I live in Iowa and have never seen Obama around; I have seen Clinton and others. Though seeing the candidates does not matter to me! Their ideas for the future of this country do matter to me! I believe that Clinton is the best chance for the Democrat to take back the White House. Also with the recent issues with her health care plan…if all the "plans" are essentially the same, does it matter we nominate? Apparently they are all on the same page, but Edwards & Obama don't have the general election numbers Clinton does (which seems to be the only REAL difference)!! I am a register democrat and I will be voting in the Iowa Caucus for Clinton.

I read these post and I'm amazed how juvenile some of them are. For Christ sake American wake the hell up and have a normal and intelligent dicussion about issues that may affect your life and that of your children.

I have read and re-read this article.

I find nothing that is blatantly negative towards Senator Obama. It appears to be more a statement of fact, and reiterates what his campaign has said about not appearing at every venue.

However, can a serious candidate continue to snub critical segments of the electorate on a recurring basis; and still expect their support on election/caucus day? I do not agree with Senator Obama's strategists that apparently believe this is how you win elections.

For the benefit of Iowa caucus goers, and the rest of the electorate, it has to be a good thing when all candidates appear together and comparisons are made.

And, a little BBQ never hurt anyone.

I'm so sick and tired of dragging Barack Obama through the mud every time he breaths hard. Why wasn't the media all over Guiliani as he started his 9-11 fundraising parties where everyone sends him $9.11? If that had been Obama, he would have been blown out of the water by now, but Guiliani gets away with it with excuses. And why isn't the media all over the fact that the GOP won't attend black debates, they turn away from the black forums? But you'd rather blast Obama when you know indeed his campaign said a long time ago he would only attend DNC forums. Besides, why should he continue to attend these debates standing next to Hillary Clinton, which only diminishes him standing next to her, and then when the debate is finished, all the focus groups have Obama the clear winner and the next day in the news all you see is media Clintonites saying she won that debate, when she clearly did not. I think that Obama not only needed to ride in the bumper cars in Iowa to prepare for that last debate(which he won) as he said, but I think he should've ridden and must ride in all the bumper cars of America to be prepared for all this Obama bias and Obama bashing!! Good grief!!!

Perhaps he is just… LAZY

Henry Tucker…keep the racist comments coming! Show your true Neo Conservative colors -

Posted By Evan Esteves, Boca Raton, FL : September 25, 2007 10:27 pm

Obama is simply going after the left-overs - Hillary was already did the heavy lifting (pandering to Katrina victims & Jena-6 marchers).

Evan. I'm not a racist - just an equal-opportunity satirist.

This woman and Bill are just real politicians.

Posted By enock kebati,

Enock, You say that like it's supposed to be a complement.
Let's face it CNN, you've already ordained and anointed Billary, you could at least give the other candidates a fair shake.

Who really gives a rip about Iowa…the only time the rest of the country hears about you guys is during election season. I guess you should just be happy you HAVE events in your state…here in southern Arizona I don't think we've even seen our own senators in years.

And come on…quit wasting corn on a corn boil that could be wasted on Ethanol! Really…the nerve…

Almost everyone commenting here has the wrong idea. No candidate makes every event. No candidate is required to be at any event. the article is pointing out that it is an unorthodox strategy to miss Iowa events.

Maybe not a good move for Barack, but the only candidate doing better than him right now is hillary who is Bill Clintons wife. Also the media seems to be behind her just a little. So he's gotta be doing something right.

I dont think Barack is god's gift to washington but i saw someone call him an idiot. None of the democratic candidates are idiots. You are talking about some of the most successful attorneys in america.
………….ok mike gravel might be a little over the top.

These people in Texas that want to vote for Hilary are the same people that put bush into office as Govenor, along as president, twice. Good going morons, your opinions do NOT matter.

He want's to be president but yet he can't show up where he needs to be. Sounds like a loser there. Put him in office and he'll never show up for work. Vote Hillary!

More reasons to vote for Bill Richardson!

Just more evidence that Obama is an arrogant windbag.

What else is new….?

Obama is definately an Idiot……no doubt……

YOU KNOW I AM SICK AND TIRED OF PEOPLE ALWAYS GETTING ON BARACK OBAMA FOR DOINT THE SAME THINGS THAT HIS POLITICAL RIVALS DO THIS IS SO SILLY. I FEEL BAD FOR BARACK OBAMA I WAS READING A STORY AND THE MEDIA WAS COMMENTING ON HOW CLINTON IS AHEAD IN IOWA AND NH OF COURSE SHE IS OVER 85 PERCENT OF BOTH OF THOSE STATES ARE WHITE AMERICANS. AS LONG AS THE DNC USE NH, IOWA, AND OTHER PREDOMINATELY WHITE STATES TO PICK THIER NOMINEE THERE WILL NEVER BE A BLACK PRESIDENT EVEN THOUGH HE IS MORE THAN QUALIFIED AND IS THE RIGHT MAN FOR THE JOB.

This is ridiculous.

Why don't you put up a post of all the events every single other candidate has missed?
Give him a break.

CNN….Obama already announced he would limit his participation in forums and debates. He did so over a month ago, so why is this a news story???

Jesus Christ!

Even if they don't have many "colored poeple" in Iowa, if he's half the man he tells us he is, he'd be there to play the game he can't win.

MORE REASONS NOT TO VOTE FOR HILLARY.

IT'S A GOOD THING OBAMA IS NOT ALLOWING THE MEDIA TO DICTATE WHERE HE SHOULD BE.

HE HAS MY VOTE!

OBAMA '08

Henry Tucker…keep the racist comments coming! Show your true Neo Conservative colors!

David Yepsen from The Des Moines Register: Barack Obama has spent a tremendous amount of time in your State and is working very hard so that the people of Iowa can get to know him. He has obviously demonstrated his dedication there and will continue to do so. With that said, there are 49 other States who would like to have a little bit of his time to get to know him. I think it is unfair for you to criticize him.

Is he conceeding Iowa already, holy moses the race has barely started, maybe he is shifting operations to South Carolina and Nevada with hopes of winning there.

How about the story of Hillary Clinton telling George Stephanopoulis that she will make no promises about withdrawing troops from Iraq? Sounds like she's actually taking George Bush's advice. A lot more significant than a barbeque in a State that Barack has made more appearances than you can count.

Why is this a bad thing? What is so wrong with getting face-to-face time with voters?

hey IOWA< PAY ATTENTION….

second time the chickenhawk stand you up……

hope you will soon let him know that you care that he does not care…..

Obama is trying to avoid making speech mistakes in public forums. The less he (and his wife) talks, the better.

The Bush admin says Obama has "intellectual laziness", I would say he is just lazy. His wife confirmed that he is a lazy and messy person at home.

Ask him what other public events he attended while the other candidates showed up in those events.

To me, he is a half white guy (white mother) who has benefited a lot from identifying himself as black, whether it be to Havard or to get into the senate. If he was white, there would be a dime a dozen and he might not make it as a senator.

Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton said Obama talks like a white guy, and he does not speak the black values. To many, Obama is a muslim in hiding.

Honestly, I do not like Banana Hussey Obama at all.

I think it's good for candidates to skip some Iowa events. Someone needs to show those guys that they're not THAT important.

I remember "Obama slips again" on the headline before. Now he realized he can't say anything he wants. I think he is scared of mistakes. He can talk at speech by the advisor's coach but at debate, he has to answer by himself, he has no idea what kind of questions come up to him because he has no experiences. He has enough mistakes so far. He even has no crue about Social Security, medicare and medicaid also his campaign team picked up Health Care Plan from previous plans but Obama has no way to compete with Hillary's new plan and other's, so he skipped AARP Debate. There's no any excuse to skip debate if he wants to be the President. Obama said he is ready for the White House, he should show people his readiness. I am sure he is naive, inexperienced and scared.

Go Hillary!! She'll be there!!

People act like skipping an event is a drastic move. No politician can attend all events. It's stupid! Obama has prior engagements to commit to. Similarly, Tiger Woods takes heat for not playing every golf tournament, but the guy always wins and makes the most money.

…yeah, let's debate…and debate….and debate…and debate some more… until we memorize all soundbites and get brainwashed by a candidate with the most catchy slogans…
…and after The Debate pundits will invite other pundits and debate… and debate…and debate… and tell us who won and whom shall we vote for. And now, let's chastise those who don't want to play the debate game!

Barack, you are the most sensible of them all.

LOL AND????????

Those debates are meaningless. He or she that is wire correctly like Hillary Clinton will do best. I know she has her headphones on now listening to the talking points and sound bites in preparation for tomorrows debate. She is just an empty suite who has risen to national stage because of the enequities of the husband. However, Pres Bill Clinton was and is one of the greatest presidents in modern History. Hillary is not that. Only empty heads will vote for her because of her last name. By the way have you realised that most Americans are really dump. Half the country can't locate the east or west. Half don't know who is the Speaker of the House. Voting for Hillary will be a continuation of Bush.

Obama has stated long ago he would only stick to the confirmed venues. He takes his message straight to the people. That's where he talks to them face to face, gets asked the tough questions and answers them without sound bites and rehearsed speeches. You can look at the huge number of people supporting and donating to his campaign to see he's got the right idea.

This isn't news, it's another reason to bash Obama for CNN, and part what needs changing in this country.

Obama you are loosing. Hillary is running away with everything. This woman and Bill are just real politicians.

Obama will be in Iowa the following day.

More reasons to vote for Hillary!

Nice picture.

If he's already announced that he's not going to attend every possible event, why is this news? Other candidates skip events, too. Maybe all these shock-horror reactions come from the crashing realization that these debates and candidate showcases are going to be dull as dishwater without him.

Of course Obama is skipping another Iowa event. There are still Katrina victims and Jena-6 marchers to pander.

He's missing a BBQ?

And?

How is this news CNN?

Its senseless for Obama to keep showing up for what are essentially "photo ops" with six other candidates. Nothing of note ever gets said or said differently than it already has. Obama is about taking the vote to the streets and actually meeting and interacting with people. In comparison, every other candidate seems out of touch.

He garnished more senior votes by going to Wall Street and telling the robber barrons that he would eliminate taxes for seniors making less than 50 grand a year, than he could ever get by standing at a podium and giving stock 30 second replies about nothing.

If all Hilary Clinton can do is stand there and look presidential in an Armani pink pants suit with beads, then she's gonna have to seriously worry come caucus day.

If I was her, I'd hit the streets like Obama is doing as well. She's spending a little too much time saying not enough in my opinion.