January 28, 2008 - 9:59AM
Hillary Clinton admitted today her husband Bill's hard-charging campaign tactics had gone overboard, but chalked the ex-president's fiery broadsides up to love and a chronic lack of sleep.
A day after rival Barack Obama trounced her in the South Carolina primary, the former first lady also mounted a vigorous defence of the two Clinton White House terms, which Obama has said did not spark transformational change.
Clinton was asked on CBS television's Face the Nation whether her husband was "out of control" after he took the Illinois senator, and the media to task, during a foul-tempered week-long campaign.
"You know, my husband has such a great commitment to me and to my campaign," the New York senator said.
"He loves me just like, you know, husbands and wives get out there and work on each others' behalf." ( What did they used to say. "Gag me with a spoon" )
She blamed the tensions of the tight battle for the party's presidential nomination
"Maybe he got a little carried away. You know, that comes with a hard-fought election," she said