Clinton shuffles top campaign staff

WASHINGTON - Democratic Sen. Hillary Clinton replaced campaign manager Patti Solis Doyle with longtime aide Maggie Williams on Sunday, engineering a shake-up in a presidential campaign struggling to overcome rival Sen. Barack Obama's financial and political strengths.

The surprise announcement came hours after Obama's sweep of Saturday's contests and shortly before the Illinois senator won caucuses in Maine on Sunday.

Determined to stem the tide, Clinton turned to a longtime confidante to manage her operations while the campaign acknowledged that she made a private visit to North Carolina this week to seek the endorsement of former rival John Edwards. Her rival Barack Obama was planning his own meeting Monday with Edwards, who confidants said was torn over which candidate to back.

Campaign aides said Solis Doyle made the decision to leave on her own and was not urged to do so by the former first lady or any other senior member of the team. But it comes as Clinton struggles to catch Obama in fundraising and momentum and faces the prospect of losing every voting contest yet to come in February.

"I have been proud to manage this campaign and prouder still to call Hillary my friend for more than 16 years," Solis Doyle wrote. "Maggie is a remarkable person and I am confident that she will do a fabulous job."

Solis Doyle said she will serve as a senior adviser to Clinton and the campaign, and travel with Clinton from time to time.

Williams, who served as Clinton's White House chief of staff, joined the campaign after the New York senator narrowly won the New Hampshire primary Jan. 8. She will begin assuming the duties of campaign manager this week.

"I think this is one of the most important things I could be doing," Williams told The Associated Press. "I don't think you can accept one of these jobs unless you care about the future."

After Clinton's third-place finish in Iowa, Williams and other top strategists were brought aboard to help hone the political operation and sharpen Clinton's message. According to campaign aides, Solis Doyle, who has two young children, made the decision to step down as campaign manager at the time and agreed to stay on until Super Tuesday, Feb. 5.

The staff shake-up caps a week in which Clinton grabbed the bigger prizes on Super Tuesday, winning New York, California and New Jersey, but Obama prevailed in more contests. Obama won the popular vote in 13 states, while Clinton won in eight states and American Samoa.

Both Clinton and Obama have been competitive in fundraising for most of the campaign; each raised more than $100 million last year. In the last few weeks, however, Clinton lagged behind Obama as he raised $32 million in January to her $13.5 million, forcing her to lend her campaign $5 million before Super Tuesday. The campaign said Saturday that it had raised $10 million since the beginning of February.