Gerard Baker's commentary on the debate

Hillary Clinton attacked her Democratic rivals for the first time last night during a debate in which she strived to reassert her status as the party's presidential frontrunner.

After a series of setbacks to her campaign, Mrs Clinton went on the offensive, accusing her main rivals of slinging mud "right out of the Republican playbook".

Mrs Clinton appeared at a debate in Las Vegas striving to recover from a fortnight in which her once trouble-free quest for the Democratic nomination was hit by a series of problems and the first serious questions about her electability.

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Hillary will have calmed the slightly frayed nerves of her supporters

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• Comment: Gerard Baker on the US elections blog

In sharp contrast to a debate performance on October 30 that triggered her problems, Mrs Clinton was aggressive and assured. The crowd in Las Vegas, where Mrs Clinton is popular among Democrats, helped her on a night in which her main rivals, Barack Obama and John Edwards, continued to try to paint her as cynical and inauthentic.

"What the American people are looking for right now is straight answers to tough questions, and that is not what we've seen out of Senator Clinton on a host of issues," Mr Obama said.

Mr Edwards said: "She says she will bring change to Washington, while she continues to defend a system that does not work, that is broken, that is rigged and is corrupt."

But Mrs Clinton, after the last debate in which she failed to take clear stands on a number of issues – and revelations last week that her staff planted questions at campaign appearances – was ready. She attacked her rivals' records for the first time, and accused them of slandering her.

"When somebody starts throwing mud at least we can hope it's accurate and not right out of the Republican playbook," she said within the first minute.

After Mr Obama had criticised her stance on healthcare insurance, she immediately countered: "When it came time to step up and decide whether or not he would support universal health care coverage he chose not to do that."

With only seven weeks until the critical Iowa caucuses, where Mrs Clinton is in a statistical tie with Mr Obama and Mr Edwards, the debate was viewed as the first test of how Mrs Clinton responds to setbacks and pressure. She did well, helped by a largely friendly Nevada crowd.

Early in the debate Mr Edwards accused Mrs Clinton of trying to have it both ways — with the war in Iraq, Social Security (the American state pension system) and defining the scope of President Bush's power to use military force against Iran.

"I've just been personally attacked again," Clinton broke in. "I don't mind taking hits on my record on issues, but when somebody starts throwing mud at least we can hope it's accurate and not right out of the Republican playbook."

Later, when Mr Edwards criticised her again, there was the odd boo from the audience.

Mr Obama gave the best speech of his campaign to an audience of Iowans on Saturday night. For the first time in months, after a campaign that was regarded as listless and fading, he is generating excitement again. Mrs Clinton steadied her ship last night but it is the voters in Iowa – and not Nevada – who loom large in the candidates' minds.

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