Clinton seeks to convince voters she won debate

By Steve Holland

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton's camp tried to convince voters on Friday that she had put a bad two-week stretch behind her and emerged strong from her debate performance in Las Vegas.

The Clinton campaign put together video clips of some of her remarks at the debate showing her fighting back and defending herself against her rivals. The videos were turned into a Web appeal asking for campaign contributions.

"In the November 15 Democratic debate in Las Vegas, when there was the most at stake, Hillary put on her best performance. She was prepared, firm, and 100 percent ready to lead America," said a statement posted on the Web video link, which was available on her campaign's Web site.

Clinton, a New York senator, needed a smooth debate performance to try to tamp down an emerging notion that her air of invincibility had been punctured by a lackluster showing at the last debate on October 30 and a series of other seeming missteps.

In Las Vegas, she shifted from an above-the-fray style to one of attacking her closest challengers, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama and former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards, accusing Edwards in particular of slinging mud.

Obama and Edwards refused to cede any ground to Clinton despite glowing descriptions of the former first lady's performance from various political experts such as the Des Moines Register's leading political writer David Yepsen, whose column headline was a play on the words of an old Frank Sinatra song: "That's Why the Lady is a Champ."

Clinton, Obama and Edwards are all in a tight race in Iowa, which on January 3 kicks off the state-by-state battles to pick the Democratic and Republican candidates who will face off in the November 4, 2008, election.

A victory in Iowa can generate momentum heading into the next state contest, in New Hampshire, and beyond.