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Obama denies any change in war stance
WASHINGTON (AP) — Barack Obama denied Saturday that he intends to do anything but end the war if he wins the White House, attempting to put an end to speculation that he is inching away from a promise to withdraw combat troops within 16 months of taking office.
Though frequently overshadowed by voters' concerns about the sputtering U.S. economy, the Iraq conflict has emerged as a key difference between Obama and Republican rival John McCain. Obama has called the war a mistake and McCain has strongly supported keeping troops in the country.
The Democrat's comments to reporters on his campaign plane come on the heels of controversy earlier in the week after he indicated that his talks with military commanders during an upcoming visit to Iraq could refine his promise to remove U.S. combat troops. Republicans seized on that statement and accused Obama of reversing course on one of central premises of his candidacy.
Obama said Saturday he was surprised at the media response to what he "thought was a pretty innocuous statement.
"I am absolutely committed to ending the war," he said.
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In two news conferences last week, Obama said any refinement of his position on Iraq would not be related to his promise to remove combat forces within 16 months of taking office, but rather to the number of troops needed to train Iraqis and fight al-Qaeda. But he also acknowledged that the 16-month timeline could indeed slip if removing troops risked their safety or Iraqi stability.
He said Saturday he did not misspeak in his comments earlier in the week and suggested the media and critics read unintended significance into the remarks.
"I was surprised by how finely calibrated every single word was measured," Obama said. "I wasn't saying anything that I hadn't said before."
Obama has always said his promise to end the war would require consultations with military commanders and, possibly, flexibility.
The Illinois senator also said he and rival-turned-ally Hillary Rodham Clinton plan to help each other raise money in a series of fundraisers in New York next week — two Wednesday to raise money for his general election campaign and to help pay off her primary debts, and a Thursday morning breakfast with female donors. The fundraisers will be the first joint appearances by the former foes since a rally in Unity, New Hampshire, marked a cooperative effort after their bitter primary battle.
Earlier Saturday, Obama took a swipe at McCain, saying that for "someone who has been in Washington for 30 years he's got a pretty slim record on education and when he has taken a stand it has been the wrong one."
McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds responded in a statement: "Improving America's schools will take bipartisan leadership and a commitment to the issue, but Barack Obama has never spearheaded education reforms while in the U.S. Senate and has no record of working across the aisle for change."
In Missouri, Obama was also to address the oldest predominantly black Christian denomination in North America, marking a key campaign stop after scrutiny of his faith.
He was expected to speak to delegates and leaders of the African Methodist Episcopal Church on Saturday. The speech comes the candidate came under fire during the Democratic primary for his relationship with longtime pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright. Wright had called from the pulpit for God to "damn America" for its treatment blacks and claimed the United States brought the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on itself.
Obama, whose father was from Kenya, has also battled false but persistent rumors that he is a Muslim. They have been kept alive on the Internet despite his repeated talk about his longtime devotion to Christianity.
McCain was spending the long U.S. Independence Day holiday weekend in his home state of Arizona after wrapping up a three-day visit to Colombia and Mexico on Thursday to promote free trade and burnish his foreign policy credentials.
McCain, who has made support for the war in Iraq and especially President George W. Bush's troop buildup there the centerpiece of his presidential campaign, is also getting some help from a national veterans' organization.
Vets for Freedom is spending $1.5 million on television ads that will begin running in July, praising the troop buildup, Pete Hegseth, the 25,000-member group's chairman, said in a telephone interview Saturday.
The ads will feature veterans talking about the accomplishments they've seen since the buildup began in early 2007.
"We need to finish the job no matter who is president," the ads say, according to Hegseth.
The organization will also send its members to about a dozen swing states as part of a four-month education campaign that will "call for victory in Iraq and Afghanistan."
Earlier, Obama spent July 4 in the western state of Montana, continuing his attempt to woo moderate voters who could be key to the November presidential election.
The trip to Montana marked the fourth time Obama has visited the state. Only two Democratic presidential candidates have carried Montana and its three electoral votes since 1948.
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