KANSAS CITY, Mo.- A group of Democratic leaders in Missouri on Monday said they were forming a “truth squad” to protect Sen. Barack Obama from attacks they anticipate coming from rival Hillary Clinton’s campaign and other Obama opponents ahead of the Feb. 5 Democratic primary here.  

The move is similar to one Obama backers made in South Carolina ahead of that state’s primary on Saturday, which Obama won handily.

Missouri state auditor Susan Montee and former Missouri Democratic Party Chair Joe Carmichael told reporters in a conference call that they and other state Democrats were issuing a challenge to the “false and negative campaigning” seen lately from the Clinton campaign.

The group said it wanted to counter in Missouri allegations that Obama does not truly support abortion rights, that he was supportive of a range of Republican policies dating from the Reagan era and former President Bill Clinton’s assertion that Obama had gotten away with a “fairy tale” about his opposition to the war in Iraq. They also said another one by groups apart from the Clinton campaign that Obama was falsely presenting himself as Christian would be challenged if it resurfaced.

“Our primary goal is to make sure it doesn’t happen here. The voters need to participate in this election based on the facts not based on negative attacks,” said Carmichael. “That’s why we’re out front early… to say ‘No’ to the Clintons. Don’t do it here, because we’re ready.”

Not to be outdone, the Clinton campaign on Monday announced its own effort to keep campaigning honest.

The “Rapid Responders,” is a “national group of truth tellers who will respond to inaccurate or misleading attacks” directed at Hillary Clinton and her husband. The Rapid Responders will operate in all of the 22 states that will hold caucuses or primaries on February 5th.

Wherever and whenever her opponents misrepresent Hillary’s positions in their states, the Rapid Responders will set the record straight, said Maricopa County (AZ) Supervisor Mary Rose Garrido Wilcox.

 A Jan 25. Rasmussen poll pegged Clinton with a 19 point lead over Barack Obama ahead of Missouri’s Feb. 5 primary contest. The telephone survey showed Clinton earning 43 percent of the vote to Obama’s 24 percent. 

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 - Photo credit: Reuters/Jonathan Ernst (Clinton and Obama during a debate in South Carolina.)