Barack Obama gambled today on a full frontal challenge to Democratic icon Bill Clinton, previously thought to be untouchable because of his status as former president and the most popular figure in the party. Clinton has made a series of personal attacks on Obama on the campaign trail since December. Obama finally retaliated today, describing the former president's behaviour as "troubling" and accusing him of distorting facts.Tackling a figure of Clinton's stature in such a public way is risky, though less so than it would have been a few weeks ago. Clinton's derogatory and often tetchy remarks have alienated and angered many senior Democrats previously loyal to Clinton, particularly African-Americans.
In an interview with ABC television, Obama said: "You know the former president, who I think all of us have a lot of regard for, has taken his advocacy on behalf of his wife to a level that I think is pretty troubling. "He continues to make statements that are not supported by the facts... This has become a habit, and one of the things that we're going to have to do is to directly confront Bill Clinton when he's making statements that are not factually accurate."