In public appearances around Wisconsin -- and with an eye on primaries in delegate-heavy Ohio and Texas next week -- Clinton, a U.S. senator from New York, touted her economic policies that stressed programs assisting families hard-hit by high oil prices, home foreclosures, soaring post-secondary education costs and surging healthcare premium, The New York Times (NYSE:NYT) reported.

She told audiences that the primaries and caucuses provided "a chance for all of you here to help take our country back."

Obama, a U.S. senator from Illinois, meanwhile, told an Ohio audience the wealthy has "made out like bandits" under the Bush administration and called for an end to tax breaks for companies moving jobs overseas.

Stump speeches for both Democratic hopefuls have been driven somewhat by fears of a recession in the offing and the challenges U.S. consumers face in employment, housing and paying for energy and healthcare, the Times said.