Clark needs boost in South

The ex-general has enough cash to keep his campaign afloat but must outpoll Edwards to again become a contender.

WASHINGTON - Wesley Clark is hoping today's primaries in Tennessee and Virginia will jump-start his presidential campaign.

Clark narrowly won last week's Oklahoma primary and was second in three states. But since then, his campaign has sputtered. Over the weekend, he placed fifth in Maine, Michigan and Washington.

The retired general calls himself the underdog for today's primaries but insists he is the best candidate to beat President Bush.

Contrasting himself with Sens. John Edwards ("a lawyer") and John Kerry ("a man who has spent his life in the Senate"), Clark on Monday described himself as someone who "has spent his whole life out there rolling up his sleeves, working with people, building teams, making things happen."

In the past week, Clark spent several days in Tennessee, where polls show him in third place, just behind Edwards. He spent less time in Virginia, where he trails Edwards by a larger margin. Kerry has a formidable lead in both states.

Clark's aides say privately that today's primaries, especially Tennessee, are a critical test. Although he has received more than $600,000 over the Internet in the past week - enough to keep him afloat for at least a few more days - Clark must outperform Edwards to again become a contender in the race.

Edwards, with his distinctive "two Americas" message, has been drawing large crowds and picking the momentum. Clark has responded by challenging Edwards' record on veterans benefits; Edwards in turn has accused Clark of negative campaigning.

When he launched his campaign in September, Clark, 59, seemed to be a formidable candidate.

He attracted a team of veteran Clinton-Gore advisers and surged to the top of the national polls. Newsweek put him on the cover and called him "Soldier, Scholar, Maverick."

Filmmaker Michael Moore endorsed Clark recently and explained his appeal on MichaelMoore.com: "The surest slam dunk to remove Bush is with a four-star-general-top-of-his-class-at-West-Point-Rhodes-Scholar-Medal-of-Freedom-winning-gun-owner-from-the-South - who also, by chance, happens to be prochoice, pro-environment and antiwar. You don't get handed a gift like this very often."

Clark decided to skip the Iowa caucuses because of his late start and concentrate on New Hampshire.

Clark "fumbled enough that voters noticed," said Craig Crawford, a political analyst for MSNBC and Congressional Quarterly. "He has fumbled some core Democratic issues like abortion rights. He wasn't able to make an advantage out of being an amateur. The trouble with running as an amateur is that you're an amateur. It showed in his case."

As Howard Dean's campaign began to unravel, Clark was well-positioned. He began climbing in the polls and got as high as second in New Hampshire, five points behind Dean. But after Kerry's big victory in Iowa, Clark lost momentum and his Iowa decision came back to haunt him.

Kerry, a Vietnam veteran, had many of the same attributes as Clark. He, too, was a war hero and portrayed himself as the most "electable" Democrat.

But Clark "was at the mercy of everyone else coming out of Iowa," said political analyst Stuart Rothenberg. "Suddenly he was just overwhelmed."

Rothenberg said Clark "painted himself in that corner. I still ask myself what would have happened if he got in the race (much earlier). He would have had time to make mistakes, to organize."

On the campaign trail, Clark performed well at town meetings. Some voters who arrived undecided left wearing Clark stickers. But he had difficulty dealing with reporters. He flip-flopped about the Iraq war and offered confusing answers about abortion rights. He told an editorial board that there would not be a terrorist attack during his presidency.

His TV ads, for instance, have portrayed him as outsider and insider. One said, "A politician won't change the way Washington works. Wes Clark will." Another ad sounded the opposite theme: "He's led armies. Forged coalitions. And helped negotiate a peace. At a time like this, don't we need a president like that?"

Political analysts - and even some Clark aides - say he must win Tennessee today to stay alive. But with contributions streaming in at a healthy rate, the four-star general can keep his campaign going for a few more days and decide his own future.

"From everything we heard," said Rothenberg, "he is someone who doesn't like to take orders."

- Information from the Associated Press was included in this report.

[Last modified February 10, 2004, 16:40:58]

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