By Jeff Mason
SELMA, Texas (Reuters) - U.S. Democratic presidentialcandidate Hillary Clinton questioned rival Barack Obama'sexperience in handling a national security crisis on Friday aspolls showed her losing ground to Obama before Tuesday'scontests in Texas and Ohio.
The Clinton campaign released a new television ad to beaired in Texas, which along with Ohio are crucial to herchances of reversing a string of losses to Obama. It showschildren sleeping peacefully in bed as a narrator says:
"It's 3 a.m. and your children are safe and asleep. Butthere's a phone in the White House and it's ringing.Something's happening in the world. Your vote will decide whoanswers that call."
The Clinton campaign hoped the new ad would convince votersshe would be ready to act swiftly and decisively in case ofanother September 11-type crisis in the United States.
Obama hit back with an ad of his own, which also showedsleeping children and spoke of a White House phone ringing.
"When that call gets answered, shouldn't the president bethe one -- the only one -- who had judgment and courage tooppose the Iraq war from the start?" the narrator says.
Clinton, a New York senator and former first lady onceconsidered the favourite to win her party's presidentialnomination, needs to win Texas and Ohio by wide margins onTuesday or face the end of her candidacy.
Her struggling campaign got an important morale boost withthe news she had raised $35 million in campaign contributionsin February, which was the most she had collected in one month.Obama aides declined to say when he would release hisfund-raising total but maintained he had continued to out-raisehis rival in February. The figures must be released by March20.
Obama and Clinton held competing rallies in the San Antonioarea on Friday evening.
Obama, in reference to Clinton's ad, told his crowd of some8,000 that Clinton had failed her "phone moment" with her 2002Senate vote to authorize use of force in Iraq.
"We've seen these ads before. They're usually the kind thatplay on people's fears and try to scare up folks. But it won'twork," he said.
Adding to his momentum, Obama said he had received backingfrom Sen. John Rockefeller, a West Virginia Democrat who headsthe Senate intelligence committee. "Barack Obama is the mostqualified person -- Democrat or Republican -- to lead ourcountry in the face of enormous challenges," he said.
OBAMA LEADS IN TEXAS; OHIO CLOSE
Clinton has repeatedly tried to question Obama's experiencebut the first-term Illinois senator, who would be the firstblack president, has ridden a wave of support with a call forsweeping change in Washington.
At an appearance in Waco, Texas, on Friday, Clinton saidObama was "missing in action" in the Senate on key nationalsecurity issues, including a vote on labelling an Iranianmilitary group a terrorist organization, and failing to holdhearings as head of a Senate subcommittee on foreign policy.
A Reuters/C-SPAN/Houston Chronicle poll released on Fridaysaid Obama holds a slight lead in Texas, 48 percent to 42percent, over Clinton, who would be the first woman president.
He trails Clinton 44 percent to 42 percent in Ohio -- wellwithin the poll's margin of error of 3.8 percentage points. Hehad been losing to her in Ohio by double digits.
In the Republican race, front-runner John McCain holdscommanding leads over his last major rival, former ArkansasGov. Mike Huckabee. McCain, an Arizona senator, has built anunassailable advantage in delegates who will pick the nomineeat the Republican Party convention in September.
But McCain spent Friday tried to distance himself fromevangelical leader John Hagee, whose endorsement he embraced onWednesday despite the pastor's controversial views about theCatholic Church.
"In no way did I intend for his endorsement to suggest thatI in turn agree with all of Pastor Hagee's views, which Iobviously do not," McCain said in a statement. Hagee wrote abook that claimed Adolph Hitler and the Catholic Church joinedin a conspiracy to destroy Jews.
Conservative Sen. Sam Brownback issued a statementsupporting McCain.
The poll, conducted by Zogby International, found McCainwith big double-digit margins over Huckabee in Texas and Ohio.
(Additional reporting by John Whitesides, Deborah Charles;writing by Steve Holland; editing by Doina Chiacu)
(To read more about the U.S. political campaign, visitReuters "Tales from the Trail: 2008" online athttp://blogs.reuters.com/trail08/)
