Can Obama win? ‘Yes, yes, yes,’ says Clinton

updated 10:36 p.m. ET April 16, 2008

PHILADELPHIA - Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton said emphatically Wednesday night that Sen. Barack Obama can win the White House this fall, undercutting her efforts to deny him the nomination by suggesting he would lead the party to defeat.

"Yes, yes, yes," she said when pressed about Obama's electability during a campaign debate six days before the Pennsylvania primary.

Asked a similar question about Clinton, Obama said, "Absolutely, and I've said so before" — a not-so-subtle response to suggestions from his rival that he could not defeat Republican Sen. John McCain.

Both rivals pledged not to raise taxes on individuals making less than $200,000 and said they would respond forcefully if Iran obtained nuclear weapons and used them against Israel.

"An attack on Israel would incur massive retaliation by the United States," Clinton said.

Obama said, "The U.S. would take appropriate action."

A gap on Social Security
They differed over Social Security when Obama said he favored raising payroll taxes on higher-income individuals. Clinton said she was opposed. Her rival quickly cut in and countered that she had said earlier in the campaign she was open to the idea.

Under current law, workers must pay the payroll tax on their first $102,000 in wages. Obama generally has expressed support for a plan to reimpose the tax beginning at a level of $200,000 or more.

The debate was the 21st of the campaign for the nomination, an epic struggle that could last weeks or even months longer.

Pennsylvania, with 158 delegates at stake, is a must-win contest for Clinton, who leads in the polls and hopes for a strong victory to propel her through the other states that vote before the primary season ends June 3.

Video Todd: ‘Tough night for Obama’ April 16: NBC’s Chuck Todd tells Countdown’s Keith Olbermann that Sen. Barack Obama ‘did not have a good night.’ Countdown

Obama leads Clinton in the delegate chase, 1,647-1,511, according to msnbc.com and NBC News calculations. Earlier in the day, he picked up the endorsements of three superdelegates from two states with primaries on May 6 — Reps. Andre Carson of Indiana and Mel Watt and David Price of North Carolina.

After primaries and caucuses in 42 of the 50 states, Obama leads his rival in convention delegates, popular votes and states won. She is struggling to stop his drive to the nomination by appealing to party leaders who will attend the convention as superdelegates that he would preside over an electoral defeat at a moment of great opportunity after eight years of Republican rule.

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