WASHINGTON — Democratic candidate Barack Obama on Saturday backed away from rival John McCain’s challenge for a series of joint appearances, agreeing only to the standard three debates in the fall.
In May, when a McCain adviser proposed a series of pre-convention appearances at town-hall meetings, Obama said, “I think that’s a great idea.” This summer on the campaign trail, McCain has often noted that Obama had not followed through and joined him in any events. Advisers to the Illinois senator, speaking on condition of anonymity, say Obama is reluctant to give McCain a high-profile stage now that Obama’s the front-runner.
On Saturday, in a letter to the Commission on Presidential Debates, Obama campaign manager David Plouffe said it was likely that the commission-sponsored debates would be the only ones. The Associated Press
