JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton says she has a breadth and depth of support that can help her win in Missouri.

Clinton says she is familiar with Missouri from her living in Arkansas when Bill Clinton was governor there. She also says she has the ability to win votes in rural and Republican areas.

Clinton was responding to criticism from Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill.

McCaskill has said Democrats would jeopardize their chances in Missouri if Clinton is the Democratic presidential nominee. She predicts conservative Republicans would turn out to vote against Clinton. McCaskill has endorsed Clinton's rival, Barack Obama.

Missouri's primaries are Feb. 5. A poll by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and TV station KMOV shows Clinton ahead of Obama in Missouri.