AUSTIN , Texas ( CNN ) -- Sen. Hillary Clinton , needing a win in Texas to derail Sen. Barack Obama in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination , sought Thursday to contrast her opponent 's rhetorical skills with what she called her superior ability to govern . Sens . Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton face off in a high-stakes debate . `` I do think that words are important and words matter , '' Clinton said at a debate at the University of Texas . `` But actions speak louder than words . '' Obama responded by laying out issues he 's worked on in the Senate and others he 'd support as president -- then called it ridiculous to suggest his supporters are `` being duped . '' `` The implication is that the people who have been voting for me or involved in my campaign are somehow delusional , '' he said . Obama said his supporters perceive the reality of what 's going on in Washington very clearly , and they want to see it change . `` What they see is that if we do n't bring the country together , stop the endless bickering , actually focus on solutions and reduce the special interests that have dominated Washington , then we will not get anything done . '' Watch Obama talk about his plan to change Washington » . Much of the 90-minute debate featured the two candidates staking out similar positions on issues like Iraq , the economy and immigration . Watch the candidates weigh in on the economy » . `` It was a very odd debate -- the questioners had to beg them to differ with each other , '' said CNN senior political analyst Bill Schneider . See what CNN 's political team thought of the showdown » . The debate was the first the two have participated in since they met in Los Angeles January 31 . Five days later , the two effectively split the victories on Super Tuesday . But since then , Obama has rolled to 11 straight wins , a streak that leaves Clinton needing wins in delegate-rich Texas and Ohio on March 4 . Vermont and Rhode Island also hold primaries that day . Texas is the biggest prize , with 193 Democratic delegates . Going into those primaries , Obama leads Clinton by 140 pledged delegates . Responding to a question from the panel , Clinton 's sharpest attack on Obama came when she went after him for borrowing lines from a speech by Massachusetts Gov . Deval Patrick , his campaign co-chairman , in his own campaign speeches . The Clinton campaign has called that plagiarism . `` If your campaign is going to be about words , they should be your own words , '' she said . `` Lifting whole passages is n't change you can believe in ; it 's change you can Xerox . '' Watch the spat over plagiarism » . Some in the audience booed Clinton for the line . `` This is where we start getting into silly season in politics , '' Obama replied , saying Patrick is a friend who suggested he use the lines . `` People start getting tired of it . '' A CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll out Monday suggests the Democratic race in Texas is a statistical dead heat . Watch uncommitted Texas students discuss debate » . In the survey , taken before Obama 's Tuesday victories in Wisconsin and Hawaii , 50 percent of likely Democratic primary voters support Clinton as their choice for the party 's nominee , with 48 percent backing Obama . The poll 's margin of error is 4.5 percentage points . Two other recent polls also show the race statistically even . With so much at stake , analysts said Clinton needed a very strong performance in the debate , the only time the two candidates will share a stage in Texas before the state 's primary . `` Texas is the endgame . Hillary Clinton has to stop Obama in Texas . This means she has to do something to shake the race up . She has to raise doubts about Obama and get Democrats to rethink whether they really want to rally behind him , '' Schneider said . In a state where Hispanic voters are expected to make up a large share of the March 4 electorate , the pair fielded questions on immigration reform and dealing with Cuba 's government in the wake of President Fidel Castro 's decision this week to step down . Watch the candidates talk about Cuba » . Both Clinton and Obama voted to authorize President Bush to build a border fence between the United States and Mexico -- but both said Thursday they would consult with leaders in border areas about where fencing is needed and where other methods could be used to secure the borders . Watch the candidates debate immigration » . `` As with so much , the Bush administration has gone off the deep end , '' Clinton said . Both also said they 'd be willing to meet with Fidel Castro 's brother Raul -- who is expected to become president of Cuba after his brother stepped down -- if the nation 's leadership has shown signs of improving its record on human rights , freedom of the press and other issues . Schneider said neither candidate appeared to have gained or lost significant ground in Thursday 's debate . After months of campaigning that have included 19 Democratic debates , some analysts said the two may be satisfied to stand on the themes they 've established and simply let voters decide . E-mail to a friend .
Clinton , Obama discuss immigration , economy , taxes in mostly civil debate . Comment: Clinton , Obama in close race in Texas , polls show . Texas holds its primary March 4 .