Obama Brushes off Fall Debates

Barack Obama's campaign declared forum fatigue today, announcing that the presidential hopeful will decline requests to speak at debates and forums for the rest of this fall, beyond those they've already committed to. “Unfortunately, we simply cannot run the kind of campaign we want and need to," campaign manager David Plouffe wrote on the candidate's web site, "if our schedule is dictated by dozens of forums and debates.”

Obama has already appeared at seven debates and 19 forums; he will show up at eight more debates, including one sponsored by Spanish-language broadcaster Univision and two in Iowa. Critics may fault him  for dodging public questioning, reports Politico, since some say he comes off as less seasoned in those exchanges as his competitors—especially Hillary Clinton.