The Democratic candidate for president visits the state and takes
swipes at his main rival and President Bush.

Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama cast himself as both an idealist and an agent of change Tuesday during his first Maine appearance -- a campaign speech to some 3,000 people who paid $23 each to attend. The Illinois senator touched on Iraq, education, health care and energy policy but spent the bulk of his half-hour address selling his lack of Washington experience as a positive. "Politics is a mission, not just a business," he told the crowd that filled the Portland Expo. The speech was light on policy and heavy on messages of hope. It came as Obama debuted his first television advertisement in early primary state New Hampshire, and as Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., widened her lead in a poll of likely Granite State voters. The Portland fundraiser attracted mostly Democrats in their 20s and 30s who said that although they are drawn to the senator's idealism, it is far too early to throw their support behind one candidate. Mary Buckelew, 29, of Portland said she would prefer to see Democrat Dennis Kucinich in the White House, but doesn't believe the Ohio congressman is electable. Buckelew said she has decided to pick a front-runner to support. She said the candidate with the best plan to improve education, address climate change, support women's rights and find an exit strategy for Iraq will get her vote. Buckelew and Bill Harnsberger, 43, of Portland said Obama piqued their interest after his speech at the Democratic National Convention in 2004. Obama draws crowds with his idealistic message, encouraging Americans to move beyond partisanship, said Harnsberger, a liberal blogger who is also undecided about who to support in the primary. "I think he's a dynamic speaker. He's really pushing a theme of uniting Americans," said Harnsberger, a frequent contributor to the Daily Kos political Web site. Obama spoke of ending "petty partisan battles," but took swipes at both the Bush administration and Clinton, whose lead in New Hampshire is widening, according to a poll released Tuesday. The University of New Hampshire Survey Center found 43 percent of 307 likely primary voters supported Clinton, while Obama polled second at 20 percent. The CNN/WMUR poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 5.5 percentage points. Clinton led by a margin of 9 percentage points in a similar poll this summer. "When we refuse to talk to our enemies, that doesn't make us look tough, that makes us look arrogant," Obama said, a reference to a dispute that began after a nationally televised debate in July. Clinton labeled him "naive" after he said he'd meet with leaders of "rogue nations" during the first year of his presidency. The "arrogant" phrase has become part of the candidate's stump speech since the dispute with Clinton, who told Iowa's Quad- City Times she found Obama's comments "irresponsible and frankly naive." Obama jabbed at the Bush administration for its decision to invade Iraq and cut taxes for wealthy Americans. He told the crowd the president shouldn't have commuted the prison term of former vice-presidential chief of staff I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby after his conviction for lying to federal investigators who were probing the leak of a CIA officer's identity. "Even Paris Hilton got jail time," Obama said. Republican National Committee spokeswoman Summer Johnson said Obama shouldn't be talking about "moral standing" after sitting out a Senate vote on a resolution that condemned the liberal interest group MoveOn.org for a newspaper ad criticizing Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq. "It seems Obama plays to the kind of politics set forth by MoveOn.org," Johnson said. Obama skipped the vote because it was a "stunt designed only to score cheap political points," his spokesman said in an e- mail. "The focus of the United States Senate should be on ending this war, not on criticizing newspaper advertisements," Robert Gibbs said. After the Expo appearance, about 300 people attended an evening event at the home of Robert A.G. Monks of Cape Elizabeth, a former Republican U.S. Senate candidate, Gibbs said. Monks' son, Robert C.S. Monks, is chairman of the Obama for Maine Committee. Supporters expected to raise more than $300,000 for Obama's campaign between the rally and the reception, the younger Monks said. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Staff Writer Elbert Aull can be contacted at 791-6325 or at: eaull@pressherald.com

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