What if you gave a debate and one candidate came?

Fox News is not a party of any of the six presidential debates sanctioned by the Democratic National Committee, but it did arrange to sponsor two, one to be held by the Democratic party organization in Nevada and another sponsored by the Congressional Black Caucus. The Nevada debate was pulled, but apparently the September-scheduled CBC event has at least one candidate committed to making an appearance, US Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH).

Leading candidates Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards have already indicated they will skip the event. "Certainly many Fox viewers are not part of the traditional Democratic base, but they have a right to hear from the Democratic candidates and we as candidates have an obligation to reach out to them," said Kucinich. He said he has taken issue with the way Fox covers the news on occasion, but said he's done the same with the New York Times. He accused the event-skippers of seeking to avoid hostile questions, "But taking questions from all sides is part of politics and part of being President."

TVBR observation: It will be interesting to see if this event remains on the schedule and if it does, to see who actually shows up. Like a stateside PGA tour event when a lot of the top ranked players are overseas for the British Open, it may provide an opportunity for a second-tier candidate to leap out of the pack and grab the limelight.

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