The Big Story: McCain, Clinton lead in state

From The Associated Press

A poll conducted Jan. 17-20 by the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communications at Arizona State University and Channel Eight/KAET-TV, indicates that Arizona Sen. John McCain and New York Sen. Hillary Clinton are leading as presidential nomines among those who voted in at least three of the past six elections.

Arizona’s presidential preference primary is Feb. 5. Twenty-one other states will be holding primaries or caucuses that day.

Among the top reasons that McCain supporters cited for supporting him were his views, experience and military background.

Supporters of former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney were drawn to him for his conservative values, business background and their belief that he is the best of all candidates.

Clinton supporters were attracted to her because of her experience, views and because they like her husband, former President Clinton.

Supporters of Illinois Sen. Barack Obama cited his vision for change, their trust in him and his intelligence and views.

THE NUMBERS

REPUBLICANS

John McCain, 41 percent

Mitt Romney, 18 percent

Fred Thompson, 9 percent

Mike Huckabee, 7 percent

Rudy Giuliani, 4 percent

Ron Paul, 2 percent

Undecided, 19 percent

DEMOCRATS

Hillary Rodham Clinton, 45 percent

Barack Obama, 24 percent

John Edwards, 9 percent

Dennis Kucinich, 1 percent

Undecided, 21 percent

Date: 01/22/2008 04:30 PM

Thompson quits presidential race

NAPLES, Fla.—Republican Fred Thompson, 65, the actor-politician, quit the race for the White House on Tuesday after a string of poor finishes in early primary and caucus states.

“Today, I have withdrawn my candidacy for president of the United States. I hope that my country and my party have benefited from our having made this effort,” the former Tennessee senator said in a brief statement.

Thompson’s fate was sealed last Saturday in the South Carolina primary, when he finished third in a state that he had said he needed to win.

In the statement, Thompson did not say whether he would endorse any of his former rivals. He was one of a handful of members of Congress who supported Arizona Sen. John McCain in 2000 in his unsuccessful race against George W. Bush for the party nomination.

Thompson, best known as the gruff district attorney on NBC’s “Law & Order,” placed third in Iowa and South Carolina, two states seemingly in line with his right-leaning pitch and laid-back style, and fared even worse in the four other states that have held contests thus far. Money already tight, he ran out of it altogether as the losses piled up.

Huckabee trims costs, including press travel

ORLANDO, Fla.?—Battling to stay competitive after his weekend loss in South Carolina, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee is taking new steps to save money, including no longer scheduling planes and buses for journalists trying to cover his presidential campaign.

Huckabee said he will continue to campaign in Florida on a shoestring budget, but added that he may pull out of the state before its Jan. 29 Republican primary if his prospects look dim.

Clinton, Obama trade accusations

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton argued on Tuesday that Barack Obama’s frustration with losing prompted him to look for a fight in their latest debate. Obama said his rival and her husband, former President Clinton, were distorting his record.

“I think it’s very clear that Senator Clinton ... and the president have been spending the last month attacking me in ways that are not accurate,” Obama told reporters in a conference call shortly after she lashed out at him in a bitter exchange that carried over from Monday night’s debate.

Speaking to reporters in Washington, Hillary Clinton belittled Obama’s line of debate criticism against her as “rehearsed points.”

“I think what we saw last night was that he’s very frustrated,” she said. “I believe that the events of the last 10 or so days, the outcome of New Hampshire and Nevada, have apparently convinced him to adopt a different strategy.”

The bickering brought new calls for calm from former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards, running third among Democratic contenders. “There was a lot of squabbling,” Edwards told reporters in a conference call Tuesday. “While Senator Clinton and Senator Obama were hurling charges and countercharges at each other, I was thinking, ‘I’m John Edwards and I represent the grown-up wing of the Democratic Party.’”