Candidates Work to Raise Money for Early Election

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• JUDY WOODRUFF:

  Chris Cillizza, thank you for joining us.

  You spent the weekend watching Hillary Clinton in New Hampshire with, what, about half-a-dozen meetings with voters. Tell us what you came away with after watching her.

• CHRIS CILLIZZA, The Washington Post:

  Well, you know, it was very interesting. There was a general tone of warmth but wariness for Sen. Clinton.

  Most people came — I think they were interested in seeing her in the flesh, in person. Many of them had seen her on television, either as the senator from New York or the former first lady. But they hadn't got a chance to really meet her, see her up close, and watch her, as New Hampshire voters like to do.

  They like to meet their candidates one-on-one and get a real sense of the person, take their measure. So I think that's what you saw happening in New Hampshire this weekend.

  I'm not sure that Sen. Clinton closed the deal for these voters. I think what she was really doing was sort of — this was an introductory visit. It's her first visit to the state in 10 years, so I don't think the expectations were that she was going to convince a lot of people to sign on.

  I think she did just fine. I think the one concern that she does have, and it came up again and again, is with the war in Iraq.

• JUDY WOODRUFF:

  And the problem there?

• CHRIS CILLIZZA:

  Well, the problem there is simply that Sen. Clinton, unlike former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards, has not apologized for her vote in favor of the use of force resolution in 2002. John Edwards, along with Barack Obama, the senator from Illinois, who was not in the Senate at the time of the vote, but said that he would have voted against it, both Edwards and Obama are to Clinton's left on the war issue.

  She was asked multiple times whether she wanted to recant that vote, whether she wanted to apologize. She refused to do so. Some in the crowd received that relatively warmly. They were fine with that. She got good applause when she said, "This wasn't my mistake, it was the president's mistake," but not everyone in the crowd was won over by that remark. Many people still want her to say, "I made a mistake. I apologize."