debate held in New York state since John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon squared off in a televised debate in Manhattan in 1960.