Feb. 28 (Bloomberg) -- Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama pressed their economic messages today, drawing in President George W. Bush, who scolded the Democratic presidential candidates for their tough talk on trade.

Touring Ohio, Clinton put out a $5 billion, 12-year plan to cut in half the 13 million U.S. children living in poverty. The plan also would seek to end child hunger by 2012.

Obama reiterated his proposals for strengthening the middle class and ensuring fair trade agreements, saying he would roll back some of Bush's tax cuts to the level they were during the administration of former President Bill Clinton.

``Most rich people were doing pretty good in the '90s,'' the Illinois senator said in Austin, Texas. ``They were rich then and they will be rich when I am president.''

Ohio and Texas hold primaries March 4 that may be pivotal in the Democratic nomination race. Obama, with a lead in pledged convention delegates, is seeking to solidify his front-runner status, while Clinton is trying to stem her rival's momentum by winning the two states.

Obama, 46, largely ignored Clinton, training his rhetoric on Bush and likely Republican nominee John McCain, a senator from Arizona.

Americans are standing on the brink of a recession, he said, because of ``a failure of leadership in Washington, a Washington where George Bush hands out billions of tax cuts to the wealthiest few for eight long years, and John McCain promises to make them permanent, embracing the central principle of the Bush economic program.''

Slowing Growth

The Commerce Department reported today that the economy in the fourth quarter grew at an annual rate of 0.6 percent, less than forecast. A separate report showed initial claims for unemployment insurance climbed 19,000 last week to 373,000, higher than forecast.

Bush today said that while there's ``no question'' the economy has slowed, ``I don't think we're headed to a recession.''

Clinton, 60, a New York senator, spent her second day in southern Ohio's economically struggling Appalachian region, where the poverty rate is almost 20 percent, compared with the national average of 12 percent.

She met families in a trailer home in Pomeroy, stopped in Rio Grande and focused on children living in poverty in Hanging Rock.

Childhood Poverty

Clinton released a plan to fight childhood poverty. Among the provisions, it would increase federal spending on child care, pre-kindergarten education and food programs, including food stamps. It also would fund programs to reduce teen pregnancy.

The package includes increased tax breaks for families with two or more children, a higher minimum wage, and making it easier for workers to join unions. Clinton economic policy adviser Brian Deese said the proposal could be paid for through improved tax enforcement, specifically by requiring better third-party reporting of capital gains.

``I would like to end child hunger by 2012, and I would like to cut in half child poverty by 2020,'' Clinton said in Hanging Rock, a town on the Ohio-Kentucky border. ``A society is judged by how we take care of those at the beginning of life and the end of life.''

One-third of black children and 28 percent of Hispanic children live in poor families, compared with 10 percent of white children, the Clinton campaign said. Blacks and Hispanics are voting blocs targeted by both Democrats in next week's contests. Polls in Texas, which has 193 pledged delegates, show Clinton and Obama in a dead heat. Clinton leads in Ohio, which has 141 pledged delegates at stake.

Delegate Chase

Obama has 1,127.5 pledged delegates to Clinton's 1,007.5, according to a tally by The Green Papers, a nonpartisan Web site that tracks election statistics. A candidate needs 2,025 to win the Democratic nomination.

Clinton's advisers said today the campaign raised more than $35 million in February, more than twice her total for January. Obama campaign officials said they collected more than $40 million for the month.

Bush responded to Obama's and Clinton's criticism of the North American Free Trade Agreement among the U.S., Canada and Mexico. The two Democrats said at a debate this week that they would threaten to withdraw from the treaty unless it is renegotiated to strengthen labor and environmental standards.

``Yes, I heard the talk about Nafta,'' Bush said in response to a question at a White House news conference. ``The idea of just unilaterally withdrawing from a trade treaty because of, you know, trying to score political points, is not good policy.''

In the Republican campaign, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee began running a 30-second television ad to air in Dallas and Houston through March 4. Former Dallas Cowboys football player Cliff Harris, who has endorsed Huckabee, was set to tour Texas with the candidate starting today.

Last Updated: February 28, 2008 16:07 EST