Democrat Obama rejects charges of flip-flopping

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As he positions himself for the battle against Republican John McCain, the Illinois senator softened an earlier vow to reopen the North American Free Trade Agreement, did not oppose a Supreme Court decision striking down Washington's gun ban and said he would support expanding the government's wiretap authority.

Most recently, he signalled greater flexibility on his pledge to quickly pull U.S. troops out of Iraq, telling reporters last week he might "refine" his views based on what happens on the ground.

Asked about his Iraq policy at a town hall meeting in Powder Springs, Obama rejected claims he was softening his insistence on a withdrawal of U.S. troops from the country.

He also said he hoped he could more generally counter "this whole notion that I am shifting to the centre or that I'm flip-flopping or this or that."

"You know, the people who say this apparently haven't been listening to me," Obama said.

The McCain campaign has eagerly accused Obama of shifting position for political expediency - a tactic Republican President George W. Bush used successfully in his 2004 re-election campaign against Democrat John Kerry.

"I think there's been definitely shifts in position, and one of them is Iraq," McCain told the Fox News Channel on Tuesday.

Obama, who has a single-digit lead over McCain in the polls heading toward the November election, has also been criticized by some liberal supporters, particularly over his support for electronic eavesdropping legislation.

Pundits believe he is attempting to position himself closer to the centre in hopes of winning over independent voters, moderate Democrats and some Republican voters who have grown disenchanted with Bush.

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