By Matthew Bigg
CHARLESTON, West Virginia (Reuters) - Democraticpresidential candidate Barack Obama on Thursday said the $500billion (252.3 billion pound) cost of the Iraq war is a drag onthe U.S. economy and attempted to lay some of the blame for iton Republican rival John McCain.
"How much longer are we going to ask our families and ourcommunities to bear the cost of this war?" the Illinois senatorasked in a speech.
As Obama tried to translate public opposition to the warinto support for his candidacy, a Gallup poll said hisDemocratic opponent, New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, has movedinto a significant lead over him among Democratic voters.
The March 14-18 national survey of 1,209 Democratic andDemocratic-leaning voters gave Clinton a 49 percent nationaledge to his 42 percent in the contest to select the Democraticnominee to face McCain in the November election.
Arizona Sen. McCain leads both the Democrats in ahypothetical matchup of the general election, according to theGallup poll and a Reuters/Zogby poll released on Wednesday.
Obama used a large portion of his speech to try to connectMcCain to President George W. Bush, accusing McCain of wantinga "permanent occupation in Iraq" while supporting Bush'sattempt to make tax cuts permanent.
"No matter what the costs, no matter what the consequences,John McCain seems determined to carry out a third Bush term,"Obama said.
McCain communications director Jill Hazelbaker swiftlyrejected Obama's statements which she said showed he was wrongon both the economy and U.S. national security. Obama wasoffering "the tired tax and spend ideas of the past" whilepromoting a speedy U.S. troop pull-out from Iraq, she said.
"He has embraced an irresponsible policy of withdrawing ourtroops from Iraq without regard for the conditions on theground, the advice of our military commanders or theconsequences of failure, which his own top advisor calledunrealistic," Hazelbaker said.
ROCKY WEEKS
Obama, who would be America's first black president, istrying to rebound after a rocky couple of weeks.
A foreign policy adviser, Samantha Power, had to resignafter she called Clinton a "monster" and this week Obama wasforced to distance himself from his long-time Chicago pastor,the Rev. Jeremiah Wright.
Wright, who retired recently, had railed from the pulpitthat the September 11 attacks were retribution for U.S. foreignpolicy, called the government the source of the AIDS virus andexpressed anger over what he called racist America.
The controversy reverberated further when the 1984Democratic vice presidential nominee, Geraldine Ferraro,attacked Obama for mentioning her in the same vein as Wrightduring a speech about race in America he gave on Tuesday.
Ferraro had to give up an advisory role to Clinton'scampaign last week after she said Obama would not be in astrong position in the campaign if he were not black.
"To equate what I said with what this racist bigot has saidfrom the pulpit is unbelievable," Ferraro said. "He (Obama)gave a very good speech on race relations, but he did notaddress the fact that this man is up there spewing hatred."
McCain, on a Middle East and European trip this week,shrugged off criticism from Obama over a gaffe he had madeabout Iraqi militants while in Jordan earlier in the week. Hesaid on Thursday that all politicians slip up and it was timeto "move on."
Obama had attacked McCain on Wednesday for misidentifyingIraqi Shi'ite and Sunni militants before ConnecticutIndependent Sen. Joe Lieberman corrected him.
"We all misspeak from time to time and I immediatelycorrected it," McCain said after talks with British PrimeMinister Gordon Brown at No. 10 Downing Street.
Obama said the cost of the war so far has been $500 billionand noted some estimates put it ultimately at $3 trillion. Heoutlined a number of domestic priorities that could be fundedwith this money, such as improving the health care system andrebuilding roads and bridges.
Obama said he would "spare no expense" to make sure U.S.troops have the equipment they need, but the RepublicanNational Committee pointed to instances which it said showedObama had voted in the Senate against funding the troops.
(Additional reporting by Jeff Mason with Clinton, AdrianCroft in London and David Morgan in Washington; Writing bySteve Holland, editing by Vicki Allen)
