Hillary Clinton, her White House bid heading for a precipice, pleaded with Democrats Friday not to rush to make a "leap of faith" on her Iowa caucus vanquisher Barack Obama.
Stung by the worst defeat of her political career, the one-time runaway front-runner rallied supporters in New Hampshire, knowing a second defeat in the state's primary on Tuesday could herald disaster.
With a narrow lead in polls in New Hampshire, which could be threatened by the "bounce" expected by Obama's camp from his win in the first nominating contest Thursday, Clinton needs to build a firewall to contain her rival.
The former first lady, her quest to become the first woman president staggering, insisted the short window between Iowa and New Hampshire would not hamper her bid to slow her rival's momentum.
"It is a short period of time, but it is enough time -- time for people to say, 'wait a minute,'" Clinton said, developing her theme -- rejected by Democrats in Iowa -- that Obama is too inexperienced to be president.
"Who will be the best president? ... based not on a leap of faith but based on the kind of changes we have already produced?" she asked at an early morning rally after flying into the northeastern state.
The outlines of a retooled Clinton strategy -- apparently thrashed out during an overnight flight from Iowa to New Hampshire -- were evident: never give up; appeal to young voters who went to Obama in droves in Iowa; inflate doubts he is not ready to be president; warn that her rival would be consumed by a Republican firestorm in a general election; and focus on voters' economic woes.
But after once being portrayed as an "inevitable" nominee, Clinton is now reduced to asking Democratic voters to give her time to make her case.
"The last thing the Democrats need is to move quickly through this process -- it is so telescoped -- without taking a hard look at all of us," Clinton told reporters as she dropped into a coffee shop in Manchester, New Hampshire.
She has tough task in peeling away the young, first-time, and independent voters, as well as traditional Democrats, invigorated by Obama's powerful message of generational change.
She must also recapture the thematic narrative of the campaign, amid signs Obama's hopeful message may be pitch perfect for an America wearied by war and political division.
After a short introduction, Clinton unusually asked for questions from the audience at her rally, truncating the stump speech which she rarely diverted from in Iowa.
"What do you want to know about us?" she asked her audience, in another apparent reference to Obama, who Clinton aides say has not be properly "vetted" by the press.
Clinton also played on fears among Democratic voters that the White House is seemingly in reach, but could be snatched away by Republicans preying on an inexperienced Democratic nominee.
"I am not running for president to see the Republicans take this away from us again," she said.
"I am tested and I am proven, I have been through the fires, anyone we nominate is going to be thrown into that blaze, that inferno, known as the general election."
Another key plank of Clinton's recovery plan was standing right next to her on a frigid morning in New Hampshire.
The original "Comeback Kid" himself -- former president Bill Clinton -- used New Hampshire to rescue a scandal-plagued campaign for president in 1992.
"Let's go out there and win this thing," the ex-president, who remains a hero among Granite State Democrats, said.
Playing on her husband's enduring popularity, Hillary Clinton added, "it is also kind of interesting that it took a Clinton to clear up after the first Bush, it will take a Clinton to clean up after the second Bush."
Obama's camp will be wary of underestimating the Clinton family's renowned resilience, and legendary political self-preservation skills, which seemingly only kick in when the crisis is at its darkest.
Despite Clinton's slump to third in Iowa, her aides tried to downplay the disappointment, and stressed it was only the first step in a marathon nominating process.
An average of New Hampshire polls by RealClearPolitics had Clinton with 34 percent to Obama's 27 percent and Edwards' 18.
Copyright © 2008 Agence France Presse.
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