The heated presidential campaign battle over a federal gas tax holiday turned out to be a much needed gift for Barack Obama -- and he can thank Democratic rival Hillary Clinton.

The fight, which dominated the final days before the North Carolina and Indiana contests, gave him an opening to talk about the economy with working-class voters and helped Obama at least temporarily bury the controversy about his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright.

Democratic strategists said Obama's focus on the economy as he rejected a summer-long suspension of the gas tax as a "political gimmick" will make him a better candidate heading into a likely battle against Republican John McCain in November.