OBAMA: MY TEEN DRUG USE NOT RELEVANT TO CAMPAIGN

Waterloo, Ia. -- Barack Obama said today that he doesn't believe
Americans see his teenage drug use as relevant to his candidacy as
president.

"I can't say how Americans think generally about it. I do think that
the average American believes that what somebody does when they were
a teenager 30 years ago is probably not relevant to how they are
going to be performing as commander in chief and president of the
United States," Obama said during a press conference. "I think people
have pretty good judgment about that."

Obama has written about his use of drugs, including cocaine, during
his teenage years. Earlier this week William Shaheen, a co-chairman
of Hillary Clinton's New Hampshire campaign, raised questions about
the drug use, saying it could be used against Obama by Republican
opponents if he were to win the Democratic presidential nomination.

Clinton, a U.S. senator from New York, apologized to Obama and has
said she wasn't aware of Shaheen's actions before the statement he
released. Shaheen resigned Thursday.

"I reject completely the kind of line-crossing that I've stood up
against," Clinton said Friday during the taping of Iowa Public
Television's "Iowa Press" show.

Obama Saturday acknowledged the apology from Clinton but declined to
characterize the tone of the discussion they had Thursday when their
paths crossed in an airport.

"I said I appreciated the apology," Obama said of the discussion with
Clinton. "I suggested... that it was important for us, as the heads
of our campaigns, to make sure that we're sending a clear message
that this is not the kind of tone that we should tolerate."

Obama also responded to hits against his lack of experience. He was
specifically asked about former President Bill Clinton's statements
Friday that his wife is better prepared, saying that even "a gifted
television commentator" has just "one year less" experience than
Obama, who began his presidential run a year into his first term in
the U.S. Senate.

"Look, this is an argument that they've been making during the
duration of this campaign," Obama said. "Here is a quote: 'The same
old experience is irrelevant. You can have the right kind of
experience or the wrong kind of experience. Mine is rooted in the
real lives of real people and it will bring real results if we have
the courage to change.' That was Bill Clinton in 1992," Obama said,
noting that he has been involved in government for more than a decade.